Experts' Corner

We often receive questions about the history of Ottawa and other topics related to heritage.  We have teamed up with experts from the community who are on hand to answer your questions.

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Question: How do I create a heritage project for Ottawagraphy?

Answered By: Erin Snow, Communications Coordinator, CHOO/COPO
Answer:

Heritage projects can cover any number of subjects and formats, so it is best to determine an idea or a starting point, such as an aspect of heritage you wish to promote.  Once you have the idea and research materials it is just a matter of thinking about how you...


Question: Ladouceur Street in Hintonburg

Answered By: Linda Hoad
Answer:

Ladouceur Street in hintonburg was named after one of the first aldermen of hintonburg or ottawa.  Do you have any records of what was his first name, and what year the street was named ?


Question: Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston?

Answered By: David Jeanes
Answer:

Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston, the celebrated horticulturalist who worked at the Central Experimental Farm in the 1920s?

Preston Street was named many years before Isabella Preston’s time.

Preston Street is mentioned in the...


Question: Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston?

Answered By: Serge Barbe, City of Ottawa Archives
Answer:

Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston, the celebrated horticulturalist who worked at the Central Experimental Farm in the 1920s?

The name of Preston Street appears on Registered Plan No. 13 for Lot 39, First Concession of the Ottawa Front in the...


Question: Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston?

Answered By: Joan Speirs, Lilac advisor, Friends of the Central Experimental Farm
Answer:

Was Preston Street named after Isabella Preston, the celebrated horticulturalist who worked at the Central Experimental Farm in the 1920s?

Preston Street in Ottawa was named after John Honey Preston, City Treasurer. The City of Ottawa, Central Archives,...


Question: Was the orchard next to Lincoln Fields part of a farm once? How did Lincoln Fields get its name?

Answered By: Serge Barbe, City of Ottawa Archives
Answer:

The orchard is located near an area that was once the site of a vineyard. In “Ottawa’s Britannia”, Eva Taylor tells of the story of Judge William Mosgrove, a resident of the area who operated a vineyard and a winery. There is no indication of when the orchard was planted...


Question: Why Was Ottawa Chosen as the Federal Capital City?

Answer:

While Ottawa is now a major metropolis and Canada's fourth largest city, it wasn't always so. On December 31, 1857, when Queen Victoria chose Ottawa to be the common capital for the Province of Canada (modern Quebec and Ontario), Ottawa was a sometimes unruly logging...