After the light: the reuse and replica of Canada’s historic lighthouses

Figures & data

Table 1. Lighthouses of Canada (approximate data based on available sources: DFO (2023); Lighthouse 2023; NSLPS (2023a); OHT 2023; and author’s data, as of May 2023).

Province	Total Number of Lights^1	Staffed Lighthouses	Recognized Heritage^2	Demolished^3	Privately Owned Lighthouses	Reused^4	Replica^5
Newfoundland and Labrador	82	23	34	58	1	6	0
Prince Edward Island	59	0	22	4	16	12	1
Nova Scotia	170	0	45	93	11	8	9
New Brunswick	85	1	14	51	17	8	3
Quebec	146	0	22	95	4	16	1
Ontario	154	0	54	79	10	19	6
Manitoba	12	0	2	3	0	0	2
British Columbia	48	27	23	14	0	5	0
Total Canada	756	51	216	397	59	74	22

¹Includes all active and inactive lighthouses/light structures that remain standing. This number does not include buoys or stand-alone fog signals. At present, there are approximately 500 active lighthouses/light structures across Canada; ²Lighthouses/light structures that have received official (i.e. Federal/Provincial/Municipal) heritage recognition; ³Lighthouses/light structures that were destroyed or removed and not replaced; ⁴Lighthouses/light structures that have been fully or partially adapted/transformed for purposes other than navigational aids; ⁵Replicas (also called faux lighthouses) are reproductions or refabrications of historic lighthouses placed either at the original lighthouse site, relocated to a new site and/or integrated into new or existing urban fabric.

Table 2. Reuses of historic lighthouses in Canada (source: DFO (2012); Lighthouse 2023; author’s data).

Type of Reuse	Total (n = 89*)
Artist Space/Galley	3
Community Event Space	3
Lodgings (Vacation/Airbnb Rental or Hotel)	11
Museum/Welcome Centre	47
Private Residence	9
Retail/Restaurant	8
Research/Educational Facility	5

*N.B. total includes cases of multiple types of reuses in the same site.

Figure 1. Reusing Lighthouses as Lodgings (clockwise: Ile aux Perroquets Lighthouse, PQ; photo: M. Villeneuve, 2005; Cap Chat Lighthouse, PQ; photo: A. Beloin, 2010; McKay Island Lighthouse, ON; photo: J.M. Cunnin, 2016; Cap D’Espoir Lighthouse, PQ; photo: C.W. Bash, 2008).

Figure 2. Faux Lighthouses (clockwise: The Grand Anse Lighthouse, NB; photo: D. Jarvis, 2022; Nancy Island Lighthouse, ON; photo: CMH, 2017; Reed’s Point Light, NB; photo: D. Jarvis, 2021; Digby Pier Lighthouse, NS; photo: D. Jarvis, 2018).

Figure 3. The Horton Bluff Faux Lighthouse (left: replica in construction; right: replica completed; photos: R. Myles, no date).

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