Bytown is the former name of
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. It was founded on September 26, 1826, incorporated as a town on January 1, 1850, and superseded by the incorporation of the City of Ottawa on January 1, 1855. The founding was marked by a
sod turning
Groundbreaking, also known as cutting, sod-cutting, turning the first sod, or a sod-turning ceremony, is a traditional ceremony in many cultures that celebrates the first day of construction for a building or other project. Such ceremonies are o ...
, and a letter from Governor General
Dalhousie which authorized Lieutenant Colonel
John By
Lieutenant-Colonel John By (7 August 1779 – 1 February 1836) was an English military engineer. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal and for having founded Bytown in the process. It developed and was des ...
to divide up the town into lots. Bytown came about as a result of the construction of the
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...
and grew largely due to the
Ottawa River timber trade
The Ottawa River timber trade, also known as the Ottawa Valley timber trade or Ottawa River lumber trade, was the nineteenth century production of wood products by Canada on areas of the Ottawa River and the regions of the Ottawa Valley and weste ...
. Bytown's first mayor was
John Scott John Scott may refer to:
Academics
* John Scott (1639–1695), English clergyman and devotional writer
* John Witherspoon Scott (1800–1892), American minister, college president, and father of First Lady Caroline Harrison
* John Work Scott (180 ...
, elected in 1847.
Overview
Bytown was located where the
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...
meets the
Ottawa River
The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...
and consisted of two parts centered around the canal, Upper Town and Lower Town. Upper Town, situated to the west of the canal, was situated in the area of the current
downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
and
Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their architectu ...
. Lower Town was on the east side of the canal where today's
Byward Market and general area of
Lower Town
Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" (french: la Basse-Ville) is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest part of the city. It is bounded by Rideau Street to the south, ...
still exists. The two areas of town were connected over the Rideau Canal by the
Sappers Bridge
The Plaza Bridge in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is an automotive and pedestrian bridge that crosses the Rideau Canal just south of the Ottawa locks. It joins Wellington Street and Elgin Street in the Downtown core to the west with Rideau Street to ...
, constructed in 1827.
The town took its name from
John By
Lieutenant-Colonel John By (7 August 1779 – 1 February 1836) was an English military engineer. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal and for having founded Bytown in the process. It developed and was des ...
who, as a colonel in the British
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...
, was instrumental in the construction of the canal.
The name "Bytown" came about, somewhat as a "jocular reference" during a small dinner party of some officers, and it appears on official correspondence dated 1828.
Joseph Bouchette
Lt.-Colonel Joseph Bouchette (May 14, 1774 – April 8, 1841) was the Canadian Surveyor-General of British North America. His book, ''Topographical Description of the Province of Lower Canada'' was published at London in 1815 and also translated in ...
in the summer of 1828 wrote:
Colonel By laid out the streets of Bytown, a pattern that mostly exists today.
Wellington Street,
Rideau Street
Rideau Street (french: Rue Rideau) is a major street in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and one of Ottawa's oldest and most famous streets running from Wellington Street in the west to Montreal Road in the east where it connects to the Vanier ...
,
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
and
Sparks Street
Sparks Street (''French:'' Rue Sparks) is a pedestrian mall in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was a main street in Ottawa that was converted into an outdoor pedestrian street in 1967, making it the earliest such street or mall in Canada. were some of the earliest streets in use. Sappers Bridge actually connected Sparks Street to Rideau Street at that time.
Nicholas Sparks
Nicholas Charles Sparks (born December 31, 1965) is an American novelist, screenwriter, and philanthropist. He has published twenty-three novels and two non-fiction books, some of which have been ''New York Times'' bestsellers, with over 115 m ...
owned Bytown's land west of the canal, except for the lands north of Wellington, which were considered "Ordnance" lands. The area east of
Bank Street to the canal was acquired by the military and not used for houses for around two decades, after which it was returned to him.
The
Ottawa River timber trade
The Ottawa River timber trade, also known as the Ottawa Valley timber trade or Ottawa River lumber trade, was the nineteenth century production of wood products by Canada on areas of the Ottawa River and the regions of the Ottawa Valley and weste ...
spurred the growth of Bytown, and it saw an influx of immigrants, and later entrepreneurs hoping to profit from the squared timber that would be floated down the Ottawa River to Quebec. Bytown had seen some trouble in the early days, first with the
Shiners' War
The Shiners' Wars were violent outbreaks in Bytown (now Ottawa) from 1835 to 1845 between Irish-Catholic immigrants, led by Peter Aylen, and French Canadians, led by Joseph Montferrand.
The war began when Aylen, a major Irish timber operator, o ...
in 1835 to 1845,
and the
Stony Monday Riot
The Stony Monday Riot took place in Bytown (now Ottawa), Ontario on Monday September 17, 1849.
In 1849 the peregrinating Canadian Parliament was located at Montreal. The Rebellion Losses Bill passed in the House of Assembly by 47 to 18; there was ...
in 1849.
Some early buildings that still stand had been erected in Bytown. In 1826,
Thomas McKay
Thomas McKay (1 September 1792 – 9 October 1855) was a Canadian businessman who was one of the founders of the city of Ottawa, Ontario.
Biography
McKay was born in Perth, Scotland and became a skilled stonemason. He emigrated to the C ...
was contracted to build the commissariat building, now the
Bytown Museum
The Bytown Museum (French: Musée Bytown) is a museum in Ottawa located in the Colonel By Valley at the Ottawa Locks of the Rideau Canal at the Ottawa River, just below Parliament Hill. Housed in the Commissariat Building, Ottawa's oldest remain ...
. McKay also built
Rideau Hall
Rideau Hall (officially Government House) is the official residence in Ottawa of both the Canadian monarch and their representative, the governor general of Canada. It stands in Canada's capital on a estate at 1 Sussex Drive, with the main b ...
(which has since been expanded), and parts of the
Union Bridge connecting LeBreton Flats to Hull.
Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica
The Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica is a Roman Catholic minor basilica in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada located on 385 Sussex Drive in the Lower Town neighbourhood. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1990.
The basilica is the oldest ...
was also built early on in the developing town. The
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottawa ...
had its 1846 origins as a college, and it received its present location in 1856.
File:Falls of the Rideau River, at the Ottawa River, 1826.jpg, Falls of the Rideau River, at the Ottawa River, 1826 by Thomas Burrowes
File:Western and Lesser Fall of the Rideau River; Barrack Hill and Upper Bytown in the left Distance, 1826.jpg, Western and Lesser Fall of the Rideau River; Barrack Hill and Upper Bytown in the left Distance, 1826 by Thomas Burrowes
File:Hull, (Lower Canada), on the Ottawa River; at the Chaudier (sic) Falls, 1830.jpg, Hull, (Lower Canada), on the Ottawa River; at the Chaudiere Falls, 1830 by Thomas Burrowes
File:First Eight Locks of the Rideau Canal, the North entrance from the Ottawa River, 1834.jpg, First Eight Locks of the Rideau Canal, the North entrance from the Ottawa River, 1834 by Thomas Burrowes
File:View at the West end of Wellington Street, Upper Bytown, looking East, 1845.jpg, View at the West end of Wellington Street, Upper Bytown, looking east towards Lower Town
Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" (french: la Basse-Ville) is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest part of the city. It is bounded by Rideau Street to the south, ...
in 1845 by Thomas Burrowes
File:Bytown in 1853.jpg, Bytown in 1853. Military Barracks on hill top was occupied by "A" Company of the Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment
The Royal Canadian Rifle Regiment of the British Army was raised in 1840 for service in Canada. Its members were veterans of service in other regiments of the British Army.
Formation
The concern which led to the creation of the regiment was ...
, presently home to Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their architectu ...
.
Though administration of Bytown had been conducted by civil authorities since 1828, the town did not become incorporated until much later. Various attempts at incorporation had been initiated since 1845. The Ordnance Department had held lands in the town's core (dividing Upper Town from Lower Town), lands which had been the property of Nicholas Sparks. These lands were considered by many to be blocking economic progress as well as being held for speculative reasons only. When Ordnance eventually returned the lands to Sparks through the Vesting Act, the major obstacle to incorporation was removed. Bytown was initially incorporated on July 28, 1847, and sanctioned by both the Legislative Assembly and the governor, but eventually this was disallowed by the Queen, possibly due to the perceived threat to Ordnance. An act of the Legislative Assembly further facilitated the incorporation of municipalities, and on January 1, 1850, Bytown was incorporated.
Richmond Landing
![Chaudière Falls 1838](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Chaudi%C3%A8re_Falls_1838.jpg)
Richmond Landing was a small settlement started in 1809 with Jehiel Collins' store, which preceded Bytown in present-day
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
. It was located just south of
Victoria Island
Victoria Island ( ikt, Kitlineq, italic=yes) is a large island in the Arctic Archipelago that straddles the boundary between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the List of islands by area, eighth-largest island in the world, ...
east of the present-day
Portage Bridge
The Portage Bridge (french: Pont du Portage) crosses the Ottawa River just down-river from the Chaudière Bridge, joining the communities of Gatineau, Quebec and Ottawa, Ontario. It links Laurier Street and Alexandre-Taché Boulevard in the Hul ...
in present-day
Lebreton Flats. Wright's Town (
Hull, Quebec
Hull is the central business district and oldest neighbourhood of the city of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the west bank of the Gatineau River and the north shore of the Ottawa River, directly opposite Ottawa. As part of the Canadia ...
), just across the
Ottawa River
The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...
, also near the
Chaudiere Falls, had already been founded by this time.
Collins built a log cabin and store on the south shore of the Ottawa River, near the Chaudière Falls area. Later the property was acquired by Caleb T. Bellows, an assistant in the store. Collins is credited as the first settler of what would become Bytown. And by 1819, the little settlement at the landing got its first tavern operated by the Firths.
The settlement was named Bellows Landing until the fall of 1818, when a group of settlers responsible for the creation of a new road to
Richmond, Ontario
Richmond is a suburban community, part of the Canadian capital of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1818, it spans the Jock River, a tributary of the Rideau River. A part of the National Capital Region, Richmond is located 10kms southwest of ...
stayed there. The road became
Richmond Road and Richmond Landing acquired its name. Sergeant Hill, had directed the creation of Richmond Road, Ottawa's first thoroughfare, a road which contained tree stumps, whose origin likely began at a portage trail bypassing the Chaudière Falls.
Richmond Landing was an area for those heading to and from Richmond could dock and receive correspondence and supplies from the outside world. A tavern constructed in 1819, whose existence had been shown since Bytown's earliest maps, was excavated prior to the construction of the
Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum (french: link=no, Musée canadien de la guerre; CWM) is a national museum on the country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military history, in a ...
whose east side currently covers it. Early maps also show the locations of buildings, and a Governmental store, constructed later. A buildings had been requested by early settlers to hold items that had previously been left near or on the dock by boats providing items for the settlements.
Corktown
Corktown, not a town at all, was a series of shanties along the "Deep Cut" section of the
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...
in Ottawa which existed during its construction and were erected by some of its Irish labourers.
Many of the workers came penniless from
County Cork
County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...
in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, giving it its name. The settlement along both sides of the canal was allowed by
Colonel By
Lieutenant-Colonel John By (7 August 1779 – 1 February 1836) was an English military engineer. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal and for having founded Bytown in the process. It developed and was desi ...
due to their desperate poverty and inability to pay rent. These men, separated from the others, had done some of the hard labour required of the canal's construction. They built turf or log shanties along the muddy bank, and possibly without sanction extended the settlement as far as through the
Lower Town
Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" (french: la Basse-Ville) is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest part of the city. It is bounded by Rideau Street to the south, ...
swamp and the banks of the
Rideau River
The Rideau River (french: Rivière Rideau) is a river in Eastern Ontario, Canada. The river flows north from Upper Rideau Lake and empties into the Ottawa River at the Rideau Falls in Ottawa, Ontario. Its length is .
As explained in a writin ...
. Eventually women and children moved to the area living among the approximately 150 houses built by 1829.
Corktown disappeared shortly after the completion of the canal, which was under construction between 1826 and 1832.
Legacy
![Entrance of the Rideau Canal, Bytown, Upper Canada (Ottawa)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Entrance_of_the_Rideau_Canal%2C_Bytown%2C_Upper_Canada_%28Ottawa%29.jpg)
*Bytown remains a nickname for
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
.
*There is a
Bytown Museum
The Bytown Museum (French: Musée Bytown) is a museum in Ottawa located in the Colonel By Valley at the Ottawa Locks of the Rideau Canal at the Ottawa River, just below Parliament Hill. Housed in the Commissariat Building, Ottawa's oldest remain ...
in Ottawa in the oldest stone building in the city, built by
Thomas McKay
Thomas McKay (1 September 1792 – 9 October 1855) was a Canadian businessman who was one of the founders of the city of Ottawa, Ontario.
Biography
McKay was born in Perth, Scotland and became a skilled stonemason. He emigrated to the C ...
, containing artifacts dating back to the Bytown era.
*The name Bytown survives in the name of
Bytownite
Bytownite is a calcium rich member of the plagioclase solid solution series of feldspar minerals with composition between anorthite and labradorite. It is usually defined as having between 70 and 90% An (formula: (Ca0.7-0.9,Na0.3-0.1) l(Al,Si)Si2O ...
, a calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar mineral, named from its occurrence near Ottawa.
*The
ByTowne Cinema
The ByTowne Cinema is a one-screen repertory movie theatre located in Ottawa, Ontario, The cinema is one of Ottawa's main venues for independent and foreign films. The 650-seat cinema is located on Rideau Street at Nelson, several blocks east of th ...
, one of Ottawa's oldest movie theatres, was originally named the Nelson Cinema, but later renamed to honour the city's original name.
*The
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...
remains, a lot of it looks very much like it originally did, and it is a heritage site.
*The
Corktown Footbridge
The Corktown Footbridge (french: Passerelle Corktown) is a pedestrian footbridge over the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The bridge is located about south of the Laurier Avenue Bridge and connects the University of Ottawa campus with ...
was opened on September 21, 2006, in honour of the sacrifices made by the Irish settlers in constructing the Rideau Canal.
*
Colonel By
Lieutenant-Colonel John By (7 August 1779 – 1 February 1836) was an English military engineer. He is best known for having supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal and for having founded Bytown in the process. It developed and was desi ...
's house was located in
Majors Hill Park
Major's Hill Park is a park in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. The park stands above the Rideau Canal at the point where it enters the Ottawa River. The parliament buildings can be seen across the canal to the west, to the north of the park is the Na ...
; today a monument stands at its location. At the location, unmarked, are two large chunks of the
Sappers Bridge
The Plaza Bridge in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is an automotive and pedestrian bridge that crosses the Rideau Canal just south of the Ottawa locks. It joins Wellington Street and Elgin Street in the Downtown core to the west with Rideau Street to ...
.
See also
*
History of Ottawa
The history of Ottawa, capital of Canada, was shaped by events such as the construction of the Rideau Canal, the lumber industry, the choice of Ottawa as the location of Canada's capital, as well as American and European influences and interaction ...
*
Ottawa River Timber Trade
The Ottawa River timber trade, also known as the Ottawa Valley timber trade or Ottawa River lumber trade, was the nineteenth century production of wood products by Canada on areas of the Ottawa River and the regions of the Ottawa Valley and weste ...
*
Bytown Mechanics' Institute
The Bytown Mechanics' Institute is an Upper Canada example of a knowledge transfer organization aimed at encouraging grassroots participation. These institutions were Victorian and moralistic in tone and class-oriented in structure which, in part, ...
References
;Bibliography
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Further reading
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External links
Musée Bytown Museum
{{Ottawa
History of Ottawa
Former municipalities now in Ottawa
Populated places established in 1850