From Archville to Old Ottawa East: More than 200 years of rich history
The steamship Olive was one of many that traversed the Rideau Canal. The above photo shows the west side of the Canal as it looked in 1891.
Below left is the Holy Trinity Anglican Church of Archville, the first church in the village that opened in September 1877; below right is a snapshot of Canadian aviation history, one of Canada’s first airplane flights landed in Slattery’s Field in Ottawa East in 1911.
During 2025, to commemorate 40 years of The Mainstreeter, we will be digging into our archives and dusting off stories that we published in years gone by. In this instalment, which was published in 2003, Old Ottawa East historian Rick Wallace goes back to the early days of settlement of this community with an insightful outline of the lands, the people and the politics of the past 200 years.
RICK WALLACE
The Mainstreeter
SPRING 2023 ISSUE
Tucked east and west between a river and a canal; and bordered historically by a railroad and warehouse complex on the north, with market gardens on the south, lies the original suburb of “Old Ottawa East.” Begun originally as Archville and Spenceville and then OLD Ottawa East Village (1888), this community has, throughout its history, maintained existence through a sense of place and spirit that exists even today.
There are many factors that have contributed to the evolution of Old Ottawa East (OOE) from a farming community to a Police Village and ultimately an integral residential part of Ottawa. These factors range from the region’s transportation, geography, predominance of the Catholic and Protestant communities and, of course, the proximity to Canada’s capital.
Water, land, rail and even air transportation routes have historically been major factors in the shape and function of OOE. Initially, the Rideau Canal not only served as a western boundary that isolated OOE from the city itself but also provided a major shipping route for goods such as bricks produced in the community. In 1831, land adjacent to the canal provided the first major road (and only road until 1864) that connected Bytown to the southern communities. The northern boundary for decades was an extensive railway complex of a ’round house,’ repair shops and rail lines with most of the workers and service industries based in OOE. This was a mainstay of the local economy well into the 1950’s.
OOE even had a connection to air travel! The very first flight of an aircraft in the
Ottawa area involved Slattery’s Field at the junction of Riverdale Avenue and Main Street, where the Hydro One substation is now located. In September of 1911 a biplane performed for the Central Canada Exhibition at Lansdowne Park and used Slattery’s field as the runway.
By far the largest landowners in the history of OOE are the churches. The original land purchased by the Oblates in 1863 was developed into St. Joseph’s Scholastique (now the Deschâtelets Building) and St. Paul University (the community’s largest employer and a world-class theological research facility).
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church originally acquired a major portion of OOE as a ‘glebe’ in 1837. The church created the suburb of Spenceville in 1864 and it was not until well into the 20th Century that the last of the land was sold.
And finally, OOE has been a major supplier of almost everything to the city throughout the past two centuries. From skilled labourers to government workers to fresh produce, beef cattle, bread and bricks, OOE has been an integral part of the region’s evolution and prosperity. Now, as a residential community with some tertiary industry, the next decades will of course bring more change. It will be interesting to see if the community maintains the connection with the past!
The evolution of Old Ottawa East from the beginning to 1907
The evolution of Old Ottawa East Village can be seen in two distinct phases. The first begins around the time of construction of the Rideau Canal (1826 – 32) and ends with the ultimate annexation of the Police Village of Ottawa East by the City of Ottawa in 1907. From this point to present, the community evolved from an agricultural/industrial base to the present-day residential use.
Originally part of Nepean Township in Carleton County, By-law #348 passed on December 7, 1888, defined the incorporated Police Village. This was the area east of the Rideau Canal, west of the Rideau River, bounded on the north by the then city limit (now Mann Avenue) and the south by the line between Lots I and K (approximately Elliot Street) of Concession C and D (divided by Main Street).
The original land survey of the early 1800’s divided the Ottawa area into 200-acre lots. Such notables as William Stewart, George Patterson, John Hickey, John Mutchmor, Robert Lees and the Church of Scotland acquired land in what today is Old Ottawa East. St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church owned all of Lot H, which was bounded by Glebe and Fifth Avenues from Bronson Avenue to Main Street. This was known as a ‘glebe’ (land for use and benefit of the church). Technically then, the Glebe was part of Old Ottawa East well into the 20th Century! By the 1880’s, most of the Concession C Glebe land east of the Canal had sold to land speculators. All of the land bordering 200 feet along the canal was owned by the Crown and controlled by the Ordnance Department (military).
Up to that point there was very little residential settlement in the area as most of the land was used for market gardening to supply the city. The northern part of the community was predominantly settled by workers for the railway and building trades and was known as Archville (1873). Named after Archibald Stewart, this suburb extended from the canal to Harvey Street. The Village of Spenceville (1868) to the south extended from Hazel Street to Clegg Street along the canal. It was named after Reverend Alexander Spence of St. Andrew’s.
Well into the 1880’s, the southern boundary of the city west of the canal was the suburb of Stewarton located between Gladstone Avenue and Isabella Street and was populated mainly by government workers and professionals. The majority of the community wanted increased services, and pressure began to build for annexation to Ottawa. City fathers wanted to increase the tax base and felt that areas such as Archville, Rochesterville, Hintonburg and Mount Sherwood should be included in annexation to provide for better planning of transportation systems and industrial areas. Month after month there was heated debate between those for and against annexation. In 1887, the city requested that the Province permit absorption of all the adjoining suburbs. The residents of Archville reacted and counter petitioned. Led by such notables as Robert Lees, James Ballantyne and John Graham, political pressure was exerted and the Province relented allowing the creation of the Police Village of Old Ottawa East in 1888.
Now separate, the leaders of the new village of about 1000 residents set about developing services that would rival those available in the city. Electric and water companies were formed, roads were macadamized (packed stone), drainage pipes installed, and sidewalks of heavy wooden planks were laid on the main streets. A two-story brick school was built for over 100 students at the corner of Harvey and Concord streets replacing the small wooden single room building. It stands today. The crowning glory was the construction of the town hall at Main Street and Hawthorne Avenue, complete with prisoner cells in the basement.
During this period the community was comprised mainly of workers in various trades servicing the city and the railroad activities. Brickyards, slaughterhouses and market gardens in the northern part were interspersed with residential dwellings. As the population grew, more residential areas were created south of Clegg Street, replacing the market garden farms.
The Village of Ottawa East is annexed by the city
Finally, in 1907, pressure for annexation from the city overcame the desire of the village to remain distinct. Newspaper accounts detail “a vision for a greater Ottawa.” The Ottawa Journal described the little village of Ottawa East as “a most desirable area” with “good waterworks and streets in admirable condition . . . well situated with industrial sites adjacent to the canal and rail.” With the promise of no new taxes for eight years, residents relented, and, in December of 1907, the Village of Ottawa East was annexed and ceased to exist.
Thus began the second phase of evolution of the community. No longer politically distinct from the city, residents demanded increased services including a bridge. In 1915, the construction of Pretoria Bridge created an explosion of industrial and residential development in the Old Ottawa East area. To the north, a massive rail complex was created centred on the ’round house’ which was surrounded by rail yards and shops. The rail complex serviced the growing transportation and fuel needs of the city. A huge gas storage tank and tar works were constructed at the end of Lees Avenue. Warehouses, dairies, bakeries and slaughterhouses operated side by side with new housing. As the federal government developed roads along both sides of the Rideau Canal, this area became populated with professionals who worked in the city. New plans of subdivision were registered in the southern part of Old Ottawa East and agricultural land was turned into homes – a process that continued well into the 1950’s.
The increasing population continued to mirror the original diverse cultural mosaic of the community. This was reflected in the building of the numerous churches and schools to service French and English, Protestant and Catholic. The historical presence of the Oblate Fathers expanded with the development of Saint Paul University, and a new college (St. Pat’s) was built on Patterson’s Field in 1929.
Main Street from Echo Drive to Herridge Street was a continuous strip of businesses that served almost every need. One could buy fresh meat at Hawley’s Butcher Shop, a new dress at Antoine’s, or a football at Guzzo’s Sport Shop. Residents could have bread delivered to their door from Walker’s Bread and wedding announcements could be printed at Noffke Press – all within walking distance. The age of the strip mall and chain stores had not yet arrived, and people shopped, worked and lived in the community.
In the 1960’s, however, pressures from growth of the larger region eventually caught up with the community. The movement of suburbanites in and out of the city core became more important than preservation of the community. The removal of the railway industry and the building of the Queensway effectively covered over a major portion of what was Old Ottawa East. Gone were the railway yards and the industrial land (now the Nicholas Street interchange) in the northeast. Wildwood Avenue and half of Ballantyne Park became a commuter lane. Main Street was widened and, with the building of the Smyth Road Bridge, became a major arterial road servicing the communities south of the Rideau River. This, as well as other forces of progress, significantly reduced the commercial aspect of the area. And this reduction of the community may continue, as there are future plans to further pave over even more significant portions! (…) Now predominately a residential area, the last vestiges of the original industrial activities have long since disappeared.
In the next several issues of The Mainstreeter, to help mark our 40th birthday, more of the history of the community will be documented with archived articles from the Ottawa East History Project on the people, industries and institutions that contributed to the Old Ottawa East we know and love today! Next Issue: The Notables of Ottawa East.