Capital Facts: The nature museum's original tower was removed because it was too heavy

[guest]

In celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday, the Citizen is rolling out one fact each day for 150 days until July 1, highlighting the odd, the fascinating and the important bits of Ottawa history you might not know about.

The glass tower over the entrance of the Canadian Museum of Nature is the second that has stood in that exact location. The first, made of stone, was too heavy and had to be removed. The museum stands on soft clay, and the original tower started to sink while it was still under construction, making the floor slope. In 1915, the builders had to take down the upper part of the tower. The new tower, called the Queens’ Lantern, fills the space intended for the original. It’s 20 metres tall, made of glass and has the original mosaic floor at the base.

— Tom Spears

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