19th-century military compound discovered near Canada’s Parliament

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A 19th-century military compound has been discovered near Canada’s Parliament in Ottawa.

“We’re unearthing the past on Parliament Hill,” explained Public Services and Procurement Canada in a Facebook post. Archaeologists have uncovered barracks and a guardhouse, as well as objects such as pins, buttons, broken ceramic pipes, grommets and coins, according to officials. They all pre-date the confederation of Canada in 1867 when the provinces of British North America became the Dominion of Canada.

“The barracks were built in 1826 and were the headquarters and home for the Royal Sappers and Miners regiments: about 150 soldiers and their families,” explained Public Services and Procurement Canada. These soldiers oversaw the construction of Ottawa’s famous Rideau Canal, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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“Ottawa, then called Bytown, had no jail so the guardhouse of the barracks, which featured a three-cell jail, was used to house prisoners,” added Public Services and Procurement Canada.

The military compound was discovered on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. (Public Services and Procurement Canada)

Archaeologists will continue working at Parliament Hill into the fall. The project is part of the preparations for renovation and preservation of the Centre Block, which is the main building of Canada’s Parliament.

Fox News has reached out to Public Services and Procurement Canada for additional comment on this story.

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Canada continues to reveal new details of its rich history. Last year, a mysterious underground vault was discovered on the grounds of the Nova Scotia Legislature in Canada.

Archaeologists have uncovered barracks, a guardhouse and a number of 19th-century items from the site near Canada's Parliament in Ottawa. (Public Services and Procurement Canada)

CBC reports that the living room-size stone chamber was found last summer during a project to remodel the gardens of Province House in Halifax. Experts were unable to enter the vault but used remote cameras to take a peek inside.

It’s not clear what the mysterious room was used for, although experts think that it may have once served a military purpose.

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The barracks housed soldiers that oversaw the construction of the famous Rideau Canal, according to officials. (Public Services and Procurement Canada)

Also last year, archaeologists confirmed that a rare copper arrowhead discovered on a remote Canadian mountain is almost 900 years old. The arrowhead, which is at the tip of a perfectly preserved antler arrow, was found sticking out of an ice patch in Canada’s Yukon Territory in 2016.

A number of 19th-century items were discovered at the excavation site. (Public Services and Procurement Canada)

A tourist visiting a small museum in Canada stunned onlookers recently when he managed to crack a safe that no one had been able to unlock for decades.

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