Photo credit: Keepitsurreal | Flickr

There’s a saying that goes something to the effect of “there’s only two things you can be sure of in life: death and taxes.” For downtown Vancouver residents another constant can be added to this pithy list: the resounding, deep boom of the Stanley Park nine o’clock gun.

Each night at exactly 9:00 p.m. the 12 pounder muzzle-loaded naval canon located on the seawall just southwest of Brockton Point lets off a large boom to mark the time. The gun gives passersby either a thrill or scare depending on how closely they pay attention to the  cannon enclosure.

Overlooking Coal Harbour and the lego-like downtown skyline the gun was installed in the same spot it stands today in 1898 by the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries. 

Cast in 1816 by H&C King in England, the gun was likely used aboard British naval ships before it was gifted to Canada by the British Government in 1856. Of the three cannons brought out to Pacific coast, Stanley Park’s nine o’clock gun is the last remaining; the other two in Victoria met their fiery ends in 1940, melted down to conserve resources during World War II.  Continue reading:
History of Stanley Park Nine O’clock Gun