Description of Historic Place

The St. John Bastion Foundry is located in historic Old Quebec city Artillery Park Heritage Site, near the St. John Gate, overlooking both the plateau and the St. Charles River. An early 20th-century industrial building built of red brick, the foundry consists of two volumes, a 25 feet high (7.6 metres) block with a pitched copper roof, and a long, flat-roofed structure that extends along the west wall. A discreet entrance is situated on the southwestern corner. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The St. John Bastion Foundry is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values.

Historical Value:
The St. John Bastion Foundry is a very good example of a structure associated with industrial military development at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. The Foundry currently serves as a reception and interpretation centre for Artillery Park Heritage Site.

Architectural Value:
The St. John Bastion Foundry is a very good example of early 20th-century industrial architecture that recalls the classicism of the first hydroelectric stations. The self-supporting structure contains a very large interior space with exposed load-bearing masonry walls and metal roof trusses. The latter are representative of turn-of-the-century structures. This functional building exhibits good craftsmanship and materials as evidenced in the masonry and stone foundations.

Environmental Value
The St. John Bastion Foundry reinforces the present military character of the Artillery Park Heritage Site setting and is familiar in the region.

Sources: Yvon Desloges, Histoire et archéologie, bureau regional, Québec, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office Report 91-038; St. John Bastion Foundry, Artillery Park, Quebec, Quebec, Heritage Character Statement 91-038.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the St. John Bastion Foundry should be respected.

The very good aesthetic design, good functional design and very good quality materials, for example:
- the monumental massing in two main volumes;
- the pitched copper roof with five roof lanterns;
- the regularly placed, large round arched windows surmounted by semi-circular transoms on the façade, while on the secondary elevations, a surbased arch highlights the upper portion;
- the construction consisting of red brick on a stone foundation;
- features related to the building’s industrial function, such as the entrances, the door on the second floor and its pulley system for hoisting bundled material, the versatility and bare character of the open interior spaces;
- the decorative elements in rough stone, including the imposing voussoirs of the entrances, the windowsills, the band course linking the openings on the façade as well as the band course running along the top of the wall;
- the extension, a long flat-roofed structure which was built along the west wall.

The manner in which the St. John Bastion Foundry reinforces the military character of Artillery Park setting and is a well-known landmark, as evidenced by:
- its scale, design and materials, which harmonize with its historic and urban surroundings;
- its prominent location in Artillery Park Heritage Site which attracts tourists who enter the St. John Bastion, and makes it well-known.