by Jonathan Browns, Paper Conservator, McWilliams Conservation Inc.
The Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa is possibly the most recognized building in Canada. Designed by architects John A. Pearson and Jean Omer Marchand, it was built between 1916 and 1922 as a replacement for the original structure which was destroyed by fire on February 3, 1916. More than 2600 original architectural drawings were produced for the Gothic Revival design which includes the original Parliamentary Library and a 90-m-high Peace Tower with observation deck.
These original drawings were destroyed during the 1940s by a fire in the architectural firm of Darling Pearson. Fortunately, Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) possessed blueprint copies of almost all of them. Most of the photographic reproductions were standard blueprints; however, a small number (46) were diazo prints. The drawings consisted of structural, mechanical, electrical, and architectural elements. The blueprints included various colours (blue, blueline, sepia, black, and purple) on a variety of papers (including tracing paper), and on occasion were adhered to a fabric backing. Soluble stamped ink, ballpoint pen, graphite, and chalk pastel had also been applied to the reproductions.
In 1997, the Heritage Conservation Program of PWGSC initiated a project to sort, catalogue, and record the information on these blueprints and some more current ones (up to 1960). The impetus of the project was the need to utilize the blueprints as reference material for the conservation and rehabilitation of the Centre Block. The project was designed to eliminate unnecessary handling of the blueprints, some of which were in poor condition, by recording and making the information available electronically.
Wanda McWilliams of McWilliams Conservation Inc. unfolding blueprints on the suction table.
On May 21, 1859, the Ottawa Tribune posted a notice to architects announcing a public competition for the construction of Canada's new Parliament Buildings. The Centre Block was to house the Parliament and the East and West Blocks were to accommodate Canada's entire civil service--forever! The article also explained that "with speed unknown to modern bureaucracy," the competition was to be conducted within one year.
The Heritage Conservation Program approached CCI for assistance in December 1997. A humidification and flattening procedure that would allow the information in the blueprints to be captured without causing physical damage to them was subsequently recommended. For this procedure, CCI custom built a 1.2 x 2.4 m (4 x 8 ft.) suction table that would allow several blueprints to be treated at the same time. McWilliams Conservation Inc. carried out the project in which approximately 4200 blueprints were humidified and flattened in 19 weeks.
The blueprints, ranging in size from 30 x 15 cm (12 x 6 in.) to 1.8 x 2.4 m (6 x 8 ft.), had been folded and stored in metal filing cabinets. They were first sorted, catalogued, and prioritized by staff from the Heritage Conservation Program. Conservators then carefully unfolded them face down onto the suction table and misted them with a water/ethanol mixture. Soft Japanese brushes were used to distribute the water/ethanol mixture evenly over the verso of the blueprints. Once relaxed, they were again misted to encourage the creases and folds to lay in a flat plane. Blueprints larger than the suction table were treated in sections, untreated areas being rolled onto a cardboard tube to support them while awaiting treatment. Approximately 7–15 min of suction was required to dry and reduce planar deformations. Following the humidification and flattening procedure, pertinent information as well as a brief condition report and treatment record were entered into a database. The plans have now been stored in oversized folders placed in flat shallow storage boxes; the diazo prints are grouped together according to type and isolated from one another with Mylar.
The treatment of these blueprints was a successful joint venture: the Heritage Conservation Program initiated the project; CCI supplied the project management, treatment strategy, and facilities; and McWilliams Conservation Inc. carried out the humidification and flattening procedure as well as the daily, on-site supervision of the project. The following individuals participated: Claude Charbonneau, Rebecca Casagrande, Michel Filion, and John Gregg from the Heritage Conservation Program; CCI conservators Michael Harrington, Sherry Guild, David Hanington, and Paul Heinrichs; and private conservators Wanda McWilliams, Jonathan Browns, Juliet Graham, and Terry Keith. This project is just one example of the growing trend in conservation for collaboration between government agencies and the private sector.
