The Halifax Armoury is a military structure in central Halifax,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

, Canada. The armoury is the home base of

The Princess Louise Fusiliers The Princess Louise Fusiliers is a Primary Reserve light infantry regiment of the Canadian Armed Forces. Lineage File:Regimental Colour of the Princess Louise Fusiliers.jpg, Regimental Colour of the Princess Louise Fusiliers File:Camp_Fla ...

, and several cadet units.

Architecture

The armoury was designed in 1895 by

Chief Dominion Architect Chief Dominion Architect was a position created in 1871 by the Government of Canada to help design public federal buildings across Canada. The role reported to the Minister of Public Works. From World War II onwards to 1973 (renamed Chief Archit ...

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

, and was opened the next year and work on the structure was completed in 1899. While the sandstone exterior is based on a medieval castle, it was actually one of the most advanced structures of its day. It was pioneering in its use of a series of

Fink truss The Fink truss is a commonly used truss in residential homes and bridge architecture. It originated as a bridge truss although its current use in bridges is rare. History The Fink Truss Bridge was patented by Albert Fink in 1854. Albert Fink des ...

es to create a large interior space with no columns or walls, and is today the oldest surviving example of such a building. It was also one of the first buildings in Halifax to be lit by

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...

. The plan is similar to that of Fuller's Toronto Armoury, completed in 1894.

History

It has played an important part in many Canadian wars, being an important transit point for soldiers before departing by ship for the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

and both

World War A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...

s. It was damaged in the Halifax Explosion in 1917, the west wall being displaced by about 60 centimetres.Staff,
North Park Armoury gets permanent fix 100 years after Halifax Explosion
" ''Chronicle Herald'' (Halifax), January 25, 2017. Retrieved 3 February 2017 Still usable after the explosion, the armoury provided shelter for many who had lost their homes. The armoury again served as an emergency shelter during the 1945

Bedford Magazine explosion The Bedford Magazine explosion was a conflagration resulting in a series of explosions from July 18 to 19, 1945, in Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada. During World War II, the adjacent cities of Halifax and Dartmouth, provided heavy support for Ca ...

s, when thousands of North End residents evacuated toward the Halifax Common. The St. John Ambulance Brigade and the army worked together to shelter the evacuees for about 25 hours following the first explosion. The building was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being ...

in 1989. In 1991, it was designated a

Classified Federal Heritage Building The Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office (FHBRO) was established in 1982 after the Government of Canada adopted an internal policy on managing heritage buildings. Today, federal heritage is incorporated into the Government of Canada's Treasury ...

Restoration

Major renovations were announced in January 2017 to restore the west wall to its original position after being damaged in 1917 by the powerful blast of the Halifax Explosion. Up to 20 per cent of the wall required replacement and it was decided to use stone from the original quarry after the source was located in Beckwith, near

Pugwash, Nova Scotia Pugwash is an incorporated village in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, Canada, located on the Northumberland Strait at the mouth of the Pugwash River. It had a population of 746 as of the 2021 census. The name Pugwash is derived from the Mi' ...

.Anne Farries,
Group goes on stone treasure hunt for North Park Armoury rehab project
" ''Chronicle Herald'' (Halifax), January 27, 2017. Retrieved 3 February 2017

First phase

The first phase of the rehabilitation project centres on restoring the damaged west wall, as a tilt caused by the Halifax Explosion has gradually been increasing. Reconstruction of the wall is expected to be complete in October 2019.

Second phase

The restoration's second phase is expected to be complete by 2024. The interior will be restored, as will the other three facades as well as the building's roof.

References

External links

Halifax Armoury Commemorated

{{coord, 44, 39, 6.4, N, 63, 35, 13.1, W, display=title Buildings and structures in Halifax, Nova Scotia Armouries in Canada National Historic Sites in Nova Scotia Tourist attractions in Halifax County, Nova Scotia Romanesque Revival architecture in Canada Government buildings completed in 1899 Thomas Fuller buildings Classified Federal Heritage Building 1899 establishments in Nova Scotia