Cabot Tower (Newfoundland)

Cabot Tower was built in 1897 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's discovery of Newfoundland, and Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. It is located on top of Signal Hill overlooking the city of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. In 1901, Guglielmo Marconi received the first trans-Atlantic wireless message at a position near the tower, the letter "S" in Morse Code sent from Poldhu, Cornwall, England.

Cabot Tower is now the centre of Signal Hill National Historic Park, Canada's second largest historic park, with walking trails, and an interpretation centre where the visitor can hear very interesting stories about the area. Hikers will be rewarded with spectacular views of the city, the harbour, and the ocean.

History

Begun in 1897 to commemorate both Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee and the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's (Giovanni Caboto) voyage to the New World, Cabot Tower was completed in 1900 and has been a part of many historic events. Although now one of the most recognizable symbols of St. John's and Newfoundland, its construction was not well supported in the town. Most of St. John's burned to the ground in 1892 and the banks in Newfoundland crashed in 1894. When Judge D.W. Prowse, a prominent local man, suggested building Cabot Tower, one person said in a local paper that "it's like putting a silk hat on the head of a man who can't afford to buy a pair of boots." Another project, the Victoria Wing of the local hospital, received much more public support.

The building was used primarily for flag signalling. The British military first used Signal Hill, originally known as the Lookout, for this purpose in around 1704. There was a mast at the highest point on the hill, and it would be the job of a signalman to keep an eye out for ships approaching St. John's. When one was spotted he would indicate by flag what type of ship it was, what country it was from and fire off a peterra so that the men below in the town would know to look towards the Hill. Then they would fire the same type of cannon in response. By the end of the 1700s, a blockhouse had been constructed on the site. By the 1800s, the signalling was done mostly for the various merchants who operated out of St. John's. Cabot Tower was the last in a line of signalling blockhouses built on Signal Hill. It was used for flag signalling until Signal Hill was established as a National Historic Site of Canada in 1957.

On December 12, 1901 it stood witness to possibly the most important accomplishment in modern communications - the reception of the first wireless transatlantic signal by Guglielmo Marconi from his Poldhu Wireless Station, in Cornwall, England.

A Marconi Wireless Station operated on the second floor of Cabot Tower for many years afterward. In fact, in 1920 one of the first wireless transatlantic transmissions of the human voice was made there. Men at the wireless station were able to talk with the steamship Victoria which was steaming out of England. The station operated until around 1960.

The communications legacy of Cabot Tower is kept alive today by the Society of Newfoundland Radio Amateurs (or SONRA) who operate a ham radio station on the second floor.

The Cabot Tower has a fifty foot octagonal tower at the southeast corner of the building. [http://www.historicplaces.ca/rep-reg/affichage-display_e.aspx?Id=2974]

Located at the highest point of Signal Hill, overlooking the city and the ocean, the Cabot Tower built of irregularly coursed red sandstone is composed of a two storey, thirty-foot, square structure with a three storey, fifty-foot octagonal tower that stands on the southeast corner of the building. The corners are buttressed at the first floor level and further emphasized through the use of heavier blocks of stone. On the main body of the building, at the top of the second storey level, is a line of repeating pattern like an exaggerated dentil row or inverted crenellations. The attached tower which houses the main entrance, is very plain with a double stringcourse marking the divisions between second and third storeys and heavy corbel tables marking the eight corners of the turret at the flared upper level. The windows on both the corner turret and the body of the tower proper are rectangular and set under heavy stone lintels. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

The Cabot Tower is a Classified Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental valuesThe cabot tower means a lot to the history of Newfoundland and Canada

Historical Value

The Cabot Tower is one of the best examples illustrating the evolution of communications in the British Empire - and post-1949 as part of the Canadian federation, from the earliest aural and visual systems, through to the long-distace, wireless transmission of the human voice. The tower housed signaling functions until 1958, and is associated with Guglielmo Marconi who received the Nobel Prize in 1909 for physics and communication and who received the first trans-Atlantic transmission of the human voice at Signal Hill in 1920. It was built as a monument to John Cabot's 1497 voyage to North America and to the 60th anniversary of Queen Victoria's reign.

Architectural Value

Cabot Tower is a very good example of the late-Gothic Revival style. Its highly integrated design, its form, secondary elements, materials and the manner in which they are worked and assembled contribute to its solid enduring appearance. Reinforced by the use of large blocks of stone, irregularly coursed sandstone, buttresses at the corners, crenellations and other Scottish-Baronial details, its solid and monumental appearance characterize the structure. Its architect, William Howe Greene was a prominent St. John's architect and an associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Having completed many commissions in St. John's, Cabot Tower had a very high profile and is a very good example of his work.

Environmental Value

Cabot Tower, located at the summit of Signal Hill National Historic Site establishes the present character of the area within its dramatic natural setting. More than a local landmark, many Canadians perceive it as a symbol of Newfoundland. The tower's physical prominence, overlooking the city and ocean makes it visually conspicuous and easily identifiable. The symbol of the tower has become public domain used locally in commercials, calendars, post cards, pins, books and tourism materials.

Sources:Kate MacFarlane, Cabot Tower, Signal Hill National Historic Site, St. John's, Newfoundland, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office Building Report 88-43.

Cabot Tower, Signal Hill National Historic Site, St. John's, Newfoundland, Heritage Character Statement 88-43The following character defining elements of the Cabot Tower should be respected, for example:

Its very good example of late-Gothic revival style with its highly integrated design, form, fine materials and craftsmanship as manifested in:

* Its two-storey 30-foot square structure and three-storey 50-foot octagonal tower.
* The entirety of the exterior elevations with its solid and monumental appearance reinforced by the use of large blocks of stone, irregularly coursed sandstone, buttresses at the corners, crenellations and Scottish-Baronial details.
* The attached tower housing the main entrance with a double stringcourse marking the divisions between second and third storeys and heavy stone corbel tables marking the eight corners of the turret at the flared upper level.
* The rectangular window openings set under heavy stone lintels on both the corner turret and the body of the tower.
* Its interior layout and fabric that relate to its function as a signal and communications tower.
* The manner in which Cabot Tower establishes the present character of Signal Hill National Historic Site within its dramatic natural setting and is perceived as the symbol of Newfoundland.