Holland College is installing a custom-made weathervane to honour Samuel Holland, who created the first modern map of Prince Edward Island 250 years ago and is the college’s namesake. A celebration of the installation will take place in the quadrangle on the Grafton Street side of the Prince of Wales Campus on Monday, July 6 at 11:15 a.m.

“At Holland College, we are proud of the connection that we have to Samuel Holland. His dedication to progress, his willingness to embrace new technology, and his enthusiasm for teaching embody the principles that we hold very close to our hearts,” said Holland College vice president Michael O’Grady. “We wanted to find a way to honour him based on those fundamental tenets.”

The weathervane was created and constructed by Holland College staff, students, and alumni, with the generous assistance of Diversified Metal Engineering Ltd (DME) and the City of Charlottetown. It will be installed on the cupola of the college’s Centre for Applied Science and Technology (CAST).

The CAST building faces Grafton Street, and is a landmark at the eastern entrance to the city. Sitting atop the four-storey structure, the weathervane will be visible from various vantage points in the neighborhood and from as far away as the Hillsborough Bridge. It will also be prominent enough to be seen from the sea, in the Charlottetown Harbor; and from the air, along flight paths leading into the Charlottetown airport.

The weathervane measures more than 7 feet tall and is made of brass, copper, and stainless steel. The top part of the structure, which features a 4-ft. tall silhouette of an 18th century surveyor using an octant and a directional arrow, is copper-clad stainless steel. The supporting rods, directional indicators, and augmentations are brass and copper.

Holland College welding graduate Sarah Neusch cut the directionals from a solid piece of brass and the silhouette and arrow, which were made from materials donated by her employer, DME, on a water jet table. Holland College Precision Machinist instructor Ken Muirhead machined and pieced together the brass and copper fittings to create the ornate but highly functional lower portion of the weathervane.