Nine O'Clock Gun

The Nine O'Clock Gun is a cast iron cannon perched on a concrete plinth at the edge of Stanley Park. Every evening, its muzzle flash and blast mark the hour for Vancouver residents, just as it has since eighteen ninety-four. Originally, the Royal Navy used the cannon to signal the end of the fishing day, giving sailors time to settle their accounts. A local lighthouse keeper named William Cannon famously complained when the blast cracked his windows, yet the tradition remains.