The Rideau Hall Gasometer
N 45° 26.743 W 075° 41.035
18T E 446516 N 5032693
An old gasometer at Rideau Hall
Waymark Code: WMEBBH
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 05/01/2012
Views: 57
The Rideau Hall Gasometer is located in the grounds of Rideau Hall, the home of the Governor General, in Ottawa. The cylindrical, stucco-covered brick structure is supported on stone foundation walls and topped by a conical roof with a ventilator/lantern and finial. Multi-paned windows are set between the brick pilasters that encircle the elegant structure.
The Rideau Hall Gasometer is historically significant for its role as an ancillary building at the Rideau Hall Complex. Typical of the shifting pattern of use of many Rideau Hall structures, the Gasometer, which was used as a source of power for several years, was converted in 1912 for use as the laundry. Now known as the Dome Building, the RCMP presently uses the Gasometer.
The Rideau Hall Gasometer is valued for its visual qualities as a surviving example of an unusual building type, and because of its functional qualities in the context of engineering history. The building demonstrates a very good aesthetic design, which has a simple elegance belying its utilitarian purpose. It is characterized by its surviving exterior materials and form which provide a successful transition between its utilitarian functions of the last quarter of the nineteenth century and its place in the cultural landscape which is today’s Rideau Hall. Built to contain the gasometer tank, the building’s specialized functional design was necessary to keep the guides and pulleys protected, and to prevent the freezing of water in the holder pit that formed a seal to prevent loss of gas, while allowing the tank to rise and fall. It is noteworthy as an architecturally fine example of this type of engineering work, once found throughout the northeast United States and eastern Canada, few of which survive.
The above information was garnered from HistoricPlaces.ca
An interesting and funny story came out of my visit to the Gasometer. I approached the gate and the guard asked me what my business on the grounds was and I said "to check out the gasometer". Perhaps intrigued as to why I was taking pictures of the structure, he asked me if I worked for the City of Ottawa or Enbridge Gas and how was I taking a gas reading. I laughed and told him that I was a tourist just taking pictures of a historically signifcant building. He smiled and said "sorry for the misunderstanding".
*An important note: to see the gasometer you must go to the back entrance, it can actually be seen from the road, just beyond the guardhouse.
Cheers
CZ
Usage: Converted
Type of gasometer: Unknown
Building year: 1878
What year usage ended!: 1912
Shape of the gasometer: Cylinder
Hight: 30 feet tall
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Visit Instructions:
Take at least one picture of the gasometer. The angle of the photo can be different from the original. Tell about your visit.