The Rooms, Cultural institution in St. John's, Canada.
The Rooms is a modern museum and cultural center in St. John's that combines art exhibitions, historical collections, and provincial archives under one roof. The facility spans multiple levels and offers views of St. John's harbor.
Fort Townshend, an 18th-century star-shaped citadel built to defend Britain's fishing interests, once stood on this hill. The imperial garrison withdrew in 1870, after which the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and later the St. John's Fire Department used the site. The fort was buried during construction of The Rooms, which opened on June 29, 2005; the site had been designated a National Historic Site in 1951.
The name and gable-roofed form refer to the "fishing rooms", simple sheds once common at the waterline of Newfoundland fishing villages. Inside, the provincial museum displays dioramas of tundra and bog life, mounted birds, and exhibits on the Beothuk and Inuit, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and Irish fishermen.
The Rooms stands at 9 Bonaventure Avenue, next to the Basilica of St. John the Baptist and a short walk from downtown St. John's. The building sits on a hill above the harbour, so the upper floors look out over the port, The Narrows and Signal Hill. A lit pathway of granite pavers traces the outline of Fort Townshend outside the building.
The building's name and its gabled silhouette refer to the simple "fishing rooms" — sheds once common at the waterline of Newfoundland fishing villages. The site also holds buried remains of Fort Townshend, a star-shaped British citadel; its outline is marked with granite pavers along a lit pathway.
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