Time-Travelling Through Ottawa History
Now that AI exists, I thought it might be fun to time-travel through Ottawa history. (And I was right!) Time to fire up the proverbial DeLorean – here we go!
The Departure
Destination: Bytown.
1823: Philemon Wright’s Tavern
Narrative: Had to start off my journey by popping by 'ol Phil Wright's tavern!
1826: Building the Rideau Canal
Narrative: Showing Colonel By my plans for the Rideau Canal. (Truth be told, I copied Thomas McKay's homework... and his getup.)
1849: The Stony Monday Riot
Narrative: I joined the Stony Monday Riot on the Reformists side, but quickly retreated to Grant's Hotel (now the "Laff") when the bullets started flying!
1868: Building Parliament
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Narrative: I couldn't time-travel to 19th-century Ottawa without, er, chipping in on the building of Parliament.
1869: Howell Groceries (Rideau & Sussex)
Narrative: Visiting 1869, I took a turn managing Howell Groceries, situated on the north-east corner of Rideau & Sussex. While quaint and peaceful back then, that intersection is now the epicentre of the city's hustle and bustle.
1880: The Original Centre Block / A Seat in Parliament
Narrative: I won a seat in Parliament—think of the pension!
1894: Bank & Sparks (Dominion Hall)
Narrative: William Topley told us all to stay still for the photo, so we did! (Topley's photography studio was nearby on Sparks St.) Incidentally, Dominion Hall was the original bar in town to bear the label "Bucket of Blood." (More on that in a future article.)
1905: The Silver Seven
Narrative: That time I won the Stanley Cup with the Ottawa Silver Seven! (You can read my take on the various Sens arenas of old here on my blog.)
1905: Paul J. Barber’s Newsstand
Narrative: I absolutely had to grab a paper at Paul Barber's famous newsstand, on the northwest corner of Bank & Sparks Streets, right beside Ketchum's.
1913: Union Station / Grand Trunk Central Station
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Narrative: Later and better known as Union Station, our downtown train station (now The Senate of Canada) was initially called “Grand Trunk Central Station.”
1916: The Château Laurier
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Narrative: Rolling up on the Château Laurier. That car looks way fancier in colour—er, I mean in real life!
1929/30: The Bodega Hotel
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Narrative: Passing in front of the Bodega Hotel on York St. (heir to the “Bucket of Blood” moniker), later and better known as the Château Lafayette!
1938: Letter Box Collection in the Glebe
Narrative: Visiting 1938, I took a job as a postie—here I am doing my rounds in the Glebe.
1952: Brading’s Ad
Narrative: That time I modelled for a Brading's ad. (You can see a collection of Brading's ads here on my blog.)
1956: The Brading Beer Train
Narrative: Finally, I had to take the famous Brading beer train for a spin! Read my full story on the beer train and tunnel here on my blog.
And that concludes our journey through the space-time continuum. As we used to say in prep school cadets, "As you were."
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