Description of Historic Place

The Lighttower at Green Island is a white, concrete tower partially encased in an octagonal concrete form. The tower features a matching octagonal, lantern with a red and white domed cap. The lighthouse and its surrounding secondary buildings of varying volumes and silhouettes form a picturesque grouping, enhanced by the repetition of red and white colours. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The Lighttower at Green Island is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental value.

Historical Value
The Lighttower at Green Island is strongly associated with the development of safe trans-Atlantic navigation. This lighthouse was the first navigational aid erected in Newfoundland after it received its full colonial status in 1885.

Architectural Value
The Lighttower is a good example of a lighthouse built from an experimental design and is one of the best examples of Robert Oke’s lighttower designs. As Newfoundland’s first inspector of lighthouses from 1855 to 1871, Oke’s experimental designs, with their integrated keeper’s dwellings, have excellent proportions and notable classical detailing, including strong cornices, pilasters and wide mouldings.

Environmental Value
The Lighttower located within a grouping of buildings, reinforces the picturesque character of the maritime setting at Green Island. It is a well known structure within the region.

Sources:
Joan Mattie, Three Newfoundland Lighthouses: Green Island, Pffer Wadham Island, Baccalieu Island, Federal Heritage Building Review Office Building Report 89-197, 89-210, 89-212; Lighthouse: Green Island, Newfoundland, Heritage Character Statement, 89-197.

Character-Defining Elements

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

Its experimental design and excellent craftsmanship, for example:
-the simple massing of the tower that consists of a round, stone tower encased in an octagonal concrete form with a lantern platform and octagonal lantern;
-the triangular paned windows and red and white domed roof of the lantern;
-the whitewashed exterior.

The manner in which the Lighthouse reinforces the picturesque character of its maritime setting, and is a local landmark, as evidenced by:

-the overall appearance of the lighthouse and its secondary buildings, which consists of a variety of volumes, silhouettes, repetition of red and white colours for roofs and walls, and a fence, to form a picturesque cluster of buildings in the setting;
-the role of the lighthouse, as a point of reference to passing commercial vessels and area fishermen, which make it familiar;
-the aesthetic and historical association of the lighthouse, which attracts nautical tourists.