Old Ottawa East and its close neighbour Old Ottawa South share much history and geography. Both were annexed by the city in 1907. But the two areas took different development paths when the swing bridge over the canal at Bank Street was replaced with a high-level bridge that brought the streetcar south of the canal and sparked growth in Ottawa South and beyond.
Learn about this and the cycles of boom and bust in the area’s history in the newly published book: Exploring the Built Heritage of Old Ottawa South.
The book outlines the history of the Ottawa South neighbourhood and tells the story of 17 structures, including nine typical homes from differing eras and two streetscapes. Knowing more about these heritage features will help protect and sustain our valued community
The text is written by local authors and researchers, in particular members of the Ottawa South History Project and the 2009 Heritage Survey of the community.
The official book launch takes place at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 19 at the Main Branch of the Ottawa Public Library as part of Heritage Ottawa’s Annual Bob and Mary Anne Phillips Memorial Lecture. Featured speaker Julie Harris will discuss the neighbourhood history with a talk entitled ‘Eyes on the Street ’: The Heritage of Old Ottawa South.
For more details, see www.heritageottawa.org. Admission is free, and the book will be available for sale for $15.
In-person sales are now underway as well; contact Kathy Krywicki (kkrywicki@hotmail.com. or Cornelius von Baeyer (cvb@magma.ca).
A great gift for those who cherish local history and a good companion piece to Rick Wallace’s A History of Ottawa East.
Kathy Krywicki is a long-time resident of Old Ottawa South, a member of the Ottawa South History Project, and co-editor of Exploring the Built Heritage of Old Ottawa South. www.oldottawasouth.ca/historyproject.
