In 1866 both John Bowes and J.H.Pattison, Measurers of Public Buildings,Ottawa, received retroactive raises insalary6. In August 1868, John Bowesand Will. Hutchison7 were workingtogether on plans and measurements forthe Library of Parliament, dealing withcontractor H. McGreevy8. (fig.1.)

The Library of Parliament and theCentre Block had been designed byThomas Fuller and Chilion Jones in1859. Although the Library and the

Heritage Ottawa NEWSLETTER

Dedicated to Preserving Our Built Heritage Summer 2003 Volume 30, No. 2

hile working with theRestoration Committee ofSt. Brigid’s Roman Catholic

Church, Lowertown Ottawa, I have hadthe privilege of researching the work ofthe architect of St. Brigid’s, James R.Bowes (1852-1892). In the process, thelegacy of this Ottawa native, as well asthat of his Irish-born architect father,John Bowes (1820-1894), has emergedfrom archival sources as a remarkablestory. Father and son contributed signifi-cantly to building the National Capital.starting with the Parliament buildingsand public institutions (the father) andclosing with civic structures (the son).These buildings were commercial andreligious emblems of the flourishing“Capital of the Dominion”. The Bowes,father and son, appear to have been partof a group of dedicated and selflessarchitects and builders, serving a newCanadian culture.

Bowes & Ottawa in the 1860s.In 1859-1860, John Bowes, Architect,late Superintendent, Kingston CustomHouse, Canada West, was in correspon-dence with the Department of Works inQuebec City regarding gas fixtures and /or furnace repairs for the KingstonCustom House1. In 1861 he was meet-ing with F.P. Rubidge, A.E.P. W. and Mr. Keefer, the Deputy Commissioner2.In July 18613, and Sept 18664, JohnBowes was employed as Measurer,Parliament buildings, Ottawa, and dealingwith contractor Thomas. McGreevy5.

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President’s ReportAnnual Report of David B. Flemming, President of Heritage Ottawa to the 2003 Annual GeneralMeeting, held at the RockcliffePark Recreation Centre onThursday, May 29, 2003

ood evening and welcome tothe Annual General Meeting ofHeritage Ottawa - the 30th

since the establishment of the society in1974. My name is David Flemming andI have been your President since lastOctober 1 when I was selected by theBoard to complete Carolyn Quinn’s termof office as President on the occasion ofher resignation from the position afterserving the society diligently for overfive years.

The past year has been marked byinternal change within the society withthe tabling of a re-organisational plan;by significant changes at the municipallevel with the development of a newOfficial Plan and an Arts and HeritagePlan; and by a number of importantadvocacy cases.

After assuming the position of VicePresident at last year’s Annual GeneralMeeting, I drew up a re-organisationplan which sought to address the lack ofparticipation by the general membershipin the society’s day to day activitiesthrough the strengthening of our variouscommittees, many of which have beeninactive for many years. In August, theBoard approved the implementation ofthe plan however this was postponed inOctober when I accepted the duties of

J.Bowes &Son, Architects,Ottawa:A Forgotten Legacyby Elizabeth Krug

Fig. 1. Public Works staff, c.1866. ParliamentBuildings Construction site. L-R: J. Lebreton(Lebrett?) Ross (?), Engineer; René Steckel; Chas.Baillargé; William Hutchison; G.B. Pelham; F.P. Rubidge, Assistant Chief Engineer; John Bowes; J.H. Pattison (Patterson?); J. Larose; Arnoldi; T. Fuller; Kelly (?). NationalArchives of Canada copy neg.: PA-124244, Acc. 1965-049. N.B. Also in City of Ottawa Archives, copy neg.:CA-0161, Mrs. Montague Anderson Collection. Names in caption are taken from both sources. Additionalinformation from City Archives’ caption: Architects,Superintendent, Draftsmen of 1st Parliament Bldgs. Photo taken at Temporary Office in Old Barracks….

Continued on pages 3-5Continued on page 2

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President. The implementation of thisplan and the preparation of a StrategicPlan will be the main challenges of thenew Board of Directors which you willappoint this evening.

An important part of the StrategicPlan will be to substantially increase thenumber of members in Heritage Ottawa.Our current membership is about 150, afar cry from the 450+ members of 25years ago. It is not only important for usto increase our membership but also toattract new members from the formermunicipalities which now form part ofthe amalgamated City of Ottawa.

The creation of the new City ofOttawa in 2001 led to the developmentof a number of new plans, two of which- the Official Plan and the Arts andHeritage Plan - have particular relevanceto our City’s built heritage resources.The response to the first draft of the Official Plan was drawn up byBarbara McMullen, our currentSecretary, and by Board member Ron Stein. Ron unfortunately resignedfrom the Board late last year and wasunable to continue to work on the Plan. Your Board spent many hoursresponding to the three subsequentdrafts of the Official Plan and the threedrafts of the Arts and Heritage Plan. Ipresented our comments in both writtenform and in-person before the Planningand Development Committee on fouroccasions. I am pleased to inform youthat the final versions of both docu-ments contain some recommendations

President Continued…

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Heritage Ottawa is a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating the preservation, restoration, and adaptive re-use of the NationalCapital’s built and natural heritage.

Editor: James D. GeorgilesGraphic Designer: Jan SoetermansPrinting: Tina & Company

Heritage Ottawa NEWSLETTER

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suggested by Heritage Ottawa and thatboth documents provide a sound basisfor the preservation of our community’sheritage.

One thing that is not contained inthe plans is the political will to act uponthem in the preservation of our builtheritage. The many advocacy issueswhich we have dealt with over the pastyear reflect a City Council that is notprepared to “stand up for heritage”despite what they may approve in official documents. There are few champions of heritage on the current

Council. The loss of the two buildingsin the Nicholas-Waller-Laurier trianglelast November is a good example of thisinaction. The City refused to take anydecisive action such as placing a stopwork order on the new building beingerected by Groupe Lépine and sixmonths later we still do not know whataction the City are taking against thedeveloper. Likewise, the Caplan build-ing, one of the last fine examples ofOttawa’s 19th century retail built heritagewas lost not because of the neglect ofthe owner or even by the edict of theFire Marshall. It was lost because ourCouncillors did not have the politicalwill to save it. Heritage Ottawa spokeloudly on these two issues but theresponse of our elected representatives,with a few exceptions, was non-existent.

Besides these two issues, HeritageOttawa has been supporting theCentretown community in opposing theAshcroft Homes proposals for large

buildings on Gilmour and McLeodStreets. In these instances, the develop-er continues to submit proposals that arecompletely out of scale for the existingzoning. We are also closely monitoringthe situation with Grant House (Friday’sRoast Beef House) on Elgin Street andthe Old Registry Office on NicholasStreet. Both are designated heritagebuildings and are located on sites whichare ripe for development. We continueto follow with great interest theNational Capital Commissions on-again/off-again plans Sparks Street, theproposal know as “Metcalfe Lite.”Heritage Ottawa members are kept up todate on these issues through articles inour Newsletter.

As I noted previously, most of ourmunicipal politicians seem to lack thepolitical will to make the necessary decisions to protect our built heritage.With this year’s municipal election, wedo have the opportunity to challengecandidates on their position on heritagepreservation. One of the first jobs ofyour new Board will be to devise strategies to challenge candidates for municipal office on their position on heritage preservation. For this, we will need the help of the generalmembership.

Besides speaking at Planning andDevelopment Committee meetings andwriting letters to the newspapers and tothe Mayor and Council, your Presidentand other members of the Board havespoken on radio and television on manyheritage issues. We have had informa-tion booths at Heritage Day, Museum’sDay and Heritage Fair events and lastweekend we adopted the Old RegistryBuilding on Nicholas Street as part ofDoors Open Ottawa in an effort tolobby for its retention. Your Past-President and I also served on theOrganising Committee of Doors OpenOttawa and other Board members continue to serve on the City’s HeritageAdvisory Committee and the OttawaLACAC. Heritage Ottawa had four representatives in the variousDowntown Urban Design Strategyworkshops and we again presented

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Victoria Tower of Parliament were notcompleted until around 1876-78 (fig.2),Fuller went to Albany N. Y. in 1867 todesign the N.Y. State LegislativeBuildings, eventually forming a partner-ship with Augustus Laver, who, togetherwith Frederick Warburton Stent, haddesigned the Departmental Buildings (ie. the East and West Blocks). The“Picturesque Eclecticism” of theCanadian Parliament Buildings was in aVictorian medievalising style, borrowingfrom French Second Empire architecture(the Louvre, 1852-57), as well asEnglish, Flemish and Italian Gothicstyles9. Revivalism and Eclecticism wereprevalent throughout Europe and NorthAmerica; Toronto’s University College(architects Cumberland and Storm,1856-1859) had already set a precedentin Canada.10 Canadian religious architec-ture was not immune to these tendencies.Great Britain, France, and the UnitedStates were leading influences.

Bowes & Ottawa in the 1870s. Ottawa had become the capital of theUnited Canadas, East and West, in1858. The Public Works Departmentmoved to the new capital from QuebecCity in 1866, when the Parliamentbuildings were officially opened. It hadalready been providing work for architectslike John Bowes, and the demand for newbuildings kept increasing. By the 1870s,as the population grew, a boom of newhomes, churches, public buildings, andbusinesses kept architects and builders inOttawa extremely active, despite inter-national economic depression. TheOttawa Citizen ran regular detailed articles on City Improvements and

Canada, its dimensions are 122 x 52 feetwith a ceiling 13 feet high... next year...an exhibition hall 100 by 40 feet, withrecreation room beneath... the buildingwill be ready for occupation 1st of Aprilnext. The architects are Messrs. Bowlesand Son... (N.B. burned down 1903)(fig.3.).

• Major’s Hill: Aldermen Heney and McDougal have just moved into a coupleof cottages built for them during the pastsummer fronting Major’s Hill... doubletenement two storeys high, Gothic instyle... two storey verandah... constructedof Toronto white brick, with free stonedressing... the design is similar to the cottages which abound in the vicinity ofFairmount Park, Philedelphia (sic)... facing as this does on the site of our con-templated city park... Messrs. Bowlesand Son were the architects... It may bementioned that as Mr. John Bowles iskept continually busy by the duties of hisoffice under Government, all the outsidework devolves upon his son Mr. JamesBowles and the design for the above cottages was his work.

Fig. 3. Ottawa College, playground, c.1878.Image from the Archives of the University of Ottawa, Fonds 38, PHO-38A-1-20.

Fig. 2. Plan of Half of Roof of Library showingpart of purlins, Parliament Buildings Ottawa,Iron Roof of Library, No. 1. John Bowes, Apt.Archt. 1872. Inscribed: Plan referred to in contractno. 4025 signed at Ottawa this 21st day of NovemberAD 1872; signed: Peter Kilduff, Hector Langevin…etc. National Archives Acc. RG11M 79003/29-22.NMC 124952.

J.Bowes &Son, Architects,Ottawa: A Forgotten Legacy Continued...

Continued on pages 4 and 5

Ottawa’s Progress. On December 6, 1875,the news story Ottawa’s Progress citesthe Citizen’s annual custom of summa-rizing the year’s achievements, anddescribes at least 30 new projects. Six ofthese are attributed to architects Messrs.Bowles (sic) and Son It should be notedthat the City directories of the perioddid list a Mr. William Bowles, clerk with House of Commons, as well as acontractor Bowles. But for the occupationof architect, we find John Bowes, andlater, J.R. Bowes, listed. Although thename “Bowes” does not appear in theCity directory of 1875, John Bowes andhis family are listed in the CanadianCensus records of 1871 and 1881.

In 1875 the Ottawa Citizenreports: • A New Wing of the Ottawa College on

Sandy Hill:... will be one of the largest ofits kind in Ontario... substantial stonemasonry 125 x 50 feet, five stories highwith attic. its cost when finished will be$35,000... the interior will be fitted upin the latest and most improved plan....the dormitory is said to be the finest in

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• Mr. Landreau’s block... three storeys on the corner of Murray and Sussex... whitebrick... cost when finished,... $5,500...Messrs. Bowles & Son were the architects...

• New private residences, Enright’s Cottage, Nepean St., 25 x 35 ft, Neatcottage. Architect: Bowles and Sons

• Convent of the Good Shepherd, Park Street, ... Gothic, built of limestone, fourstoreys high with attic... 52 x 125 ft.Architect: Messrs. Bowles and Sons.(N.B. Park St. became St. Andrew St.and currently is new St. Patrick St. TheConvent is now home to the Embassy ofthe People’s Republic of China, 515 St.Patrick St.) (fig.4.).

• Improvements in Notre Dame Basilica,Sussex St... Emplacement of galleries torun whole length of church on each side,affording 120 extra pews. A new ceilingis to be put in. Architect: Messrs. Bowlesand Son. (N.B. These were replaced byarchitect Rev. Canon Georges Bouillon,sometime after 1878 when he becameparish priest of Notre Dame, and tookcharge of the interior decor)11.

Further, on June 26, 1876, the Citizen reports:• The Canadian Institute... The building,

when completed will be quite an ornament to York Street. It is to be constructed in limestone, three storeyshigh, Mansard roofwith ornamental irontower in the centre. The dimensions are107 x 57. The style of architecture is acombination of Doric and Gothic.

The basement will be used for offices,assembly, billiard and lecture rooms. The theatre will be on the ground flat.The two flats will be divided into spaciousrooms to be used for a variety of purposes.The building, when completed will cost,between $25,000 and $30,000. Thearchitects are Messrs. John Bowlesand Son... (N.B. roof destroyed by firebut rebuilt and still standing, 18-20York). (fig. 5.)

In 1877 and 1879, evidence of John Bowes’ continued work with theDPW appears in the Public WorksAnnual Reports, naming John Bowes as Superintending Architect for St.Vincent de Paul Penitentiary l2.

Bowes & Ottawa in the 1800s.In 1881, Thomas Fuller returned toCanada to assume the position of ChiefArchitect for the Department of PublicWorks, a position he held until 1896.During this period, he designed 140 federal buildings, of which 80 were postoffices and custom houses for growingcommunities in the Dominon.13

Together with Thomas Seaton Scott he is credited for creating the Canadian“Dominion style”,14 a style that is characterised by a rough stone facade,often asymmetrical, with a large centregable having a distinctive stone “bossage”

or “diament” pattern, rounded arches 15,and towers that are often hexagonal oroctagonal; all still in an eclecticmedievalising style. A local example ofthis “Dominion” style is the AlmontePost Office ( T. Fuller, 1889-91).

In the 1883 Sessional Papers of theDepartment of Public Works, JohnBowes is the Superintending architectfor construction of additions to theKingston Peuitentiaryl6. What otherstructures he worked on during this period remain to be discovered.

His son, James R. Bowes is not listedin the City Directories for 1882-83. In 1887, when he would have been 35years old, City Council approved theconstruction of a new Central FireStation, on ground near the rear of thenew City Hall ( Elgin St.) with plans byJames R Bowes, “who was then cityarchitect”.17

St. Bridget’s Church. In March of1888, a committee of parishioners fromNotre Dame Cathedral started meeting

A Forgotten Legacy Continued...

Fig. 5. Former Institut Canadien Français, 18 York St.

Fig. 6. St. Bridget’s Church, exterior, c. 1898. From the publication: Carre, William H.,Art Work in Ottawa, Canada. Published in twelveparts. 1898.

Fig. 4. Convent of the Good Shepherd. Embassyof the People’s Republic of China, St. Patrick St.(formerly Park St.).

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with the Archbishop of Ottawa, theMost Rev. Joseph Thomas Duhamel, todiscuss building a separate church forthe English-speaking parishioners of theCathedral. Committee members includedMessrs. John J. Lyons, Bingham,McEvila, O'Reilly, McDonald, and

Father J.T. McGovern. Discussion anddebate as to the need for a separateparish, the location of the church, aswell as the design of the church, tookplace in a series of meetings. By May 3,1888, Mr. Bowes had been chosen asarchitect, and he submitted a plan to thefifth general meeting. By the time of theBlessing of the completed St. Bridget’sChurch, August 3, 1890, the architect’sname is given as James R. Bowes.18 Thecontractor in charge of the constructionwas John J. Lyons. (fig. 6.).

Prior to the official opening of St. Bridget’s Church in 1890, theOttawa Citizen continues recording the city’s building activities. On June 13, 1888, the Citizen reports thatthe City Property Committee met todiscuss plans for a new Police Station. A motion was taken to have Mr. J.R.Bowes prepare plans; however, anothermotion was carried to request Tendersfor Plansl9. The same issue describes“Four New Schoolhouses”: St. Joseph’s,St. Patrick’s, Notre Dame, and NewEdinburgh Separate Schools, all to bebuilt to the plans of J.R. Bowes, withcontracts awarded to John J. Lyons. Inaddition, the June 13 1888 issue of theCitizen carries the story “CongregationalChurch: Laying of the Corner-stone...”.The architect was Mr. James R. Bowes,Ottawa (fig. 7.). The speech of Sir James

Grant makes men-tion of “a proudthing to see RomanCatholics present atthe ceremony”20

James R. Bowes wasa Roman Catholic.The church was situated at thenorth-east comer ofElgin and Albert,quite close to thenew City Hall,Police Station (fig. 8.), and FireHall. All thesebuildings weredemolished in thetwentieth century,possibly in the1950’s as part of theGreber plan.

Bibliography

1 RG II Y. 769, Quebec, 22 Dec. 1859, letter 30158; , RGII Y. 771, Kingston on, 24 Oct 1860, letter 34283.

2 RG II Y. 772: letter 35837,28 Feby 1861; letter 36845,20 May 1861;letter 37235: 15 June 1861.

3 RG II Y. 772, letter 37578/37515. 19 July 1861, Quebec. T. Trudeau to John Bowes Esq. Measurer Parliament Bldgs, Ottawa.

4 RG II Y. 772, letter 59944,28 Sept 1866 ,

5 RG II Y. 772 letter 37578 and letter 37846

6 RG II Y. 782 letters 57893-94

7 RG. II Y. 785 letter 2842 Ottawa July 21, 1868, lists Mr. Wm Hutchison as Inspector of Works, Ottawa

8 RG II Y. 785 letter 3078,29 August 1868.

9 Thomas, Christopher A Thomas Fuller (1823-98) and Changing Attitudes to Medievalism in Nineteenth-Century Architecture, Society for the Study of

Architecture in Canada. Selected Papers fromthe Annual Meeting 1978, pp 107 - 109

10 Ibid

11 Barbezieux. Alexis. Histoire de la Province Ecclesiastlque d’Ottawa.v. 2, 1897. p 24 and also Noppen, Luc. In the National Gallery of Canada, One of the most beautiful chapels in the land. Ottawa, 1988, p. 84.

12 Canada Department of Public Works Reports, 1875, pp. 74-75. and 1879, Appendix 3, p 13.

13 Christopher Thomas, p. 109.

14 Ibid, p. III .

15 Ibid, p.110.

16 National Archives of Canada. Cartographic and Architectural records, Peter Arend’s. notes.

17 Newton, Michael. Lowertown Ottawa. volume 2.1854-1900. NCC, 1981, p.414.

18 St.. Brigid’s Parish, 1889-1939. Golden Jubilee. Le Droit, 1939, pp.9-17.

19 Ottawa Citizen , Wednesday, June 13.

20 Ibid

Elizabeth Krug worked for the Nat.Archives, in the Documentary Art and Photo. Div., for 15 years before taking early retirement in 2001.Her last three years with the Fed. Gov. werewith Industry Canada’s Digital Collections Prog. She lives in Lowertown and served as avolunteer researcher with St. Brigid’s Church in the fall of 2002.

This article is to be continued in the nextissue of Heritage Ottawa News.

Fig. 7. Congregational Church, Ottawa, c. 1898.From the publication: Carre, William H.,Art Work in Ottawa, Canada. Published in twelve parts. 1898.

Fig. 8. Ottawa Police Station, Elgin St. c. 1938.

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located on the north-west corner ofBruyere and King Edward streets oracross the street on King Edward thatthen was a two lane boulevard runningnorth and south from Rideau to Sussex.It was a great place to hang out. Thispart of King Edward was reconstructedfor the 1939 Royal Visit.

The gang for grown up teenagers,who either worked or went to school,covered all Lower Town and they hungaround a restaurant located on the corner of Bruyere and Dalhousie streets.

The Games We PlayedEvery season had its own games. In winter it was hockey and skating. Allage groups, both boys and girls, skated at Bingham Square which we calledCathcart Square, and which was, (and still is today,) encircled by Parent,Cathcart and Bolton Streets. In the center of the square was a hockey rinkthat was encircled by an oval shapedskating surface. We always skated clock-wise, in a very orderly manner becausethe older guys were usually paired withgirls and wouldn’t stand for much non-sense that interfered with their courting.

On the north side of the squarewere two temporary shacks that were setup by the City of Ottawa for the winterskating season. Most of us boys put onour skates at home and skated on thestreet to the rink There was a shack forboys and one for girls. We boys used totry and hang around the door of thegirls' shack hoping to pick up a skatingpartner. Sometimes a girl would onlyskate one or two laps with us and thengo back in the shack. If you were lucky,you would skate all evening with thesame girl, and if you were really lucky,you got to walk her home.

Back streets were not cleared ofsnow in those days. The snow plowswould simply shove the snow to thekerbs. Over the winter, huge snow bankswould build up and the younger kidswould build forts in them, completewith tunnels. City crews would cleandriveway entrances so that most fortswere family owned and their intricacieswere generally an indication of howmany kids lived in the house frontingthe fort.

Growing up in Lower Town (Part 1)

By J.W.Guy Fortier

Street. Mr Freiman hired many French or bilingual Canadians since the majority of his clientele was French.He was fair and honest and treated hisworkers well. Another Jew who caredfor the poor was a Max Mosion whoowned owned The Dominion Bakery at914 St. Patrick Street. He had two orthree horse drawn wagons which delivered bread. Every night when thewagons were coming home, the poorwould line up and Mosion would giveaway any unsold items. Another was aMr Pleet who sold clothing, usually oncredit, from house to house. I stillremember that he sold my parents myFirst Communion suit. I don’t knowhow much it cost, but I remember him coming home at the end of each monthand collecting a 50 cents payment.

A certain rag picker’s son became a medical doctor, and my mother was, I think, his first patient. He became her Doctor and she was so impressedwith him that she spread his nameamongst all the neighbours. He laterbecame very well known, but he neverforgot her. Anytime my parents or other members of my family were ill, in spite of his busy schedule, he wouldalways make a house call. I often thinkof these poor, hard working parents who sacrificed everything for their children’s education when I look around and see the many successful Jews today. They owe their parents and grandparents a lot!

The Gangs Most of the French kids hung around ingangs, generally there were three kindsthat were based on age groups. Weknew most of the gangs. The first gangthat I belonged to was composed mostlyof kids up to about age 12 who lived onWater Street (now Bruyere) betweenCumberland and King Edward Streets.

The next step up was a large gangof about 25 or so whose ages ran fromaround age 12 to 16. This gang hungaround the #5 Fire station grounds

ower Town, before and duringthe early years of the SecondWorld War was quite different

than it is today. It had three main population groups, French , English(mostly Irish,) and Jews. Each group had its own schools, churches and synagogues and they rarely mixed witheach other except for sports such as softball, hockey or football. Competitionin those sports was keen.

The Jews Of special interest to us FrenchCanadians were the Jews. They had aspecial relationship with us. Most Jewswere of Russian origin and had come toCanada to avoid the pogroms whichoften occurred in their homeland. Mostwere poor and did anything to survive.Some roamed the streets in horse drawnwagons buying up used metals or clothing or selling fruits and vegetables.They stood up to insults and teasing andconcentrated on making things betterfor their families. They pressured theirchildren to excel in school and tobecome highly recognized professionals.They were most successful. Three casesin particular come to mind. One wasA.J. Freiman, a successful DepartmentStore owner. The store bore his name.It’s now The Bay located on Rideau

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Hitching rides was another funsport. The main streets such as Rideauand Dalhousie were usually cleared ofsnow that was hauled away in huge wagons which had hinged sides. Thesewagons were filled by shovelling crews,and when full, were pulled by a two-horse team to King Edward Park anddumped into the Rideau River. Over thewinter, huge mountains of snow wouldbuild up and these were great places forus kids to play and slide.

We would wait for these rigs onDalhousie Street, jump on the back panels and ride to the river. The driverswould leave us alone most of the time.Some tried to chase us away but soongave up. Except for a few main streets,most streets were never bare, nor werethey sanded and thus were slippery. Wewould hang on to the bottom of the rig,squat on our haunches and slide on ourboots for blocks at a time. Sometimeswe would hit a bare spot and come to anabrupt stop, tumble around, and unlesswe were hurt, run back to the rig andstart all over again.

There was little automobile trafficthen, and for a variety of reasons.Mostly, Lower Town residents were toopoor to own autos and they were in anycase treated as a luxury item, only to betaken out on special occasions, includingthe odd Sunday drive. Also, this wasduring the depression and the early yearsof the Second World War when gasolinewas rationed.

The braver ones amongst us wouldgo “Bumper Riding” The routine wasthe same as riding snow rigs. We wouldwait for a car to stop at the corner of St Patrick and King Edward streets, graba car’s bumper and ride all the way toSussex Street. Sussex Street alwaysended these adventures because it hadstreetcar tracks. In those days, the“Rockcliffe” streetcar would start its runin Hull, go along Sparks , down toRideau, turn onto Sussex, and end up atthe entrance to Rockliffe Park where itwould turn around and head back.

The bravest of us would ride thestreetcar to the park and back, but thiswas very dangerous. We would hookonto the streetcar tow bar and slide.Sometimes, if we wanted to get off, we

would reach up and pull on the cordthat was tied to the overhead wires todisconnect the power feed. Withoutpower, the streetcar would slow downrapidly and we would get off and runaway before the street car conductorcould catch us.

Spring was rather a dull time.Skating was over, as was snow rig andcar riding, and there wasn’t much to do until the snow and ice melted andthe streets became clear. To speed themelting we chopped the ice from thesidewalks in front of our houses andthrew it on to the road to be crushed by passing automobiles.

A favourite haunt was the “BlackBridge,” a railway trestle bridge onwhich a daily freight train crossed theRideau River at the end of RedpathStreet. Today, Boteler is the last streetrunning East-West before Sussex. Inbetween these two streets is a road leading to the MacDonald-CartierBridge. In those days, north of Botelerwas Redpath Street, followed by BairdStreet. Between Baird and Redpath were train tracks leading to variouswarehouses, like the Lawrence PaperCompany, the Gamble Fruit andVegetables Company. The piers

supporting the bridge still exist todayand can be seen from the surroundingparks or the Minto Bridges, and the railroad right of way is part of the existing and planned extension of theVanier Parkway.

As Spring wore on, the city wouldcut channels and blast the ice off theRideau River to avoid having it floodalong its banks. So at the Black Bridge,we would go to the bottom of the piersand amuse ourselves by jumping on largeice flows that had been dynamited, andriding them down the Rideau River tothe Minto Bridges. There, the Rideaunarrowed and caused an ice jam thatenabled us to jump off and walk back tothe Black Bridge to start again

Another spring activity was to seewho would be the first to go swimming.Being first to swim even for a short timein the icy cold water was quite a featand earned the respect of all gang mem-bers. Word would quickly get aroundthat so-and-so had been swimming andthe other members quickly followed suit,so as not to be thought “chicken.”

The Black Bridge had three piers. We shared the bridge with an Irish-Englishgang that lived in New Edinburgh, and we

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Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Lithwick in front of their grocery store, ca. early 1930.

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all followed a strict conduct protocol.We never spoke to each other and whenwalking on the bridge, we kept to theright and they to the left. It was as if theother side was invisible.

We also each had our own pier toswim from. We swam at the third piercounting from west to east, whereas theother gang swam at the second pier.This meant that we often passed eachother going swimming, but we allobserved the “rules” and there wererarely any problems.

To the east of the bridge was a cityrun swimming pool called “Flatrocks.” It was there that we younger oneslearned to swim. Once we could, wewould be accepted to swim at the BlackBridge. But there was a test to pass. Toreally be welcomed, you had to swimfrom there to one of the Minto Bridgesand back. If you had to rest along theway by floating on your back, this wasn’tso good. To really be part of the swim-ming gang, you had to swim non-stop.

There was also status attached todiving off the bridge. Most of us couldjump or dive off the middle span halfway up to the top. The real heroes werethose who climbed all the way and theneither jumped or dived from the top.

As summer came and days gotlonger, we would hang around theboulevard, usually after supper, on King Edward Street across from the fire station. One of our favourite gameswas Kick the Can. This consisted ofgathering around an empty tin can,selecting one person to guard the canand someone to boot it. Once the canwas kicked, the guardian would run toretrieve it and bring it back to its original position. In the meantime, the rest of us would run away and hide,usually behind trees or nearby cars. Theguardian, would replace the can and call out the names of those he saw orsuspected were hiding nearby. He had to go close to where a person was hid-ing, identify him and run back to touchthe can. Those who were caught thisway would hang around the can and asthe guardian roamed further and further

away they would hope that someonewould run from his hiding place andkick the can before the guardian couldget back to it. If that happened, then allthose previously caught would be free torun and hide, and the game would startall over again. If the guardian managedto catch everyone, he would select anew guardian to replace him and wewould start over. Supper was usuallyaround five o’clock for most of us and by5.30 we gathered to play the game. Itwould last until darkness.

Younger boys did not play Kick theCan and their gang had to make its ownfun. At night we used to run the sheds. Inthose days, practically every house had agarage or a shed at the back of the lot lineso that the sheds from one street backedon the sheds or garages of the next street.Each of these were different so that to gofrom one to the other you either had toclimb up or jump down to the next. Weused to have races starting on the shedsnearest King Edward Street and runningwest to Cumberland Street. I don’t recallanyone chasing us away. Maybe we weretoo fast or too quiet, in any case, we didn’tstay too long in one area.

More a trick than a game was playingghosts. This required stealth and consistedof one of us climbing on the back porchof a home and quietly hang a threadthat was attached a small metal washerat the top of the window frame with athumb tack. We would then tie a threadto the washer and play it out all the wayto the back garage or shed. Then wewould lie down quietly on the roof, waituntil the lights in the bedroom wereturned on and then off and gently tugon the thread. The washer would hit thewindow and make a slight noise. Afterabout a dozen tugs, the lights would goon and the window would go up as theoccupants searched for the source of thenoise. We always used a black fishingline and would tug on it very hard andusually the thumb tack would pop outand we could pull everything away with-out leaving any evidence. Neighboursoften talked about the mysterious ghostsclicking on their window panes.

During spring, summer and fall weplayed “The Four Corners.” By this wemeant where the four street corners of

city blocks met at an intersection. Withus, it was the Bruyere and Cumberlandstreets intersection. In those days, thestreet corners were usually lit by a 100-watt bulb hanging from a plateshaped socket in the middle of theintersection. One person was elected tostand under the light equidistant fromall four wooden light poles that were atthe four corners. Four other personswould each occupy (touch) a differentpole. The idea was for two players toexchange positions by running from onepole to the other. The middle personwould try to reach and touch one of thevacated poles before the runner tryingto reach it could get there. Whoever theloser was would exchange places withthe one in the centre and the gamewould start all over again.

On Saturdays a gang, of us wouldgo to the movies. The Français Theatreon Dalhousie Street between York andGeorge streets was one of our favourites.Every Saturday the Français had a matinee starting at 10 a.m.. It wouldfeature two full length movies, a serial,and a cartoon, and was repeated in theafternoon and evening. Entry cost adime, but there was always a couple ofus without money, so one of us wouldcollect the available dimes and go to the box office and buy, as many ticketsas possible.. We would then quicklyenter in a bunch and point to the onein the back with the tickets. He wouldhand in the tickets, by then most of uswere inside the theatre before the clerkcould count us. We usually stayed forboth the morning and matinee shows;during the short break between showswe would hide, in the washroom orunder our seats and wait for the moviesto start again.

My grandmother helped me get my dime, all week she would collect her own newspapers and those of herneighbours and roll them up for me. I would show up around 8 A.M. onSaturday morning, pick up my two rolls of paper and head for the marketwhere I sold the rolls for a nickel each to meat merchants for use as wrapping paper.

(to be continued in next issue)

Growing up Continued…

9

2. Centretown: Walk through the heart of downtown Ottawa. Its mixture of residential, institutional and commercial buildings includes lateVictorian red brick homes, Art Decodesigns and Modernist high-rise -yours to discover!

Guide: Terry de March, HeritageAficionado

Date: June 22, 2:00 PM

Departure: City Hall, 111 Lisgar at Cartier

3. Glebe: Come and see the shady streets and lanes of one of Ottawa’s mostcharming neighbourhoods. Discoverthe story behind the QueenElizabeth Driveway, Central ParkGardens and everything in between.

Guide: Gouhar Shemdin,Conservation Architect

Date: July 6, 2:00 PM

Departure: Corner of Clemow andO’Connor

4. New Edinburgh: Once a village lying outside thebounds of Bytown, New Edinburghwas established by industrialistThomas McKay and comprises botharchitecturally-rich buildings andsimpler stone dwellings built to

house 19th century labourers. Walkthrough one of Ottawa’s most historic neighbourhoods.

Guide: Jennifer Rosebrugh, FormerHeritage Ottawa President

Date: July 20, 2:00 PM

Departure: 62 John St, near Sussex Dr.

5. Sandy Hill: The beautifully maintained mansions and townhouses of thisearly Ottawa residential district datefrom 1870 into the early 20th century.The tour will highlight the positiveeffect zoning changes in the mid-1970s had on the preservation ofbuildings in the area.

Guide: Judy Deegan, FormerLACAC member and Sandy Hillresident

Date: August 10, 2:00 PM

For more information call or e-mailHeritage Ottawa at 230-8841 and info@heritageottawa.ca orcheck-out our website: www.heritageottawa.ca

Join us for and hour and a half walk highlighting some of Ottawa’sfinest architecture!

Tour Prices: $8.00 Heritage Ottawamembers; $10.00 non-members

1. Beaux Arts Ottawa: (This tour will be given twice thissummer.) The architectural style ofthe École des Beaux-Arts in Pariscame to the United States and laterto Ottawa. Ottawa’s Beaux Artsbuildings feature classical exteriorson modern steel frames, with symmetrical plans and a progressivearrangement of space. Twelveof the city’s most important Beaux-Arts buildings, designed by leadingCanadian and American architectsin the first half of the 20th century,plus some additional classicalfacades, will be seen along Sparksand Wellington Streets.

Guide: David Jeanes, Railway &Amateur Historian

Date: June 8, 2:00 PM

Departure: Conference Centre (formerly Union Station)Confederation Square entrance

Heritage Ottawa’s 2003 Walking Tour Schedule

Fraser Schoolhouse62-64 John Street 1837(Heritage Ottawa’s former home)

Continued on pages 10 and 11

10

Walking Tour Continued…

Departure: Laurier House, 335Laurier Ave. East (at Chapel)

6. Village of Britannia: Walk through the historic Village ofBritannia and discover the story ofits emergence as a late-Victorianresort destination. The extensionof the citys streetcar tracks westwardin 1900 brought Ottawa’s leisureseekers, ushering in the golden yearsbefore World War I. Much ofBritannia retains a village flavourand many former cottages have survived, some still evoking thecharacter of the old summer resortcommunity.

Guide: Carolyn Quinn, FormerHeritage Ottawa President Date: August 24, 2:00 PMDeparture: Parking lot at top of hilloff Greenview Ave. (details will bein the schedule included with theNewsletter posting).

7. The Ruisseau de la Brasserie in Gatineau (formerly Hull):

Discover the industrial heritage ofthe former City of Hull, includingthe E.B. Eddy buildings, thehistorical plaque of Hull’s founderPhilemon Wright and the Villaged’Argentine where many heritagehouses are located. This year, thistour will be given in English.

Guide: Michel Prévost, President,Societé d’histoire de l’Outaouais

Date: September 7, 11:00 AM

Departure: The Écomusée de Hull,

170, Montcalm Street, Gatineau(former Hull). The Écomusée islocated near the Tour Eiffel bridgewhich crosses the Ruisseaude la Brasserie at the corner ofPapineau Street.

8. Lowertown: Visit the Basilica, churches, court-yards and historic buildings of theByWard Market and Lowertownarea. This area represents the heartof historic Ottawa since it was herethat the canal workers lived and theearliest commercial district began.

Guide: Hagit Hadaya, ArchitecturalHistorian

Date: September 7, 2:00 PM

Departure: Statue of Col. John By,Major’s Hill Park (behind theChâteau Laurier Hotel)

9. Beaux Arts Ottawa: The architectural style of the Ecoledes Beaux-Arts in Paris came to theUnited States and later to Ottawa.Ottawa’s Beaux Arts buildings feature classical exteriors on modernsteel frames, with symmetrical plansand a progressive arrangement ofspace. Twelve of the city’s mostimportant Beaux-Arts buildings,designed by leading Canadian andAmerican architects in the first halfof the 20th century, plus some addi-tional classical façades, will be seenalong Sparks and WellingtonStreets.

Guide: David Jeanes, Railway &Amateur Historian

Date: September 14, 2:00 PM

Departure: Conference Centre

(formerly Union Station)Confederation Square entrance

10. Rockcliffe Park: Join us for a walk through picturesqueRockcliffe Park with its mix of architectural styles from stately stonemansions and interesting contemporarydesigns to remaining summer cottages. Learn about the history ofthe village and the role the MacKayand Keefer families had in determiningits layout and even the design ofmany of its homes.

Guide: Martha Edmond, Historian& Author

Date: October 19, 2:00 PM

Departure: corner of Sandridge and Hillsdale

11. Terra Cotta in theDowntown Core:

Take a stroll down Sparks andWellington Streets to see and hearabout Ottawa’s early 1900’s uniqueglazed terra cotta buildings. Learnabout terra cotta’s use as a building

Close-up of terra cotta figure of “Hope” at

61-63 Sparks St.B

arba

ra M

c Mul

len

11

material and its important role inthe early 20th century developmentof the Downtown Core.

Guide: Barbara McMullen, UrbanPlanning & Heritage Consultant

Date: September 28, 2:00 PM

Departure: Southeast corner ofRideau St. and Colonel By Dr., just outside Rideau Centre.

12. Terra Cotta in Centretown:

Take a walk through Centretown to view its late 1890’s terra cotta-decorated Queen Anne Revivalhomes and public buildings. Learnabout Ontario’s late 19th centurybrick and terra cotta manufacturers,including T.M. Clark of NewEdinburgh who produced Ontario’sfirst architectural terra cotta.

Guide: Barbara McMullen, UrbanPlanning & Heritage Consultant

Date: October 5, 2:00 PM

Departure: St. George’s Church,Metcalfe at Gloucester St.

Heritage Ottawa wishes tothank the Official Sponsor of the 2003 Heritage WalkingTour Season:

ome time ago it was announcedthat the current Ottawa CityArchives was inadequate for stor-

ing the expected deluge of archivalmaterial for the new City. The problemis intensified by the private owner of thepresent archive building, who wantsvacant possession. The City Administrationis now looking for new space for theArchives and other functions.

Heritage Ottawa could recommendthat the City Management move theArchives to the old abandoned CityPolice Headquarters. In that buildingthere would be sufficient space to concen-trate several other City branches whichare spread all over Ottawa. This buildingnot only has increased space but isequipped with proper heating, plumbing,fire protection and other requlred facili-ties. An additional bonus is that thevacated City police headquarters is withinwalking distance of the new Ottawa CityHall. If all the space in the suggestedbuilding is not required by the City theempty portion could be rented. to easethe city taxpayers’ burden.

Another bonus perhaps, would be thatwithin a few decades,this magnificentexample of 20th Century ModernArchitecture would become, one ofOttawa’s most cherished heritage buildings.

News FlashA well informed authority points out toHeritage Ottawa that the City Archivesand otber City Offices can not now bemoved into the City Police Headquarters,it has been razed to make outdoor spaceavailable for unspecified public activitieson Waller Street in downtown Ottawa.

No Cause for Alarm The building discussed in this articlewas dismantled several years before thepresiding City Council was elected andthe present City Administration cameinto effect. Members of HeritageOttawa can be assured that the newCity of Ottawa will take better care ofits assets.

A Modest Proposal to Solve Cityof Ottawa Expansion Problemsby Paul Stumes (The author whimsically suggests what might have been.)

S

The former Ottawa Police H.Q. reduced to debris.

Sussex Capital Inc. Sixty-Two John Street, Ottawa,K1M 1M3 (613) 741-7970

Councillor Alex Munter, Chair of theHealth, Recreation and Social ServicesCommittee, presents Heritage OttawaBoard member Paul Stumes with aHeritage Community Recognition ProgramCertificate of Achievement and an OntarioHeritage Foundation Achievement pin.The presentation of this award, recognizingPaul's long-time contribution to the preservation of Ottawa’s built heritage,took place at Ottawa City Hall onThursday, May 1, 2003. A number ofPaul’s Heritage Ottawa Board colleaguesalso attended the presentation ceremony.Congratulations Paul!

12

a brief at the National CapitalCommission’s annual public meeting.

Thanks to the efforts of Boardmember John Arnold and his committee,we published 5000 copies of a newbrochure. Jim Georgiles continues single- handedly to produce the Newsletterand two editions have appeared sinceour last Annual General Meeting. Withthe help of a newly established editorialcommittee, the aim is to publish fourissues in 2003.

Jennifer Rosebrugh organised ourWalking Tours for 2002. The eight toursdrew over 200 participants and raisedover $2000 in much-needed revenue.Sussex Capital Inc. were the officialsponsor for our tours and their generosityenabled us to produce a brochure promoting the tours. Thanks to theefforts of this year’s tour organizer,Louisa Coates, we shall offer a record 12 tours between June 8 and October 5.Sussex Capital have again agreed to bethe official sponsor of these events. The promotional brochure should beavailable in early June but the completelisting is on our website and will appearin the June issue of the Newsletter.

Barbara McMullen is preparing aterra cotta architecture walking tour

guide to the Downtown which will bepublished in September thanks to thesupport of the Trillium Foundationwhich awarded us a grant of $9700. The guide will be publically “launched”in September and will be available forsale at a modest price.

Our webmaster and Board member,Peter O’Malley, has enhanced our website over the past year, including the establishment of an archives of thecomplete run of the Heritage OttawaNewsletter dating back to 1974. Thesearchived issues, contain over 600 pagesof important information on the heritage movement in Ottawa over the past three decades. It will serve asan educational tool for those interestedin the study of our built heritage andwill be of interest to the public as well.We are the first heritage organization in Canada in Canada to archive ourpublications in this manner. A searchengine is being developed for thearchived information which will furtherenhance its usefulness.

There is much to be done butHeritage Ottawa needs the active supportand involvement of more members. Atthe registration table there are lists of thevarious committees with their duties andspace for members to sign-up. I urge youto do so. We really need your help.

I want to thank each of the members of the current Board for theirhelp throughout the year, especially our Past-President, Carolyn Quinn forall of her efforts over the past six yearsand for the help that she has given tome since I assumed the presidency eightmonths ago. A special thanks to ouronly “employee” Jennifer Jimmo, for her efforts above and beyond the call of duty. There are few employees with the devotion to stick with a jobwhen the employer can usually only pay her for five or six days of work per month.

We could not continue to operatewithout the financial assistance of theCity of Ottawa’s Heritage Departmentwhich provides us with an operatinggrant every year. This year we received$10,600. If we want to increase thishowever, we must have a strategic plandeveloped before the end of the year.The Ontario Ministry of Culture alsoprovided us with a grant of $1,035.

And finally thanks to you, themembers. Your Board appreciates andneeds your ongoing support. I hope youmany of you will get more involved inthe activities of Heritage Ottawa in theupcoming year.

Thank you for your attention.

President Continued…

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT - BECOME A MEMBER

Individual: $25 Patron: $50

Family: $30 Corporation: $100

Student $15 Senior: $15

Name:

Address:

Postal Code:

Telephone: (home) (business)

E-mail:

Please, forward with payment to:

HERITAGE OTTAWA2 Daly Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6E2

Tel: 230-8841 Fax: 564-4228E-mail: info@heritageottawa.org

V i s i t H e r i t a g e O t t a w a O n L i n e – w w w . h e r i t a g e o t t a w a . o r g