The Lantern

 Wilfrid Laurier was the prime minister whose government oversaw the construction of the Museum of Nature. As Parliament was still convening in the building at the time of his death, Laurier laid in state for a time here in the building.

There are ghost stories associated with the building.

In 2004, work began on a renewal of the building. The Queens Lantern itself is part of that.

It replaced the original tower, a stone structure that proved problematic for the soil beneath it. Steps were taken with the new structure to compensate, and even though the Queens Lantern is quite different from the rest of the building, it fits in.

The administrative building for the Museum is over on the Gatineau side of the Ottawa River.

The Queens Lantern is a marvel.

The Moon hanging above is irresistible to the photographer.

The next gallery is the Bird Gallery, which features a good number of specimens in display cases, presented in an educational way. We'll carry on here tomorrow.

The Festive Season

 I pick up where I left off yesterday. The Chateau Laurier started out as a railroad hotel. The president of that railroad was en route from Europe with his family and a large shipment of antique furniture for the opening when they hit a snag. The ship was the Titanic, and he was among those who died in the sinking. It's been said that his ghost haunts the hotel.

More of the trees.

A bust of the hotel's namesake is here, Prime Minister Laurier.

One more shot from today.

The Call Of Battle Far From Home

 Returning to my series from the War Museum. The next gallery looks at wars for empire. At the end of the 19th century, the British empire was marking the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria.

At this time, unrest in South Africa was happening, with militants seeking their own path. The result was the second Boer War, or the South African War. 

Canadians would go to serve in the conflict. Prime Minister Laurier had to balance the issue at home, as not everyone agreed with the idea of sending soldiers overseas.

Gone were the days of bright uniforms. This mannequin sports the typical uniform of that war.

This hat has its own story. A Canadian soldier put it out to test the skill of a South African sniper. A bullet hole near the top of the hat speaks to that skill.

This display case includes a scarf, given to a Canadian soldier for bravery. It was one of a handful personally knitted for that purpose by the Queen herself.

It became a guerilla war, one eventually won by the British and Canadians.

This field gun is a veteran of that war.

As the 20th century dawned, the country took more responsibility for its own defenses, building armouries, founding a navy, and training cadets.

World War One broke out, and from the beginning, Canadian soldiers were part of it.

This large painting is Canada's Answer, by Norman Wilkinson, depicting the first sailing of Canadian soldiers bound for Europe in the fall of 1914.

Into A New Century

 One last look inside St. Onuphrius for this visit.

This is the typical uniform of a maid in the Canadian west at the turn of the 20th century.

Eatons was a retail company that did much of its business through catalogues, helpful in the vastness of Canada. The descendants of its founder in recent years blundered the company into going out of business. 

Some of its items of that period are seen in this display case.

In the west, temperance groups flourished.

The path to the third and final gallery ascends a long and graceful ramp that winds around the central hub. Down below on the floor is a physical relief map of Canada.

This gallery goes from 1914 to the current day.

At the time, Canada was still very much part of the British empire.

This display case includes a bust of Wilfrid Laurier, whose tenure as PM spanned the end of the 19th century and into the 20th century.

Canada was involved in the First World War from the beginning, sending a large amount of its population to war. One in ten would not make it home.

This is the uniform jacket of Sergeant Alexander Reid, who served with bravery and distinction during the Great War.