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Showing once again that Halifax isn’t some second-rate, small-town city that can’t compete with the big boys, the demolition of the former Halifax Infants’ Home has been selected by Heritage Canada The National Trust as one of their top four historical losses this year.
The 115-year-old testament to our shared history was boldly (and surprisingly) demolished last week, despite some crybaby moans from those who hate progress.
“This important historic institution once gave shelter and medical support to single women and their infants,” Heritage Canada boasts. “It stood as a remarkable testament to the emerging role of women in late-19th-century Halifax.”
Not no more, it don’t!
Saint Mary’s University, who had owned the building since 1998, figured it was just cheaper to buy a new building then save the current one. The Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia suggests the building could have been saved for a fraction of SMU’s estimated cost, but we all know what sort of jerks they are.
Including the Infants’ Home, Nova Scotia had two of Heritage Canada’s top four losses. The Point Aconi Lighthouse in Capstick, Cape Breton earned a spot by burning down in February. Though an act of nature doesn’t sound at all as impressive as a big wrecking ball smashing shit.
Some might say the loss of any culturally-significant property without full and proper public consultation is an insult to our heritage, but those people are stopping us from succeeding and should be expelled from our borders.
The historic destruction of property glass is half-full, you know?
Some pioneer house in Shilo, Manitoba and a mansion in Quebec were also on the worst losses list.
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This article appears in Jul 17-23, 2014.
This article is so full of sass! Like actually teeming with sass! I like it.
Do they not teach the difference between “then” and “than” in writing school?
So glad we have such an active and engaged Heritage Trust working away tirelessly to advocate for and fund restoration of buildings like this.
Their hard work is so rarely recognized when they achieve such a great success, like making announcement that “demolition is bad”, the day before the demolition. My mind is just blown.
They are my heroes.
They are certainly not too distracted by their obstruction of new downtown developments on empty lots to get in the way of saving buildings like the Halifax Infant’s Home.
They can be truly proud of their brilliant success! Thanks the gods for the Heritage Trust doing such a great job at saving heritage!
Go Heritage Trust, go!
The first commenter’s sarcastic remarks are far from warranted. Heritage Trust had been working for YEARS on saving this very important building for future generations. It’s St. Mary’s University who was disingenuous here, claiming to stop the wrecking ball while options were being discussed, and then without warning to those they were in dialogue with, suddenly calling in the demolition team on a Friday before a long weekend without warning. Get your facts straight. The Heritage Trust folks do amazing work ALL OVER this province.
there needs to be a debate about built heritage and progress in this city. Sadly this article doesn’t do that. it should be troubling when 50% of the losses are in Nova Scotia. it should also be noted that the view from citadel hill has never made the top 10 endangered places list.
the HTNS, with their no compromise positions, sets them selves up to oppose, rather then work with developers to better preserve heritage. the infants home loss needs to be worn by HTNS. They Failed. they were told of the decision prior to the demolition, and knew it was a possibility over the winter, but did nothing publicly to raise awareness, or get the public to campaign the SMU board to save the building. their silence on the Dennis building is also astounding.
Peggy, If you want the HTNS to succeed, they need to be a better public advocate for heritage. it cant be done behind closed doors anymore. they need to stop their obsession with anything that is tall, or else the result will be a stunning view from citadel hill of all the flattened heritage lying in rubble piles across the provence.
You’re right Peggy. The amount of progress they have prevented Halifax from achieving is quite amazing.
I gotta say, BRING ON THE BOON. Aside from what I do or don’t think about maintaining heritage properties until Halifax slides into the Atlantic, I have not laughed this much at Reality Bites or any other column in The Coast in years.
Congratulations on hiring someone who not only lacks the smug, self-serving and off-puttingly bitter qualities of particular ex-Coast employees, but also seems gifted in criticizing policy and taking the piss at the same time. A breath of fresh air.
Wow, this article comes across as attempting the sarcastic style of another writer without the mastery of sarcasm. Better luck next time.
I, for one, would rather live in a place where private owners of old buildings can never tear them down and build new ones. Let’s just keep building outwards, I say! Maybe we can reach Truro by the end of the decade like that lovely corridor in Ontario (after all, Halifax so wants to be Toronto, right?), but at least downtown will have all of its Heritage buildings.
“Not no more, it don’t!” “… as impressive as a big wrecking ball smashing shit.” “The historic destruction of property glass is half-full, you know?” “Some pioneer house in Shilo, Manitoba” “…a mansion in Quebec”
Except that there are likely no typewriters at the Coast office these days, I’d have thought that the monkeys who may someday write like Shakespeare had been let loose in the typewriter room, though perhaps they have managed to get to the keyboards. Rather a disjointed article.
Also it seems that the pioneer house in Shilo MB was deemed so important by the author that it is just referred to as a random pioneer home, with no effort to describe it by a name. Same with the Montreal mansion, since that did not warrant a name either. Sheesh.
By the way it is the Criddle/Vane House near Shilo and the Redpath mansion in Mtl. according to the list found in this url which could have helped ‘flesh out’ the article had it been included. https://www.heritagecanada.org/en/issues-c…
Are the editors on vacation perhaps?
I dont know if I am the only one noticing the ironic content of this article, but the concern were about preserving the HERITAGE of this Nova Scotian Infants home, all the while, continuing to deny the rights of any HERITAGE of the children who lost all ties here.