Colonel By's vision of the
importance of the canal came to fruition. The little settlement of Bytown grew and
prospered to become Canada's capital in 1857. The present City of Ottawa grew because of
and around the Canal.
The image above notes the Prince
of Wales visit to the nation's capital.
FOUNDING OF BYTOWN / OTTAWA
When
Colonel By's men pitched their tents in 1826 on Nepean Point (Lebreton
Flats) there was a lumbering and agricultural community of 800 at Wright's
Town Hull on the North side of the Ottawa River, but the south shore was
practically wilderness. Richmond Landing boasted an inn and store near the Chaudiere Falls, and
Nicholas Sparks had a log house close by, but the majority of the land was unoccupied.
In anticipation of the canal construction, Lord
Dalhousie had purchased in 1823 two lots on the Ottawa river front, from Richmond Landing
to the Rideau River. Colonel By, well aware of the immensity of the canal project, set
about preparing this land for the huge labour force and hordes of tradesmen,
entrepreneurs, and speculators that he knew would be converging on the area. Under Lord
Dalhousie's instructions, he had a hospital and barracks built to house his men on
Barracks Hill (Parliament Hill), and laid out two townsites, Upper Town, to the west of
Barracks Hill, and Lower Town, to the east of the canal entrance.
The village grew quickly and by 1828 a bustling
community of one thousand had taken on Colonel By's name: Bytown. After completion of the
Canal in 1832, farming and lumbering became the main industries. Many of the canal workers
settled in the area and Bytown prospered as a lumber center. It was incorporated as a town
in 1847. In 1855, Bytown attained city status and a new name: Ottawa. The change was made
because the city was in competition to become the capital of the Province of Canada, and
"Bytown" was thought inappropriate, evoking images of its rough logging days.
"Ottawa" is derived from the French name "l'Outaouais" for a native
tribe which traded in the region.
Ottawa was selected in 1857 by Queen Victoria as
the capital of the united Province of Canada, and the Parliament buildings were begun in
1859. The coming of Confederation required the location of a capital to be debated all
over again, and Ottawa was chosen a second time, becoming the capital of the Dominion of
Canada on July 1st, 1867.
C. Williams' Prince of Wales in Canada
Descending a Timber Slide at Ottawa, 1860 depicts the first royal visitor to ride down a
slide. Other royal visitors to Ottawa who shot the slide were Princess Louise (Duchess of
Argyle), Prince Leopold (Duke of Albany), the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (later
George V and Queen Mary), and the Grand Duke Alexis of Russia.
The threat of Irish Fenians became real to
Ottawans in 1868 when the Honorable Thomas D'Arcy Mcgee was assassinated after giving a
strong speech against the brotherhood and in defense of the imperial connection. James
Patriok Whelan, a tailor, was convicted of the crime; he was the last person publicly
hanged at the Ottawa jail.
Previous | Next
