Cathcart Tower is a

Martello tower Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand u ...

located on Cedar Island in the St. Lawrence River, off the eastern shore of Fort Henry in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Tor ...

, Canada. It is one of four such towers built in the 1840s to protect Kingston's harbour and the entrance to the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...

. The other towers are: Fort Frederick,

Shoal Tower Shoal Tower, originally known as Victoria Tower, is a Martello tower located in the harbour (Confederation Basin) of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, directly opposite Kingston City Hall. It is one of four such towers built in the 1840s to protect Kings ...

, and

Murney Tower Murney Tower is a Martello tower in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, whose construction dates to January 1846. The Tower was built in response to the Oregon Crisis, which was a tense dispute over the border between British North America and the Unit ...

. Alexander Mackenzie was a foreman on the construction of the Carthcart Tower and later went on to become Canada's second prime minister 1873–1878. It was his work crew whose boat capsized while returning from Cedar Island, drowning 17 men. Hamilton Cove was subsequently renamed Deadman's Bay. One of kingstons martello towers

Built in 1848, this limestone tower is 11 m high and 16.5 m in diameter. It is surrounded by a shallow ditch and by a

glacis A glacis (; ) in military engineering is an artificial slope as part of a medieval castle or in early modern fortresses. They may be constructed of earth as a temporary structure or of stone in more permanent structure. More generally, a glacis ...

extending to the shorelines on three sides. The guns of Cathcart Tower covered the eastern approaches of Kingston Harbour. The towers' construction was prompted by a dispute between

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

over the boundary between

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

and

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

that threatened to lead to war (see

Oregon crisis The Oregon boundary dispute or the Oregon Question was a 19th-century territorial dispute over the political division of the Pacific Northwest of North America between several nations that had competing territorial and commercial aspirations in t ...

). When war was averted, Cathcart Tower was used for a time as a barracks for soldiers garrisoned at nearby Fort Henry. Eventually it was abandoned. The tower is now part of the Rideau Canal and

Kingston Fortifications The Kingston Fortifications are a series of 19th century defensive works in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, that are National Historic Sites of Canada and UNESCO World Heritage Sites (as part of the Rideau Canal inscription). The fortification system c ...

National Historic Site, the Rideau Canal and Kingston Fortifications

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

, and is within the boundaries of

Thousand Islands National Park Thousand Islands National Park (established 1904), formerly known as the St. Lawrence Islands National Park, is a Canadian National Park located on the 1000 Islands Parkway in the Thousand Islands Region of the Saint Lawrence River. The islands a ...

(formerly St. Lawrence Islands National Park). The tower is reached by small water craft with a dock located on the north side of Cedar Island.

References

External links

* {{Commons category-inline
Kingston Fortifications national historic site of canada Management Plan (Ottawa: Parks Canada, 2006)
Towers completed in 1848 Towers in Ontario Buildings and structures in Kingston, Ontario National Historic Sites in Ontario Tourist attractions in Kingston, Ontario Martello towers Limestone buildings