Construction of the Sambro Island Lighthouse National Historic Event

Sambro Island, Nova Scotia
Construction of the Sambro Island Lighthouse (© None)
Construction of the Sambro Island Lighthouse
(© None)
Address : on Main Highway to South Sambro, Sambro, Sambro Island, Nova Scotia

Recognition Statute: Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date: 1937-05-20

Other Name(s):
  • Construction of the Sambro Island Lighthouse  (Designation Name)
Research Report Number: 2003-055

Importance: Earliest lighthouse in Canada, 1758

Plaque(s)


Existing plaque:  on Main Highway to South Sambro, Sambro Island, Nova Scotia

In 1752 a proposal as made in Council to erect a lighthouse at Sambro, by means of a lottery, but no action was taken until the Assembly met in 1758 and made other provision for its erection. Construction was commenced in 1759. The original stone tower 82 feet high stands on a rocky island and the light, being 140 feet above sea level, may be seen from a distance of 17 miles. Famous in the annals of the sea.