Description of Historic Place

The Light Tower in Pointe-au-Père is located at the Pointe-au-Père Lighthouse National Historic Site of Canada, northeast of the City of Rimouski, Québec. The elegant profile of the reinforced concrete tower is highlighted by eight concrete flying buttresses, with a webbed design, that support the structure at three levels. The tower is capped by an encircling concrete walkway, itself supporting a glassed-in steel lantern, surmounted by a steel cupola and a weathervane. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Light Tower is a Classified Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental value.

Historical Value
The Light Tower is closely associated with the efforts of the Canadian government to improve navigation along the St. Lawrence River in the early 20th century to meet the growing demands of trade. The construction of this lighthouse at Pointe-au-Père in 1909, the third on the site, was the most significant element of this modernization program begun in 1903, at 14 lightstations along the St. Lawrence River from the Strait of Belle Isle to Pointe-au-Père. The lightstation had also gained significance through the 19th century as a home for river pilots, and provided an excellent staging point for the required exchange of personnel. This function encouraged additional improvements to navigational aids during the period of light station modernization.

Architectural Value
The Light Tower is valued for its very good aesthetic qualities and is one of the few surviving examples of an octagonal, flying buttressed, reinforced concrete tower built to designs prepared by chief engineer lieutenant-colonel William P. Anderson. This very good, functional concrete design was developed to be durable and relatively maintenance free. Restoration works undertaken in 1980 have been careful to maintain the form, materials and details of original elements.

Environmental Value
The Light Tower establishes the character of its present maritime, lightstation setting. It is recognized both as a physical landmark of exceptional prominence, and as a symbol of the site’s navigational importance in Canadian history and was recognized by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC) as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1976.

Sources: Normand Lafrenière avec la collaboration de Yvan Fortier, bureau régionale de Québec, La station de phare de Pointe-au-Père, Pointe-au-Père, Québec, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office, Building Report, 90-011; Lighthouse, Pointe-au-père, Québec, Heritage Character Statement, 90-011.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Light Tower should be respected.

Its very good aesthetic design, very good functional design and very good materials and
craftsmanship, for example:
- the octagonal massing capped by an encircling concrete walkway, itself supporting a glassed-in steel lantern, surmounted by a steel cupola and weathervane;
- the eight concrete flying buttresses with their webbed design supporting the structure at each of its three principal floor levels;
- the domestic-scale entrance portico and the windows placed regularly at each level;
- the interior spiral stairway which provides access to each level and to the lantern;
- the enabling mechanism for rotation and signalling of the light.

The manner in which the Light Tower establishes the present character of its maritime setting and is a well-known landmark, as evidenced by:
- its octagonal, flying buttressed, reinforced concrete tower design, which establishes and dominates the lightstation in the maritime environment;
- its recognition as a physical landmark, given its prominent location and design, and its role as a navigational aid;
- its role as a symbol of the site’s navigational importance in Canadian history, which was recognized as being of national importance by the Historical Sites and Monuments Board of Canada and which makes it a well-known landmark.