This painting by Canadian Charles W. Jefferys (1869-1951), entitled Colonel John By, shows the Royal Engineer directing early construction on the Rideau Canal in 1826.
In 1855, Bytown was renamed Ottawa. When the Museum reopened in 1985 BYTOWN MUSEUM Treasures highlighted key artefacts and recent acquisitions including some of our most iconic pieces. John MacTaggart, then clerk of works for the canal, wrote, “I have seen heads, arms, and legs, blown in all directions; and it is vain for overseers to warn them of their danger, for they will pay no attention.” A half-acre parcel of land in what is now downtown Ottawa became a cemetery for canal workers, as did other sites along its route. In 1915, two blocks from the demolished Sappers Bridge, the cornerstone of which was laid by By in 1827, were erected in Major’s Hill Park in his honour, and in 1925 the Rideau Canal was designated a National Historic Site. Meanwhile the city developed rapidly. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. The next issue of Ottawa Citizen Headline News will soon be in your inbox. By was meticulous and transparent in his accounting and estimates as the project eventually reached £822,000, but the initial figure forever haunted him as the marker by which costs were measured. After “considerable talk among the ladies of the city” about the preservation of Ottawa’s rich cultural heritage, the Women’s Canadian Historical Society of Ottawa was formed in June of 1898.
Not much is known of John By’s personal life.
Many of the items loaned would become some of the first permanent accessions into the collection, allowing the WCHSO to finally begin to fulfill its original mandate to collect and preserve.
The 202-kilometre Rideau Canal was built between 1826 and 1832 in the tense aftermath of the War of 1812 as an alternate military supply route between Upper and Lower Canada, should American forces blockade the St. Lawrence River between Kingston and Montreal.
The unforgiving bedrock and clay soaring in front of him gave way to miles and miles of precambrian rock, mosquito-infested swampland and thick forests, all wrapped in extreme climates that alternately baked and froze workers. We encountered an issue signing you up.
Then in 2001, the O train began running in Ottawa. Within two decades of the canal’s completion, By’s branch of his family tree was extinguished. Under his direction and guidance, the officers, contractors and workers overcame almost insurmountable obstacles in a wilderness environment and managed to complete the work in five short construction seasons.”. Construction begins in the fall.
In 1861 it was renamed The College of Ottawa. Ottawa is also an important shopping centre. By expressed concern that the estimate was inadequate, and his own first detailed estimate, in 1827, was close to £475,000.
Find out more about the Museums many daily activities. Detail from a map drawn by Lt. Col. John By in January 1821, showing Ottawa (then Bytown) and the proposed Rideau Canal. An estimated 1,000 men died during construction of the canal, most from disease, including about 500 of malaria. “By’s greatest contribution to the Canal,” wrote Mark Andrews in For King and Country, his 1998 biography of By, “and the reason for which he should be highly regarded, comes from his ability to mobilize, direct, and instill a desire to succeed in all those who were involved.
Bytown Museum opened in 1917. Ordnance made annual requests to Parliament for project funding, but it was decided to source the canal work by contract, rather than have it done by Ordnance itself. 1831-32: A parliamentary committee in London investigates cost overruns for the canal.
Peace Tower was built in 1927 as a tribute to the Canadians who died in the First World War. All Rights Reserved. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. The Royal Engineers, meanwhile, listed By’s year of birth as 1781, while the memorial inscription authorized by his second wife, Esther, at the Bys’ church, indicates he was born in 1782 or ’83. The Museum was opened on October 25, 1917 by Mayor Harold Fisher as “a museum for relics and souvenirs;” celebrating the occasion with its most comprehensive loans exhibition yet. At various locks along his journey, crowds gathered to cheer as cannons thundered. On Friday, May 25, 1832, his canal completed, Lt.-Col. John By, his wife, Esther, and their two daughters, were aboard the 24-metre steamboat Pumper – renamed Rideau for the occasion – enjoying an inaugural cruise on the canal from Kingston to Ottawa. Today Ottawa is a flourishing city. Meanwhile in April 1900 Hull and Ottawa suffered a severe fire which destroyed many houses. After years of wandering, the former City Registry Office, located at 70 Nicholas Street, was acquired and renamed the Bytown Historical Museum. This statue of Lt. Col John By stands in Major's Hill Park.
The Museum of Civilization moved to a new building in 1989. Meanwhile the Mint opened in Ottawa in 1908. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. In 1926, a small granite base for a statue of By was unveiled, but it would be 45 years before any statue appeared.
Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings. Beside him is Thomas McKay.
There are several parking stations near the Markets which are close by. Even the precise year of his birth is the subject of some debate. Most sources, however, including The Canadian Encyclopedia, the Dictionary of Canadian Biography and historian Robert Legget, use the 1779 date.
If you don't see it please check your junk folder. In 1954, Colonel By Drive was named, and By was designated a National Historic Person by Canada’s Historic Sites and Monuments Board. This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. A SHORT HISTORY OF OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA. © 2020 Ottawa Citizen, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. All rights reserved. In the late 20th-century hi-tech industries became important in Ottawa.
With no one championing his legacy, recognition for his accomplishments was slow in coming.
The Museum of Science and Technology opened in 1967.
In 1854 the railway reached Bytown. Please try again.
Meanwhile, the Canadian Museum of Nature dates from 1856 and The National Gallery of Canada was founded in 1880.
In 1971, 135 years after his death, a statue of Lt.-Col. John By, located in Major’s Hill Park, was finally erected, while UNESCO in 2007 designated the canal a world heritage site, noting that it meets the organization’s first criteria: “to represent a masterpiece of human creative genius.”. He had also founded and laid out a town — Bytown — that would become the nation’s capital.