PART TWO The Emergency Swing Dam The emergency swing dam is located west of the original lock near the Superintendent's Residence. Designed and built by the Dominion Bridge Company, the structure incorporates innovative design features to substantially reduce the flow of water through the canal so as to allow for repairs after an accident. The wicket gates, operating system, support pier and overall bridge framework have been identified as Level I cultural resources. The Emergency Swing Dam is valued for its surviving original form, fabric and function most of which is intact, the innovative technology incorporated in the design and operation of the dam which proved its effectiveness during the accident in 1909, and the surviving equipment and condition Archaeological Resources A comprehensive assessment of archaeological resources has not yet been undertaken. Until such time, all archaeological resources associated with the construction and operation of the powerhouse and the emergency swing dam are considered level one cultural resources. The level I archaeological resources will be unimpaired and not under threat when any interventions to the Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam are preceded by archaeological investigations and mitigation in accordance with cultural resource management policies Moveable Objects All existing moveable objects including the machinery, templates, architectural & engineering drawings, etc. associated with the swing dam and powerhouse are considered level 1 cultural resources because of their direct association with commemorative intent. The level I moveable objects are valued for their direct association with the Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam, and their association with the designers, builders and operators of the site. These level I moveable objects will be unimpaired and not under threat when the inventory and condition report is complete and maintained in up to date manner and those moveable objects deemed to be under threat are given appropriate conservation treatment and storage facilities Reasons For The Site's National Significance Are Effectively Communicated To The Public Messages of national significance are based on the reasons why the site was commemorated. Effective communication focuses on what knowledge and understanding a visitor should have acquired about the national significance of the site. Primary messages regarding the national significance of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal are as follows; The Canal is one of eight major mainline canals of the Great-Lakes St. Lawrence national canal system. The Canal completed the all Canadian transportation system from Lake Superior to the Atlantic Ocean. The Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam are of national historic and architectural significance by virtue of their innovative technological achievement. Supporting messages of national significance are: The canal engineering works were designed and constructed by Canadians. The canal operated as part of the national transportation system from 1895 to 1979. The construction of an all Canadian canal system resulted from a unique set of political and economic factors during the 1870's and 1880's. Learning Objectives for messages of national significance: Learning objectives are statements about what the visitor should understand after their visit to the Sault Ste. Marie Canal. They must be achievable and capable of evaluation. Visitors to the Canal and other target groups should learn that: The Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam are of national historic and architectural significance and survive largely intact. The Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam and the electrically powered lock were innovative engineering achievements of international significance. The construction of the Canal represented an important final link in the development of an all-Canadian canal system, and that it realized the expectations of its promoters. Canadians were responsible for the design and construction of the entire canal including the Powerhouse and Emergency Swing Dam. The Site's Other Heritage Values Are Respected In addition to those resources that symbolize or represent the national significance of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal, the site possesses other (level 2) physical and associative values that contribute to the site's heritage character and visitor experience. Other historic values associated with the site include the following; The development of hydroelectric power and its impact on the site. The Wisconsin Central Railway swing bridge built in 1895, and the railway bridge across the head of the St. Marys Rapids and the railway lift bridge at the American locks. The design and construction of the lock, canal cut, piers, other engineering works and buildings required to operate the canal. The establishment of the canal landscape and its relationship to the "City Beautiful" movement. The site's historic association with the City of Sault Ste. Marie. The defense of the canal during World War I and II by Canadians and Americans. The use of the site for fisheries management since the 1920's. Buildings The site contains a number of buildings which are level 2 cultural resources. These include the Superintendent's Residence, Administration Building, Stores Building, Timbershed, Assistant Superintendent's (Engineer's) Residence, Greenhouse, and Crewman's Shelter. The carpenters shop, stable, lumber shed, garage and pier shelter are considered to be contemporary assets, These buildings are valued for their association with the construction and operation of the site, their architectural merit, landmark status, completeness as a complex of buildings, and their contribution to the heritage character of the canal. Engineering Works Both the lock and the canal itself which consists of the entire length of canal cut, and east and west entrance piers are level 2 cultural resources. The level 2 engineering works are valued for their scale, form and function which dominate the site and are tangible representations of the transportation story and as regional landmark status. Cultural landscape The Cultural landscape is a level 2 cultural resource. The defining elements of the landscape consist of the complex of buildings, the designed canal grounds likely influenced by the city beautiful movement, the original circulation system, the canal and engineering works and the inter-relationship of these individual components to the larger setting. The level 2 cultural landscape is valued for the cohesive, aesthetic and functional design of the buildings, the engineering works, and grounds of the canal, the relationship of the complex to the larger setting of the rapids, Whitefish Island and the industrial district and the evolution of land use activities and associated resources in response to the changing nature of the canal. Archaeological resources There is no comprehensive inventory of archaeological resources at the canal. Until more research is conducted all archaeological features other than those directly associated with the Powerhouse and the Emergency Swing Dam are level 2 cultural resources. The level 2 cultural resources are valued for their potential tangible remains and research value which contribute to an understanding of the construction, operation, evolution and social life of the canal and their surviving physical elements Moveable Objects The level 2 moveable objects consist of the whole range of artifacts, machinery, equipment, plans, drawings, photographs and other archival material pertaining to the entire history of the construction and operation of the site. Most notable are the gate planer, the gatelifter, the guard gate crabs, patterns and dies, and the extensive collection of original engineering drawings. The level 2 moveable objects are valued for their direct association with the construction and operation of the site as a working canal, the information they provide on the construction and operation of the canal and quality and quantity. The large collection of moveable objects in generally good condition attests to the long history of operation. They also display uniqueness, especially the planer and the gate lifter. Historic Setting The concept of "historic setting" locates and describes the site in broader contextual terms regardless of ownership or jurisdictional boundaries. It recognizes that many of the historic values of the historic site -both physical and associative- do not end at the site's boundaries. However, identifying the values of the historic setting does not imply any jurisdiction beyond the boundaries of the lands owned by the federal government. The historic setting of the Sault Ste Marie Canal consists of the site itself, Whitefish Island, the St. Mary's Rapids and road and rail bridges, the American Locks complex, the Power Canal and Generating Station, the industrial complex to the north and the shoreline of the St. Mary's River below the lock. The historic setting of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal is valued for the relationship of the complex of buildings, engineering works and associated landscape of the site to the broader cultural landscape that has evolved over time and the survival of the linkages, both physical and visual with the city, Whitefish Island, adjacent industrial complex, the St. Mary's Rapids and the American locks. The historic setting of the Sault Ste. Marie Canal is valued for its association with the establishment of an all Canadian transportation system from Lake Superior to the Atlantic Ocean to facilitate the development of an east-west economic system. The historic setting will be unimpaired or not under threat when the views of the Canal from the city's waterfront and from the International Bridge are retained and allow for an understanding of the scale, character, complexity of the canal, and its association with the surrounding landscape. Level 2 messages These are messages which are not directly related to the commemorative intent, but which have significance provincially, regionally or locally and contribute to an understanding of the site as a whole. This is a national historic site and part of a system of protected areas. The natural and cultural heritage represented by these places is our legacy as Canadians and a very significant element of Canadian history. The Sault Ste. Marie Canal is one of a number of nationally significant canals and engineering commemorations. The Canal had an important relationship to the industrial development of Sault Ste. Marie and particularity the role of Francis Clergue who is commemorated as a person of national historic significance. J. W. LeBreton Ross was the longest serving Superintendent , from 1908 to 1938, and was responsible for the designed landscape. There was a long history of planning for the construction of the lock and subsequent modifications. Sault Ste. Marie was the site of a fur trade lock, commemorated as a national historic site and played an important role in the fur trade. The St. Marys Rapids is significant because of its geological history, ecosystem values, historical use and development and Whitefish Island is a national historic site commemorating 2000 years of Ojibway occupation.