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 Dundurn Castle Dovecote - Hamilton, Canada Posted by:  Bon Echo
N 43° 16.156 W 079° 53.095
17T E 590490 N 4791321
Reportedly one of only two dovecotes in Ontario. This one is prominently situated on the grand Dundurn Castle.
Waymark Code: WMWY4W
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 10/28/2017
Views: 31
Built in 1835, Dundurn Castle was the prestigious home of the MacNab family and their servants. With its beautiful picturesque landscape and stunning views of Burlington Bay, the Castle was a showpiece for Sir Allan Napier MacNab’s success as a business person and politician.
Across from the Coach House is a stuccoed brick dovecote used for raising pigeons; a valuable source of meat. There are forty-eight dormered flight holes on the roof. Gardener, William Reid was responsible for the dovecote. In a letter to MacNab in 1847, the writer noted “Now a word or two about the doos or what the lowland laddies called pigeons, for as Reid termed them there is a ‘hale swarm of them’.
Incorporated into the doorway of the dovecote is the crest of the Clan MacNab which features the head of the ancestral enemy, the carved MacNab motto “Gun Eagle”, and beneath it the date, 1835.
sources:
museumshamilton.com/#/pano/dundurn-outdoor-coachhousecourtyard
museumshamilton.com/#/pano/dundurn-outdoor-southlawn
The house and it's associated buildings are listed as a National Historic Site of Canada. The dovecote is included in the character defining elements:
The Dovecot, including its prominent location on the former York road, its picturesque design function as a tower in the landscape, and its overall architectural integrity
Source: http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=12341
The dovecote is no longer is use and unfortunately tours of the house do not allow access to that part of the building. A public aviary once occupied that portion of the building, as shown in this Wikimedia photo circa 1981:
By Local History & Archives, Hamilton Public Library [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons
(If known) Approximately how many pigeonholes in the dovecote?: 48
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Visit Instructions:
The only condition to visit a Dovecote waymark is to upload at least one personal photo of the structure. Also, tell us a little about your visit and your opinion about its architecture.
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