200 years ago, anti-American sentiment may have caused eagles at N.S. Legislature to lose their heads
Decades-old Boston Globe column reveals a new possible culprit, head librarian says
It's a tale that's been told again and again during guided tours of the Nova Scotia Legislature. But is it true?
In the late 1830s, an MLA by the name Lawrence O'Connor Doyle was angered by a forestry dispute in which the United States took part of Maine from New Brunswick during the Aroostook War.
Legend has it, Doyle was so upset that he took it out on some American symbols on display at Province House in Halifax.
"He saw these eagles above the windows and above the doors, and he apparently took out his walking stick and whacked off their heads," said David McDonald, head librarian at the Nova Scotia Legislature.
The white, plaster eagles — some still with their heads and some without — can be seen in Province House to this day. Rumour has it Doyle couldn't reach all of them, McDonald said.
But another story has recently come to light. McDonald said a staff member at the legislature came across another Doyle — Lt.-Gov. Charles Hastings Doyle— who could also be responsible.
This Doyle was Nova Scotia's lieutenant-governor from 1867 to 1873. He was also a military man who fought and defended Canada, in what is now Ontario, against Irish immigrants in the U.S. during the Fenian raids.
"He apparently came up, came into these rooms and he saw the eagles up there and said, 'What are these American eagles doing in Her Majesty's house?' and he apparently took his sword and beheaded them and then said, 'They are harmless now.'"
That story comes from a contributor to the Boston Globe who wrote about his visit to Halifax and Province House in a newspaper column published on July 20, 1949.
McDonald said the story of the headless eagles is a favourite among tourists who visit Province House. It's a part of the building's folklore, he said.
"This recent discovery makes it even more intriguing because we're still trying to find concrete proof that it's not hearsay that either one of these Doyles was responsible for the vandalism."
While the headless eagles remain a sign of past tensions between neighbouring countries — at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump is set to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canada — McDonald doesn't expect the remaining eagles will lose their heads any time soon.
"I'm not going to go off and lop the heads off of the American eagles," he said.
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With files from Amy Smith
