Description of Historic Place

The Point Escuminac Light Tower is a slender, 18-meter tall structure comprised of a hexagonal, reinforced concrete shaft that is flared at its summit to support a circular concrete gallery and octagonal, prefabricated metal lantern. Painted white, the tower’s exterior features red accents on its lantern and simple metal railings. Based on a prototype developed for the Cape Forchu Light Tower, its hexagonal plan is a modernist interpretation of the former octagonal wooden tower that used to stand within the light station. Established as part of an upgrading program, the current light tower is the most prominent feature of the site, located on a low, flat shale point at the southern entrance to Miramichi Bay on the Gulf of the St. Lawrence.

Heritage Value

The Point Escuminac Light Tower is a “Recognized” Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values:

Historical value
The Point Escuminac Light Tower is a very good example of the theme of federal aids to navigation in Canadian waters, illustrating the history and evolution of marine aids in terms of the technology and architecture of light stations. Built in 1965 to supplant the latest of its three predecessors, the light tower represents a period of extensive construction activity to replace and upgrade aids to navigation as the result of automation. With a nominal range of 13 nautical miles, this major coastal light marks the entrances to Miramichi Bay to the north and Northumberland Strait to the south. As the fourth light on the site, the tower is part of a development continuum that relates to the ongoing activity on the minor shipping route of the Strait.

Architectural value
The light tower is a very good application of a reinforced concrete, vertical cantilevered tower design that was created in the early 1960s and which, having been subsequently adopted as a standard design, was used extensively during the national upgrading campaign. Its design, an adapted version of the prototype developed by engineer Lorence E. Slaght for the Cape Forchu Light Tower, reflects how traditional classical detailing has evolved toward modernist-inspired, crisp, clean forms and minimalist details. It was built to be simple, functional and fully automatic, with the purpose of minimizing maintenance. Its construction used recognized building technology and modern utilitarian materials that were well suited to its location. Having withstood the test of time and harsh weather, the Point Escuminac Light Tower remains a significant example of Slaght’s work.

Environmental value
The Point Escuminac Light Tower is located at the end of an open, flat point of land at the mouth of the Miramichi Bay, in an isolated area about 8 km east of the small village of Escuminac. Since the tower’s construction, the site has experienced the loss of its lightkeeper dwellings, the replacement of a fog alarm building and the addition of a generator/radio equipment building. In addition to the physical changes that have occurred over time, the function of the lightstation has also evolved, combining a new role as weather station with its longstanding identity as an aid to navigation. Surrounded by outbuildings and ancillary equipment, the massing of the light tower is compatible with the present character of both the built and natural environment. The light tower is a familiar landmark to the small local community of Escuminac and its immediate vicinity.

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Point Escuminac Light Tower that should be respected include:
— Its impressive form and profile, consisting of a tall, slender, hexagonal shaft
flared outward at its top to support a circular gallery and octagonal lantern;
— Its use of the traditional colour-scheme consisting of a white shaft and red lantern and gallery railings;
— Its strikingly modernist design, devoid of all non-essential elements or detailing that would require additional maintenance.
— The aesthetic and functional simplicity of its shaft, as seen in:
— Its smooth, unadorned surface treatment,
— Its single south-facing door at the base and its four narrow windows, stacked vertically on the north facade and expressing the interior arrangement;
— Its vertical cantilever structural design, allowing for a small footprint;
— The interior spiral staircase as vertical circulation system; and
— The easy access to its lantern through a hatch in the concrete deck above a short ladder off the stair landing;
— Its durable, modern construction methods and materials such as the reinforced concrete structure, galvanized steel staircase and ladder, steel railings and lightweight aluminum lantern; and
— Its prominent location on a low point of land at the water’s edge.