Canada has the longest coastline of any country in the world, and more lakes than all of them combined! Therefore, it makes sense as to why there are over 750 lighthouses scattered all over the country.
Here’s the podcast episode, in case you prefer listening to reading:
Surplus Lighthouses
In Canada, they are often transferred to provinces, municipalities, Indigenous or non-profit groups who wish to make the most of the heritage value and tourism potential of these sites. Interested acquirers of surplus lighthouses must fulfil certain requirements to become the new owners, including the completion of Fisheries and Oceans’ business plan template, opening the site to the general public as well as maintaining the heritage character of the site.
On average, the process for acquiring a lighthouse takes between 3 and 5 years. Fisheries and Oceans Canada must complete numerous steps, including Indigenous consultations, circulation with other levels of government, obtaining a legal survey and market valuation, completing environmental remediation as required, and other administrative steps to adhere to policy. This process can be lengthy and may result in the transfer of the asset to another entity, depending on the results of the required consultation.
If a lighthouse has been nominated under the Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act, it must also be evaluated by Parks Canada to determine if it should be designated as a heritage asset. If the lighthouse receives a designation as a heritage asset, the acquirer must agree to maintain its heritage character intact as a condition of the transfer of custodial responsibilities.
Canadian Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act
I’ve read the Canadian Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act so that you don’t have to!
The Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act was enacted on the 29th of May 2008. For two years starting from May 29, 2008, the Ministers responsible for lighthouses must maintain and publish a list of surplus lighthouses.
Within five years of the Act’s enactment (by the 29th of May, 2013), the Minister had to considerall lighthouses for heritage designation based on public petitions.
Protection of Heritage Lighthouses:
Alterations to heritage lighthouses must follow established criteria and procedures. Exceptions apply for emergencies and non-heritage-affecting alterations.
Transfer or sale of heritage lighthouses requires a 90-day notice in local newspapers and, in some cases, a public meeting.
Demolition of heritage lighthouses is allowed only in the absence of reasonable alternatives and is subject to a 90-day notice and, in most cases, a public meeting.
Maintenance of Heritage Lighthouses:
Owners of heritage lighthouses must maintain them in line with established maintenance criteria.
An advisory committee is established to provide advice on heritage lighthouse matters, including designation, protection, and criteria.
The Act came into force on May 29, 2010, or an earlier date determined by the Governor in Council.
The First Canadian Lighthouse
What was the first lighthouse in Canada? The Louisbourg lighthouse! It was first lit in 1734 on the French Fortress on Cape Breton Island, but it was then destroyed by British troops during the siege of 1842. This is yet another thing that I’d like to apologise for, on behalf of my country.
It was then rebuilt in 1842, and again in 1923. If you go to visit it today, the 1923 tower is the one you’ll see standing there. It’s actually a twin of the Georges Island Lighthouse in Halifax, Nova Scotia! It was destaffed in 1990 and is now the start of the Louisbourg Lighthouse Trail walking path! Does anyone fancy a walking holiday?
Canadian Lighthouse Ghost Story
Gibraltar Point lighthouse’s first keeper, John Paul Radelmüller, was murdered in 1815, leading to perhaps Toronto’s most enduring ghost story.
According to local lore, soldiers from Fort York visited J.P. Radelmüller on the evening of January 2, 1815, in search of his bootlegged beer. But they had too much to drink and a dispute broke out, culminating in the keeper’s murder. The inebriated soldiers, so it is claimed, tried to conceal their crime by chopping apart the corpse and hiding the remains. In 1893, then-keeper George Durnan searched for the corpse and found part of a jawbone and coffin fragments near the lighthouse, though it was impossible to definitively prove they were linked to Radelmüller. The veracity of the legend of the murder has long been questioned. As prominent Toronto historian Mike Filey wrote, when it came to the truth of the story of the keeper’s demise, “Your guess is as good as mine.”
Radelmüller indeed suffered a violent death on January 2, 1815, aged approximately fifty-two, according to the most recent and definitive study of his murder, which confirmed the basic truth of many aspects of the popular legend. Eamonn O’Keeffe also identified the two soldiers charged with (but acquitted of) Radelmüller’s murder as John Henry and John Blueman, both Irishmen of the Glengarry Light Infantry, a regiment that saw heavy action in the War of 1812.
While research has verified much of the traditional tale, O’Keeffe cast doubt on some of the more dramatic elements of the story. Contrary to claims that the keeper’s corpse was hacked to pieces and hidden, contemporary evidence suggests that Radelmüller’s body was not mutilated, but was found after his death by 4th lighthouse keeper George Durnan and his Uncle Joe while he was a young man, and his father was the keeper. He related to John Robertson that he and his uncle had discovered bone fragments, most notably a jawbone, and fragments of a coffin 500 feet west of the lighthouse, he believed they belonged to the late Radelmüller.
Lighthouse Explorers 