Description of Historic Place

The Lighthouse stands on an exposed, treeless site at the tip of Cap-de-la-Madeleine. It consists of a simple white concrete cylindrical tower capped by a red iron lantern. A circular concrete gallery rests on the tower and provides access to the outside of the lantern. Entry to the tower is gained via a small, shed-like porch attached to the tower. A spiral staircase leads to the lantern. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Lighthouse is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental value.

Historical Value
The Lighthouse is associated with a national transportation system that was initiated in the years immediately after Confederation by the new Dominion government. The Lighthouse, the second to be built at Cap-de-la-Madeleine, was an aid in shipping and local commerce. It thus helped promote local economic and population growth. The settlement in the seigneurie of Rivière de la Madeleine was one of the principal fishing ports on the northerly Gaspé coasts and, with the opening of the Great Eastern Paper Company six miles upstream from the mouth of the river, forestry products became a mainstay of the local economy.

Architectural Value
The Lighthouse is valued for its good aesthetic qualities. It is also a very good example of early reinforced concrete towers in Canada. The application of reinforced concrete began to appear in industrial buildings and, after 1906 in Canada, in lighthouses. The Lighthouse reveals very good craftsmanship and materials in its construction, executed by the Steel Concrete Company of Montreal, a firm expert in reinforced concrete construction.

Environmental Value
The Lighthouse maintains an unchanged relationship to its site at the tip of Cap-de-la-Madeleine. The Lighthouse reinforces the maritime character of its historic fishing center setting and is a well-known landmark in the region being clearly visible from both land and sea.

Sources: Bryan Dewalt, Lighthouse, Cap de la Madeleine, Québec, Lighthouse, Pointe Mitis, Québec, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office, Building Report, 87-090, 87-092; Lighthouse, Cap de la Madeleine, Québec, Heritage Character Statement, 87-090.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Lighthouse should be respected.

Its good aesthetic and very good functional design and very good craftsmanship and materials, for example:
- the simple massing, which consists of a white concrete, cylindrical tower, a circular concrete gallery and a red iron lantern;
- the reinforced concrete construction;
- the entryway, a small, shed-like porch attached to the tower;
- the spiral staircase that leads to the lantern.

The manner in which the Lighthouse maintains an unchanged relationship to its site, reinforces the picturesque maritime character of its historic fishing centre setting and is a regional landmark, as evidenced by:
- its ongoing relationship to its exposed, treeless site that is bounded on two sides by water;
- its overall scale, massing, design and materials, which complement the surrounding local houses and landscape;
- its high visibility from both land and sea, which makes it a landmark of its region;
- its well-known recognition by the local community as a historic lighthouse.