The History of the Mowat Gates

The Mowat Gates are the pillars that add historic elegance to the entrance to Queen Victoria Park at Clifton Hill.

From 1907 to 1936, the original site of the Mowat Gates was at the entrance to Queen Victoria Park on River Road at the base of Clifton Hill. In 1936, the gates were dismantled and re-erected at their current location.

The Clifton Gate, built in 1888, was named the “Mowat Gate” in honour of Sir Oliver Mowat the then Premier of the Province of Ontario. Mowat had always been in favour of the establishment of the Niagara Parks.

By 1906, the cedar gateways needed a lot of repairs and it was decided to replace them with a more durable entrance. At this time, the gate was to be relocated further eastward near the banks of the Niagara Gorge in line with the newly established River Road.

The new Mowat Gate was completed in 1907 consisting of four granite pillars. The two main pillars measured four square feet and fourteen feet high. At the top of each main pillar, the Province of Ontario Coat of Arms is engraved on each pillar.

The old original cedar gateways were removed and relocated further into the park and stood just north of the current location of the Niagara Parks Police Building.  In 1922, the Mowat Gates were inscribed.

As traffic increased over the years, the Mowat Gates became an obstacle to free movement. In 1936, in order to remove this obstruction, the Mowat Gates were moved to their current location at the northern Falls Avenue entrance to Queen Victoria Park at Clifton Hill.

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