The Bower’s Tower is an historic monument put up to
honour Captain Robert Lister Bower in 1936 – he
was the first British Resident in Ibadan, and
appointed by the British government to
administer the ancient city, which he did between
1893 and 1897.
The Bower’s Tower was
designed by Taffy Jones, the engineer that
designed Mapo Hall- also a tourist attraction center in Ibadan,
The tower is 60 feet high and 11 feet square with
two entrances and a spiral staircase that leads to
the top of the tower. From the summit of the
tower, you can see Ibadan round about sprawling
before you and appreciate the pre-historicity of
the town.
“The Bower Tower is someplace to
check out if you happen to be in Ibadan”.
Bower’s Tower is located on the summit of Oke-
Are, the highest hill in Ibadan, from which one
enjoys a commanding view of the city. Oke-Are
(“The Army Chief’s Hill”) is the site central to
Igbo-Agala (Agala Forest) in Sapati Area.
The monument was erected in 1836 as a
memorial to Captain Robert Lister Bower, the first
British resident in Ibadan and the Travelling
Commissioner for the interior of Yoruba land (as
the stiffly officious British termed his office),
Southwestern Nigeria between 1893 and 1897.
The bower tower which is over 60 feet tall tower is on the hill top of
Oke Are in Igbo Agala ( Agala forest) area of
Ibadan. It is the highest hilltop in the city. The
Tower has about 47 spiral staircases, designed
by one Taffy Jones in the early 1930s.
It was
unveiled on December 15, 1936 by Sir Robert
Tower. Written on the side of the tower are these
words: “BOWER’s TOWER ERECTED DEC. 1936
IN HONOUR OF CAPTAIN ROSS L. BOWER 1ST
RESIDENT AND TRAVELLING COMMISSIONER OF
INTERIOR YORUBALAND (1893-1897). However,
all the words written on the tower have faded
with the names of ministers who had over time
renovated the place.
The Igbo Agala (Agala Forest)…..
(Coming soon)
Watch this exciting experience about the Bowers tower on YouTube
Young-po Reporters 