The York Street Millennium Fountain - Ottawa, Ontario
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Weathervane
N 45° 25.645 W 075° 41.685
18T E 445651 N 5030667
The York Street Millennium Fountain is located on York Street, in Ottawa, Ontario.
Waymark Code: WMF35H
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 08/14/2012
Views: 20
Text on a panel in front of the fountain:
"In the mid 19th Century, fresh pure drinking water was difficult to obtain in Ottawa. Residents could either purchase it from water carriers who hauled it up from the Ottawa River, or fetch it from their public well. Because of the demand for fresh water, wells and drinking fountains were among the first public works financed by the municipality. These wells and fountains were usually at prominent intersections and were designed for use by both people and animals. Many were handsomely designed in cast iron or stone and were integral parts of the streescape.
The York Street Millennium Fountain was inspired by a fountain at the intersection of George and Sussex Streets. That fountain, located on the site of a public well dating from the 1840s, was probably built in the 1890s. It featured a small basin with cup on a chain facing Sussex for the public and a large through facing George for horses. Flanking it was a handsome row of trees and a gas lamp, at the fountain's centre, lit it and a nearby cab stand. The York Street Millennium Fountain serves as a reminder of an era when water, our most precious commodity, was not freely available to all and commemorate the role that the City has played in the supply of fresh water to its citizens since the 1840s."
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