Point Bonaventure Light Tower

The Point Bonaventure Light Tower is located on a point, which overhangs Chaleur Bay. It is a white, square-tapered lighthouse constructed of wood with a platform that supports a red-painted, octagonal steel and glass lantern. A small number of projecting and pedimented multi-pane wood frame windows and a windowless door are located on the tower. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

The Point Bonaventure Light Tower is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values.

Historical Value

The Point Bonaventure Light Tower, constructed in 1902 and relocated in 1907 to a more visible site, is associated with the Canadian government’s campaign to improve efficiency and safety for ship traffic on Chaleur Bay. As such, the Light Tower is a reminder of the strong sea-going tradition of the Gaspé Peninsula.

Architectural Value

The Point Bonaventure Light Tower is valued for its good aesthetic design. It is a relatively well preserved and representative example of the small wooden lighthouses built at the beginning of the 20th century. Its architectural concept, developed along strictly utilitarian lines, is illustrative of a long building tradition.

Environmental Value

The Point Bonaventure Light Tower is compatible with the picturesque maritime character of its coastal setting. The light tower functions as an important marker of the associated remote environment and is well-known in the area.

Sources: Lighttower, Comté Bonaventure, Québec, Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office, Building Report INF, 96-018; Point Bonaventure Lighthouse, Point Bonaventure, Bonaventure, Québec, Heritage Character Statement, 96-018.

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

Its good aesthetic and functional design and good craftsmanship and materials, for example:

- the massing and tapered silhouette of the square-based tower capped with a platform and octagonal lantern;

- the wood frame construction on a concrete foundation;

- the wood cladding;

- the steel framework bearing a steel and glass lantern and tubular railing at the platform perimeter;

- the pedimented projecting openings of the six-light wood-frame windows and the windowless door;

- the red and white colour scheme;

- the interior layout divided into three levels and the two parallel ladders that provide access to the platform and lantern-light;

- the light system.

The manner in which the Point Bonaventure Light Tower is compatible with the picturesque maritime character of its coastal setting, and is a well-known landmark within the area, as evidenced by:

- its overall scale, massing, design and materials, which complement the associated coastal landscape;

- its visibility, due to its prominent location on a point, which strongly overhangs a bay;

- its role as an easily identifiable landmark to the community in its region.