19th-Century Coal Chute Uncovered in Nova Scotia

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA—An investigation ahead of a road construction project near downtown Halifax has uncovered a brick and stone structure dated to the nineteenth century, according to a CBC News report. “Basically it is a cavity that was used to store coal, so it’s called a coal chute or a coal port,” explained project manager Donna Davis of Halifax’s Cogswell District. Coal would have been dumped into the chute through a grate at road level to be used as fuel. It is not yet known if the building, which was located near the Halifax waterfront, was residential, commercial, or industrial, Davis added. The construction project has also revealed large storm sewer tunnels made of brick. To read about archaeological investigations of Nova Scotia's French colony of Acadia, go to "Paradise Lost."