Kingston, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

Kirkpatrick Fountain

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

1. Kirkpatrick Fountain Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

This fountain was erected
in 1903 in honour of
Lieutenant Colonel
Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick
1841-1899
A son of Thomas Kirkpatrick, Esq.,
First mayor of the Town of Kingston
1838
Member of Parliament for Frontenac
1870-1892
Speaker of the House of Commons
1883-1887
Lieutenant Governor of Ontario
1892-1897
It was renovated in 1958

Kirkpatrick Fountain Restoration Project (English)
Frontenac County Court House
City of Kingston
History:
This fountain has stood in front of the Frontenac County Courthouse National Historic Site since 1903. Designed by Kingston architect Joseph Power, it honours Lieutenant Colonel Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick, 1841-1899, a son of Thomas Kirkpatrick, the first mayor of the Town of Kingston, 1838. Sir George was Member of Parliament for Frontenac, 1870-1892, Speaker of the House of Commons, 1883-1887, and Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, 1892-1897.

Typical of monumental park fountains erected at the turn of the twentieth century, this fountain features two tiers of round basins over

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a base guarded by a pair of seated lions surrounded by an octagonal basin. At the fountain's top, there is a statue of a classical female figure holding an urn and sporting a shell necklace with bulrushes at her feet. City of Kingston Civic Collection

Restoration:
The Kirkpatrick fountain was first restored in 1958. After vandals damaged the zinc statue at the top of the fountain in 1996, it was replaced with a bronze replica by John Boxtel. In 2002, a concrete replica replaced a missing zinc lion at the fountain's base. The current restoration will repair and restore many of the existing features of the fountain that are now leaking or rusted, replicate missing or deteriorated elements, and replace or repair mechanical elements to allow the fountain to function as originally designed.

Fontaine Kirkpatrick Projet de restauration (Français)
palais de justice du comté de Frontenac
Ville de Kingston
Histoire:
Cette fontaine garde l'entrée du lieu historique national du Palais-de-Justice-du-Comté-de-Frontenac depuis 1903. Œuvre de l'architecte Joseph Power natif de Kingston, elle est dédiée au lieutenant-colonel Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick (1841-1899), fils de Thomas Kirkpatrick qui fut le premier maire de la Ville de Kingston en 1838. Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick a été député de Frontenac

Kirkpatrick Fountain Marker • <i>wide view<br>(Frontenac County Courthouse in background)</i> image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

2. Kirkpatrick Fountain Marker • wide view
(Frontenac County Courthouse in background)

(1870-1892), président de la Chambre des communes (1883-1887) et lieutenant-gouverneur de l'Ontario (1892-1897).

Exemple typique des fontaines monumentales érigées dans les parcs au tournant du 20e siècle, elle se compose de deux plateaux circulaires qui reposent sur une base où veille une paire de lions assis dans un bassin octogonal. Une statue classique représentant une femme tenant une urne, parée d'un collier de coquillages et des massettes à ses pieds, veille au sommet. Collection municipale de la Ville de Kingston

Restauration:
La fontaine Kirkpatrick a été restaurée une première fois en 1958. Après que des vandales ont endommagé en 1996 la statue en zinc ornant le haut, une reproduction en bronze créée par John Boxtel a été posée à sa place. En 2002, une réplique en béton a pris la place d'un des lions en zinc qui manquait à la base. Les travaux actuels vont consister à réparer et à restaurer bon nombre des éléments de la fontaine qui fuient ou sont rouillés, à remplacer ceux qui ont disparu ou sont abîmés, et à changer ou remettre en état certains mécanismes pour rendre à la fontaine son fonctionnement d'origine.

Erected 1958 by Kingston Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Man-Made Features • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1903.

Location.

Kirkpatrick Fountain Restoration Project image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

3. Kirkpatrick Fountain Restoration Project

44° 13.659′ N, 76° 29.352′ W. Marker is in Kingston, Ontario. Marker is on Court Street west of West Street, on the right when traveling west. Marker is located on the front grounds of the Frontenac County Courthouse, near the east side of the subject fountain. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 5 Court Street, Kingston ON K7L 2N4, Canada. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Frontenac County Court House / Palais de Justice du Comté de Frontenac (within shouting distance of this marker); Charles Sangster (about 120 meters away, measured in a direct line); Militia Garrison 1837-38 (about 150 meters away); René-Robert Cavelier (about 150 meters away); 21st Battalion CEF Cenotaph (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); The Kingston Observatory / L’Observatoire de Kingston (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); War Memorial (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Sir John Alexander Macdonald (approx. 0.4 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Kingston.

More about this marker. Kingston is independent from the surrounding Frontenac County.

Also see . . . Sir George Airey Kirkpatrick. Kirkpatrick, whom historian Donald Wayne Swainson has called a “political patrician,” clearly felt obliged to promote the well-being of the community in which he was a

Kirkpatrick Fountain Restoration Project (<i>wide view</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

4. Kirkpatrick Fountain Restoration Project (wide view)

leader. In turn he was widely respected. A few years after his death in 1899, Liberal mpp Edward John Barker Pense obtained money from the Ontario government, Kingston’s city council, and Kingstonians in general to erect a huge memorial fountain at the Frontenac County Court-House. It was formally presented in 1903 as the climax of the city’s Homecomers’ Festival. (Submitted on October 25, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Kirkpatrick Fountain image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

5. Kirkpatrick Fountain

Kirkpatrick Fountain (<i>east side • view from marker</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

6. Kirkpatrick Fountain (east side • view from marker)

Frontenac County Courthouse • Kirkpatrick Fountain front/center image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 15, 2019

7. Frontenac County Courthouse • Kirkpatrick Fountain front/center

Credits. This page was last revised on March 27, 2024. It was originally submitted on October 21, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 205 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. submitted on October 25, 2019, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.