Major's Hill Park is a

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

in downtown

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, Ontario. The park stands above the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal is a 202-kilometre long canal that links the Ottawa River at Ottawa with the Cataraqui River and Lake Ontario at Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Its 46 Lock (water navigation), locks raise boats from the Ottawa River 83 metres (272 ...

at the point where it enters the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (, ) 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 Canada at the time. For most of its length, it defines the border betw ...

. The parliament buildings can be seen across the canal to the west, to the north of the park is the

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's National museums of Canada, national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the List of large ...

, and to the east are the United States embassy and the Byward Market. To the south is the Chateau Laurier hotel, built on land that was once part of the park. Anishinabe Scout

The neighbourhood surrounding the park was once home to those who constructed the canal. In particular, the area that is now the park was the official residence of the Superintending Engineer of the Rideau Canal, Lieutenant-Colonel John By until he returned to England in 1832. The hill was known at the time as "Colonel's Hill". By was replaced in 1832 by

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Daniel Bolton who took up residence in By's house. In 1838 Bolton was promoted to Major. By the time he left the

Bytown Bytown is the former name of Ottawa, Ontario, 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 ...

in 1843, the hill had become known as Major's Hill. Commemorative plaques and a statue of Lieutenant-Colonel By, Major Bolton and their successors were erected in Major's Hill Park. The residence was destroyed by fire on October 5, 1848, though ruins survive to today. The use of the area as a residence means that the park has remained a green space since the early days of Ottawa. It is now managed by the National Capital Commission, which has placed historical information in the northwest corner of the park. Due to its central location, Major's Hill Park is frequented all year round. It is frequently used as a venue for events, and is central to Ottawa's civic

Canada Day Canada Day, formerly known as Dominion Day, is the national day of Canada. A Public holidays in Canada, federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867, with the passing of the B ...

celebrations. A more recent addition to the calendar is the annual 'B In The Park', which precedes the Glengarry Highland Games. Pipe bands and highland dancers from all over the world perform. It is presented by the Sons of Scotland Pipe Band of Ottawa, which claims to be Canada's oldest continuous civilian pipe band.

Evolution of the park

File:First Eight Locks of the Rideau Canal, the North entrance from the Ottawa River, 1834.jpg, An 1834 view of the canal locks. Colonel's Hill, with numerous trees, and Colonel By's residence are at the left of the image. File:Major's Hill and canal locks.JPG, Major's Hill and the locks in 1861; the lockmaster's house (partially visible on the right side of the image) was demolished when Major's Hill became a park in 1876. File:Canal locks and Major's Hill 1860.jpg, View of the south end of Major's Hill from Parliament Hill, circa 1860s; by this time, trees were cleared from all but the northern portion of Major's Hill. File:Major's Hill Park 1909.jpg, The south end of Major's Hill in 1909, when the park extended to Rideau Street and the Château Laurier had not yet been built. File:OttawaAerial3.JPG, Aerial view from 1920; the federal government had permitted the construction of the Château Laurier on the south end of Major's Hill in 1909-12. File:Major's Hill Park 1938.jpg, By 1938, Major's Hill had been developed as a well-manicured urban park. File:Major's Hill Park(3).jpg, Since 1988, the north end of Major's Hill has been framed by the new

building.

References

External links

Bytown Museum page with Hill historical information
{{Coord, 45.427311, -75.697496, region:CA_type:landmark, display=title Parks in Ottawa National Capital Commission