Tales from Hamilton’s iconic Pigott Building
If King Kong ever came to grammatically Hamilton, I think the first place he would go for a selfie is the Pigott Building on James Street South.
The Pigott is not the tallest building in the city any more. But it has an Empire State skyscraper look to it, and there are lots of concrete adornments for the great ape to hold onto when he makes it to the top.
The delightful 18-storey, Art Deco and Gothic Revival structure would not look out of place in early 1900s New York City, a Kong movie or even Batman's Gotham City. It opened in Hamilton in 1929 as the city's first skyscraper with searchlights on the rooftop puncturing the sky and it remains one of the city's most iconic buildings.
Named after the Pigott Construction Co. that built the building, the company is also known for other architectural gems such as the Cathedral of Christ the King and Westdale Secondary School in Hamilton as well as the Royal Ontario Museum and the legislative building at Queen's Park in Toronto.
I've been thinking about the Pigott Building lately after a couple of interesting stories relating to it came to my attention.
One involves something that was stolen and the other something that was found.
PIGOTT LOST
Have you noticed the front of 36 James St. S. at street level looks a little different these days?
You might recall a rectangular plaque near the bottom of the Pigott Building that commemorates the founding of the Canadian Club Movement" that took place at the address in 1892.
Well, it's not there anymore. Someone took a crowbar to the sign and made off with it.
The folks at Hamilton's Tourism and Culture Department say it's quite a problem in the city. Several historical plaques at different locations have been stolen in recent years.
It's never certain what the assailants intend to do with the panels, but it's suspected many end up with metal salvagers. (Note to would-be thieves: A shiny plaque may look to be made of bronze or brass, but many are actually aluminum and not very valuable for recycling.)
Yet, I suppose with the plaque at the Pigott, there could be other explanations for its disappearance. Maybe it was stolen by an artifact collector who intends to keep it, or perhaps a passionate grammarian went rogue.
It seems the sign could have used a little proofreading before it was cast.
At one point it's" should be its," and later Womens" should be Women's." One sentence says the plaque was erected on Dec. 6, 1913 whereas another says the date was Sept. 24, 1993. It says the first Canadian Club began in 1892 here," giving the impression it started in the Pigott building. But that's not possible because the building hadn't been constructed yet.
That's a lot of typos and confusion in less than 30 words. (Perhaps some Canadian Club whisky was being consumed when the Canadian Club plaque was being sketched out.)
Anyway, the point of the sign is to remember that the club was formed at 36 James South, in the Canada Life Assurance Building that was torn down to make way for the Pigott skyscraper. An agreement was reached nearly 130 years ago to form an organization to encourage the study of Canadian patriotic history, literature, arts, and resources."
The start of the club in Hamilton - an idea that spread across the country - was being celebrated by the Women's Canadian Club of Hamilton that paid for the plaque.
Now, the women's organization is trying to decide what to do next. Board member Pat Saunders said the subject of replacing it - something that would cost $800 to $1,200 - will be discussed at a future meeting.
PIGOTT FOUND
On a more serious note, a heart wrenching Second World War letter from Sept. 13, 1942 has recently come to light, and military history enthusiasts are taking special notice.
It was written by Royal Hamilton Light Infantry Sgt-Major Bill Dean, in Europe, to Joseph Pigott, in Hamilton, who led the construction company that built the Pigott Building.
Dean tells a harrowing account of his experience on the beach of Dieppe on Aug. 19, 1942 in the ill-fated raid that led to nearly 200 RHLI deaths. The letter was discovered by Christine Gillis, who was going through some family papers from her grandfather, John Jack" Faichney who had been given a copy by Pigott.
We were dive bombed and machine gunned and cannon shelled. Our craft started to fill. Capt. (Dennis) Whitaker shouted bale her out boys' ... we went back toward the bay four or five times, guns spitting fire," Deans said.
Recalling a point later on in the raid, he wrote, To say at the last 20 or 30 minutes I should be the only remaining member of this group to come out alive is all beyond me, Mr. Pigott. It was a sense" or an Act of God that instructed me."
Dean also told Pigott that he was elated to learn in England that Pigott's son Joe - an RHLI officer in the raid - had survived.
Coming back from Dieppe, Capt. Whitaker and myself were uneasy about Joe but Oh boy' when we heard he was safe, well I had an extra drink of army issue rum.'"
As well, Dean mentioned the emotional strain of the aftermath, describing what might today be referred to as PTSD.
It was three or four days before the reaction started on me. I found then that the best thing was to be alone," he said.
Tim Fletcher, an RHLI historian and retired captain, said the regiment was not aware of the letter before its recent discovery.
When I read this I can smell it, I can hear it. I can see it. This is a perspective from the middle of the battle," he said. You are right there with him looking through his eyes at the machine gunning and artillery shelling while people are being blown to bits ... All in this inferno of noise. They say war is hell. This was the middle of hell."
Following D-Day, two years after the letter was written, Joe Pigott returned to Dieppe as part of an Allied liberating force. But, by the time they arrived in the town on the coast of France, the Germans had evacuated.
Some weeks later, he was wounded by a grenade and returned to civilian life to work for his dad's company. Pigott died in 1999 at the age of 79. I was unable to find out what became of Bill Dean.