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The Historical Society of
Ottawa News
ISSN 1207­1838
President’s Report
by George Neville
The Ottawa Room, Carleton
University – A New Resource
Carleton University, proclaimed as
Canada's Capital University, has
created a new bibliographic resource in
the basement (Level 1) of its
MacOdrum Library. This resource,
called the OTTAWA ROOM (and
distinct from the Ottawa Room of the
Main Branch of the Ottawa Public
Library on Metcalfe St.) is currently
under the direction of Monica
Ferguson, Cartographic Specialist of
Carleton's Maps, Data & Gov't
Information Centre (MADGIC), also in
Level 1 of the MacOdrum Library.
MADGIC affords the most convenient
and comprehensive collection of
Canadian topographical maps available
now that the Geological Survey and
Map Resource on Booth St. is being
relegated to a fading sunset by
continuing federal budget cuts initiated
some years ago.
When your President learned of the
establishment of an Ottawa Room in
the MacOdrum Library at Carleton U.,
he immediately thought of providing it
with as complete a set as possible of
copies of the Women's Canadian
Historical
Society
of
Ottawa
(WCHSO),
forerunner
of
The
Historical Society of Ottawa (HSO),
WCHSO Annual Reports, and annual
copies of ADDRESSES Delivered
Before THE CANADIAN CLUB OF
OTTAWA. In addition to these items,
Grace Lewis, our HSO Library­
Archives Director suggested offering
also the varied collection of reference
volumes (federal, Ontario, and Ottawa)
not needed by the City of Ottawa
April 2015
Issue No. 148
Archives when the HSO Library
holdings in the Bytown Museum were
transferred to the City Archives on
25th August 2015. These matters were
put before the HSO Board of Directors
at its January 2015 meeting resulting in
unanimous consent for such transfer to
Carleton's Ottawa Room. The pickup
and transfer was executed by Monica
Ferguson, herself, on 5th February.
Doris Grierson­Hope: Tireless HSO
Researcher
In 1996, The HSO published Bytown
Pamphlet #54, James Ferguson – A
Bytown Pioneer, by D. Grierson­Hope,
a well researched article (96 references
plus a Bibliography of 36 published
authors) about her ancestral Ferguson's
location on Green Island in 1828 by
Crown Patent and his entrepreneurial
works that formed the basis of New
Edinburgh settlement remote from
Bytown. Elsewhere in this Newsletter
issue, you will find Doris's UPDATE
of James Ferguson, a Bytown Pioneer
in which his Crown Patent was
apparently manipulated by Lt­Col. By
in order to provide 4 acres to Jean
Baptiste St. Louis in 1830 for the
erection of a saw mill on the edge of
the Rideau Falls. When the Women's
Canadian Historical Society of Ottawa
was begun in 1898, one of its major
undertakings was to promote research
of Ottawa/Bytown history and to hear
and publish such investigations as part
of its functioning. As an octogenarian,
Doris Hope is carrying on this fine
WCHSO tradition under the HSO
banner, and currently, she is working
on her Grierson family side extending
aspects alluded to in her present
UPDATE.
OTTAWA REGIONAL
HERITAGE FAIR
(Official Sponsor­ The HSO)
Wednesday, 22nd April 2014
9:00 AM – 2:30 PM
Awards Ceremony
1:45 PM
Site: Canadian War Museum
Come to view wonderful exhibits
and chat with youthful exhibitors.
Today’s youth need our support!
In This Issue:
President's Report­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 1
Coming Events: ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 2
HSO Speaker Topics & Profiles for April to May 2015­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­3
James Powell ­ A History of the Canadian Dollar ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 4
Christine Jackson ­ The Ottawa Valley's Pioneering Cowley Family­­­­­­­­­­­5
A Bouquet for the Bate Trilogy Bytown Pamphlets 91, 92 & 93 ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 6
Heritage Concern ­ Former Gas Station, Corner of Island Park & Richmond­ 6
Local Sparks Family Reunion ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 6
James Ferguson, a Bytown Pioneer: An UDATE ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ 7
Query Re an Ottawa War Memorial ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ ­­­­­­­­­­ 9
Historia Poetice Aperta ­ The Lay of the Antiquarian Geriaticus­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­11
Ontario's Historical Plaques ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­12
HSO Newsletter
Page 2
April 2015
The Historical Society of Ottawa
Patron: His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, C.C., C.M.M., C.O.M., C.D.
Governor General of Canada
The Historical Society of Ottawa was founded in 1898 (as the Women's Canadian Historical Society of Ottawa).
Its objective is to increase public knowledge of the history of Ottawa by its publications, meetings, tours, outreach
and participation in local heritage events and also by its co­operation with the Bytown Museum, a store of
artifacts reflecting Ottawa's history from Bytown days and into the present century. Its P.O. Box is shared with
the Bytown Museum, Lt.­Col. By's Commissariat Building, constructed of stone in 1827 and located at 1 Canal
Lane by the Rideau Canal between the Château Laurier and Parliament Hill.
Coming Events
Board Of Directors
President: George Neville [email protected]
Secretary: Margaret Back [email protected]
Treasurer: Kery Peterson­Beaubien
[email protected]
Awards: Alan McLay (Penultimate Past President)
Don Baxter
[email protected]
Ed Bebee
[email protected]
Mary Edwards
[email protected]
Grace Lewis
[email protected]
Dave Mullington
[email protected]
Don Ross
[email protected]
613­729­0579
613­236­7166
613­565­0277
613­730­2264
613­745­3430
613­741­7838
613­824­5490
613­294­2860
613­829­8430
613­592­2539
Committees
Awards
Library/Archives
Membership Chair
Nominations
Newsletter
Publications
Telephone Tree
Tours Coordinator
Web Liaison
Webmaster
Alan McLay
Grace Lewis
Don Ross
Alan McLay, Don Ross, Mary Edwards
Arthur Beaubien ([email protected])
Ed Bebee ([email protected])
Barbara Whitfield, Pat Richardson
George Neville
Dave Mullington
John Reeder ([email protected])
All general correspondence should be addressed to:
The Secretary; The Historical Society of Ottawa
P.O. Box 523, Station “B”
Ottawa, ON K1P 5P6
Friday, March 27
Speaker: Bob Garcia
"The Best Laid Plans of the
Royal Engineers: Proposed
and Lost Fortifications of
Kingston 1827 ­ 1903"
Routhier Community Centre*
1:00 p.m.
Friday, April 24
Speaker: Bryan Cook
"William Pittman Lett: Ottawa’s
Renaissance Clerk"
Routhier Community Centre*
1:00 p.m.
Friday, 29 May 2015
The Historical Society of Ottawa
ANNUAL GENERAL
MEETING
Time: 1:30 PM
Routhier Community Centre
HSO Email: [email protected]
HSO Web Site: http://hsottawa.ncf.ca
A note regarding Membership renewals ­ For regular members of
The Historical Society of Ottawa, your renewal date is shown on your
address label on this newsletter. Please check it and see that you are
up­to­date. If not, a renewal form is available for you to photocopy on
the last page of this newsletter, or just send us a cheque that shows
your current address and phone number.
Reports & Elections
Speaker: Glenn Wright
Controversy and Compromise:
Choosing a Flag for Canada,
1964­1965
*Parking at the Routhier Community Centre ­ from Cumberland Ave., between St. Patrick St. and Guigues Ave.
April 2015
HSO Speaker Profiles for Monthly
Meetings, April ­ May 2015
24 April 2015 ­ HSO Speaker: Bryan
Cook ­ "William Pittman Lett:
Ottawa’s Renaissance Clerk"
Abstract. In 1820, a young family of a
veteran Irish soldier landed in Upper
Canada with a babe­in­arms. The child,
William Pittman Lett, was destined to
experience tumultuous changes in his
fortune and those of Bytown, Canada
and the World on his long journey
through the 19th century. During that
century, British North America and
Bytown evolved rapidly through to
Confederation of the Dominion and
Ottawa as the nation’s capital.
William’s life evolved with all this
change throughout his 73 years
spanning most of the century from
1819 to 1892.
As Ottawa’s first and longest serving
civic Clerk, he influenced the growth
of the City in many ways. He engaged
in the public debate over the choice of
national flag, annexation, slavery,
temperance, poverty, and the politics of
the British connection and Imperial
wars. He delivered his messages
though the speeches of the Mayors and
City councils, public oratory, the
newspapers and local societies. His
media were prose, speech, poetry and
the power of holding the civic pen. He
was Ottawa’s official chronicler and
the City’s de facto poet laureate with a
considerable lifetime production of
poetry.
Over the 20th century, the public
memory of Lett became lost in the
turmoil of World Wars and the
evolution of modern Canadian poetry
beginning with the ‘Confederation
School’. There are no memorials or
public buildings named in his honour
and he is rarely mentioned in histories
of 19th century Canada.
My purpose, therefore, is to
reintroduce William Pittman Lett
through the lenses of his biography and
HSO Newsletter
his poetry. I believe they show that he
was truly Ottawa’s renaissance Clerk
and a significant public commentator
spanning the 19th century in verse. The
book will be published later this year
and so this presentation is somewhat of
a peek beneath its covers. I will focus
on his biography rather than the scope
and merits of his verse…..but you
never know, I might throw in a couple
of mercifully short recitations!
Profile. Bryan is an alumnus of
Sheffield and McGill Universities with
degrees in both arts and sciences. A
founding member of Environment
Canada, he was for sixteen years the
Director General of Energy Science
and Technology for Natural Resources
Canada and for another nine directed
the government’s Energy S & T
laboratories and contracted programs
of the CANMET Energy Technology
Centre. Bryan is currently consulting in
energy and environmental innovation,
management and governance. He is
also pursuing his personal interests in
genealogy and DNA, fishing and
poetry. His most recent and
excruciating passion is learning to play
the 5­string banjo. He is married to
Tanya and has two children, Josiah and
Emily.
24 May 2015 ­ Annual General Meeting
See Coming Events notice p. 2
Speaker: Glenn Wright ­
"Controversy and Compromise:
Choosing a Flag for Canada, 1964­
1965"
Abstract. It has been fifty years since
Canada adopted a distinctive flag. In
this presentation, Glenn Wright will
look behind the scenes at the
controversies arising out of the flag
debate in 1964, the ultimate
compromise that gave us the flag we
have today, and the people and
personalities
involved
in
this
significant achievement. There will be
time for questions and discussion.
Page 3
St. Lawrence Canals
Summer Excursion
To Vaudreuil­Soulanges Region
(south western Montreal)
Thursday, 25 June 2015
Via St. Zotique, Coteau
Landing, Coteau­du­Lac,
Les Cédres, Pointe­de­
Cascades. Ste. Anne­de­
Bellevue & Canal, John Abbott
College & Macdonald College
Returning via Hudson, QC
and Hwy 417
$50.00, Tour & Museums
Meals on Your Own
8:30 AM, St. Richard's
Anglican Church, Merivale Rd.
9:00 AM, St. Thomas the
Apostle Anglican Church
2345 Alta Vista Drive
Reservations to President
613­729­0579
<[email protected]>
ISBN Number Corrections
to Bytown Pamphlets
Unfortunately, one digit errors occurred
in the printing of ISBN numbers in two
Bytown Pamphlet issues:
No. 87: Some 1812 Richmond
Soldiers/Setters
Printed No.
978­920960­30­1
Correct No.
978­0920960­30­1
No. 91: The Bate Brothers of Ottawa,
Booklet 1
Printed No.
978­0­920969­34­0
Correct No.
978­0­920960­34­0
Page 4
Report of January Meeting:
James Powell – A History of
the Canadian Dollar
Reported by Jon Church
James Powell’s presentation was the
result of his many years in senior
positions at the Bank of Canada and his
authoring of the Bank’s A History of the
Canadian Dollar first published in 1999,
expanded and updated in 2005, and
available on the Bank’s website at
www.bankofcanada.ca/publications/boo
ks­and­monographs/ To learn more
about James, his time at the Bank, the
books he has authored, and his blog
about Ottawa’s history, consult the
Society’s January 2015 Newsletter or go
to todayinottawashistory.wordpress.com
James Powell launches into his history of the
Canadian dollar. Photo courtesy of George Neville.
No summary can do justice to the
richness of James’ presentation to the
Society, covering as it did, four
centuries of Canadian currency history.
Nevertheless, an attempt follows.
The earliest medium of exchange in
what was to become Canada was the
wampum (beads and belts) prized by
First Nations peoples, and an essential
part of the fur trade with the arrival of
Europeans.
As early as 1685, authorities in New
France, finding themselves short of
funds with which to pay soldiers and
others, began to issue paper money
(essentially IOUs to be redeemed for
HSO Newsletter
gold or silver when the next ship came
in) printed on playing cards, and
subsequently on playing card stock.
Such “card money” continued to be
issued into the 1760s, the size and
shape differing according to the
denomination.
Until the middle of the nineteenth
century, each British colony in North
America regulated the use of currency
in its own jurisdiction. Each colony
decided for itself the value or “rating”
of a wide variety of “specie” or gold,
silver, or copper coins used in
transactions or to settle debts. These
included not only English and French
coins, but coins from Portugal, Spain
and Spanish colonies in Latin America
and often brought in by immigrants. As
American colonies produced their own
currencies, they were added to the mix.
Once rated, coins became legal tender.
Ratings were based on the amount of
gold or silver contained in the coins,
but varied widely from colony to
colony.
To complicate matters further, in
New France and British North
America, merchants, other individuals,
and companies issued paper script, sort
of private IOUs not backed by gold or
silver. In Upper and Lower Canada
such notes were known as “bons” after
“Bon pour” or “Good for”. They were
also called “shinplasters”. (Not to be
confused with the 25 cent bills issued
by the Dominion of Canada in the
1920s and also often referred to as
“shinplasters”). In addition, privately
issued brass and copper tokens
circulated alongside legal tender coins.
(Gold dust was also used as a medium
of exchange on the west coast
following the discovery of gold in the
Fraser River in the late 1850s).
The absence of a standard currency
made it difficult for merchants and
authorities to manage transactions and
accounts. The net result was much
confusion and, indeed, chaos.
As with the case of “card money” in
April 2015
New France, British colonies in North
America experimented with paper
money as early as 1690 when
Massachusetts Bay Colony issued
“bills of credit” or “Boston bills”
which came to be used in Nova Scotia.
However, such “bills” were not backed
by specie and fell into disrepute due to
over­issuance and resulting high
inflation.
Typically, new paper money was
issued to meet the exigencies of war.
At the time of the War of 1812, Upper
and Lower Canada issued “army bills”
to help finance the war effort and they
became legal tender in both provinces.
About the same time, the Atlantic
Provinces issued their first paper
money in the form of Treasury notes.
Government­issued paper was initially
well accepted, but rapid increases in
the stock of bills led to inflation, a
growing reluctance to accept paper
money at par with specie, and
ultimately, the need for monetary
reform. That reform came in the form
of notes issued by commercial banks
and backed by gold.
The first bank notes in Canada were
issued in dollars, by the Montreal Bank
in 1817. Many other incorporated
banks in central and eastern Canada
followed. Even though during much of
the nineteenth century, a bank’s notes
had to be accepted at par only at the
issuing office (and elsewhere the notes
were discounted even at branches of
the issuing bank) banks notes were
well received, whether denominated in
both dollars and pounds (in Upper and
Lower Canada) or just in pounds,
shillings and pence (in Atlantic
Canada). These early notes issued by
banks were hand signed, printed in
black, and on one side only. Coloured
bills were only introduced in 1852 in
an attempt to discourage counterfeiting
in Canada.
The Currency Act of 1857
proclaimed the use of dollars and
dropped the use of pounds. The
April 2015
following year, the Province of Canada
issued silver and bronze coins
denominated in cents. This marked the
birth of a distinctive, decimal­based
Canadian currency.
In 1859, a number of the commercial
banks failed, bringing their notes into
disrepute and leading to a brief period
during which provincial authorities
issued provincial notes. But with
Confederation in 1867 and the
Dominion Notes Act, provincial notes
were replaced by Dominion notes and
one common rating was finally
established.
The Uniform Currency Act of 1871
established a common monetary
system throughout Canada with
denominations of Canadian currency in
dollars, cents and mills (a mill equaling
one­tenth of a cent; hence the familiar
“mill­rate”.)
The Bank of Canada, was established
only in 1935, in search of greater
monetary order and at the height of the
Great Depression. The new BoC
became the sole insurer of Canada’s
currencies and commercial bank notes
were phased out. The first BoC notes
were issued in separate English and
French versions. The Bank first issued
bilingual bills in 1937.
James concluded his presentation by
looking at the choice of exchange rate
regime adopted by Canada over the
past 150 years, and the factors that
influence the value of the Canadian
dollar. Broadly speaking, Canada
adopted the gold standard during the
nineteenth
and
early
twentieth
centures, a system fixed to the US
dollar during WWII and immediately
afterwards, and a flexible exchange
rate system since 1970. In recent years,
movements in the Canadian dollar
against its US counterpart have been
strongly influenced by changes in
commodity prices and interest rates.
One final observation. Before James
made his presentation, I was unaware
of the interest in Canadian monetary
HSO Newsletter
Page 5
policy by so many Society members as
evidenced by the numerous questions,
spirited discussions, and policy
suggestions following his talk. That
said, it remains unclear which Society
member would be best suited to
become the next Governor of the Bank
of Canada.
Report of February Meeting:
Christine Jackson – The
Ottawa Valley's Pioneering
Cowley Family
Reported by Don Baxter
Every area of Ottawa should have a
researcher like Christine Jackson. She
became interested some years ago in
what the history was of Champlain
Park, the area where she lives and has
been digging into that history and that
of its founding family ever since. As
many as 15 generations of Cowleys are
involved – and she says it’s an accident
that she lives on Cowley Ave.
(Incidentally, the area involved lies
between Tunneys Pasture and Island
Park Drive in the near West end.) It
was in 1867 that Capt. Dan Cowley
moved there – but where did that
family originally come from?
The Cowleys have a connection to
the famous Champlain astrolabe, which
Champlain reportedly lost in the upper
Ottawa Valley in 1613. It was found in
1867 and was temporarily in Cowley’s
possession. His employer sold it to a
New York collector, and Cowley has
been blamed for this as a crass
commercial venture – but he shouldn’t
be blamed – its now­famous
connection was unknown at the time.
She has traced the Cowley family as
far back as Leonard Cowley in
Derbyshire in central England in 1544­
1624, involved with lead mining and
farming. In 1722 the family appear in
Nottinghamshire. Then in 1788 they
moved to Lincolnshire ­ generating a
newspaper item in 1795 about their 30
Christine Jackson presenting Ottawa Valley Cowley
family history. Photo courtesy of George Neville.
lb. turnip. In 1803 they are in Lincoln
and involved in a bankruptcy! After
marriage in London in 1816 and a stay
in Yorkshire, Mailes Cowley at age 65
makes the move to Canada in 1831,
following the big push in England for
emigration. We know he also brought a
barrel of china here for future sale.
After arriving in Montreal, he died
the following year, and his wife died a
year after that, leaving behind two
teen­agers in 1833 alone in their new
country. In 1836, one of them at least,
Daniel, moves to Bytown and works
first as a bookkeeper, becoming the
master of a paddle steamer on the
Ottawa River only two years later.
For the next years, Daniel Cowley is
involved actively in starting and
operating transportation operations of
one kind or another up and down the
Ottawa Valley between Fitzroy
Harbour and Pembroke – shipping,
stage coaching and road­building, and
competing with the famous horse
Captain Dan Cowley (bottom row 2nd from the left)
and collegues. Photo courtesy of Christine Jackson.
Page 6
railway around Chats Falls. But they
did other things as well – in 1844
Daniel married and purchased a farm
in Clarendon Front, Pontiac County
where he also farmed – an 1856 record
shows a grant to him of 100 acres,
while the 1861 census lists him as a
forwarder (of freight).
In 1867, the Cowleys move to
Nepean and there is a picture of their
large house there, which unfortunately
later burns down. Captain Dan died at
age 80, but left behind a large family
and many descendants – doctors, a
HSO Newsletter
Heritage Concern ­ Former
Gas Station, corner of Island
Park Dr. and Richmond Rd.
The property of concern, SW corner of Island Park
Dr. and Richmond Rd. Photo by George Neville.
The Concern ­ In early autumn Mary
Edwards wrote to Heritage Ottawa
regarding the heritage value of this site.
The Cowley family home on Richmond Rd. west of
Island Park Dr. in former Nepean Twp. showing flying
'Cross of St. George'. Photo from Christine Jackson.
teacher/land developer, a steamboat
captain and even “Cowboy Bill”
Cowley (the Boston Stanley Cup
hockey player & Hall­of­Famer).
She left us with some closing
observations about the family – the
importance of land, their entrepre­
neurial spirit, and pride of heritage.
There were indeed 2 current Cowley
descendants in the audience, one of
whom moved a vote of thanks to our
speaker, which was heartily endorsed.
A Bouquet for the Bate Trilogy
Bytown Pamphlets 91, 92 & 93
I have just finished reading and greatly
enjoyed the 3 Bate Brothers pamphlets.
I am very impressed by the quality of
research and writing that went into
them. I worked as a technical writer for
a couple of years and know how much
effort must have gone into preparing
them.
Thanks very much on behalf of Sir
Henry Bate's descendants.
Andrew Bland, Oakville ON
The Response (28 October 2014) ­
Heritage Ottawa has been in contact
with the city heritage planners about
this property, and they are following
developments. They inform us that so
far no one has come forward to request
designation.
Anyone may request that any
property be designated under the
Ontario Heritage Act. One need only
contact either the heritage planners
(Anne Fitzpatrick, 613­580­2424 ext
15203), or one's councillor to get the
ball rolling.
As I am sure you can appreciate,
designations undertaken pro­actively,
well in advance of any sales or
proposals to redevelop or demolish, are
much more effective. It provides clarity
for all. It is a bit hard on a new owner
to designate when they have already
purchased a property with the
understanding that it wasn't designated.
Waiting until the last minute certainly
doesn't create good will for heritage,
especially since designation could have
been proposed at any time in the past
several decades. I really hesitate to do
that, and it has to be only for
exceptional circumstances.
With respect to this particular
April 2015
structure, it is a handsome little
structure, to be sure. I've been mulling
it over for years, but no, Heritage
Ottawa has not proposed its
designation. In practical terms, how
could it be redeveloped? A tiny
building, at a busy intersection, far
back on its lot, probably with
significant contamination issues......
Should heritage buildings be saved?
Absolutely! At any cost? Hmm.
Heritage Ottawa is trying very hard to
work pro­actively to protect heritage.
Our walking tours, lecture series and
publications go a long way towards
raising awareness. We are also
revamping our website to provide more
information on the process of
designation, and we sponsor an annual
Heritage Forum which is a training
session for community groups, and
individuals to learn about the process
of designation and how they can take
part. Our next Heritage Forum will be
Wednesday, April 15th, 2015. If you
would like to be notified, let me know
and we'll put your email on our contact
list for this event.
Regards, Leslie Maitland
President, Heritage Ottawa
Présidente, Patrimoine Ottawa
Office: Bureau: 613­230­8841
Local Sparks Family Reunion
A group of descendants of Nicholas
Sparks are planning a reunion to
celebrate the 200th anniversary of his
arrival in this area in 1816. A committee
has been formed and has tentatively
scheduled the event for 3 days, from
Friday, June 10th to Sunday, June 12th,
2016. A Facebook page has been set up
on the internet that can be found by
Googling "Nicholas Sparks 1816" and
we are supporting the process of
updating the book entitled Looking Back
by Naomi Slater Heydon, which is now
30 years out of date.
Hugh Dale­Harris (613­745­5950)
HSO Newsletter
April 2015
James Ferguson, a Bytown
Pioneer: An UPDATE
By Doris Grierson Hope,
January, 2015
This article is being written to update
the story of James Ferguson who
settled in 1828 on Green Island where
the old Ottawa City Hall now stands
and where Ferguson was setting up a
sawmill at that time. Ferguson’s story
was recorded in a pamphlet entitled
“James Ferguson, A Bytown Pioneer,
1760­1830", published in 1996 by the
Historical Society of Ottawa, Bytown
Pamphlet Series No. 54. Any data and
information whose sources were given
in that booklet are not repeated here.
One correction to the information in
that booklet needs to be made. The
value for the Brewery, as told on Page
7, third paragraph, should be £300­­not
£3000 as was printed.
New information tells of the
involvement of Lt. Pooley, of Col.
By’s staff, and N. H. Baird, the newly
appointed Clerk of Works for the
Canal, in negotiations with Ferguson
two weeks before the date of the
eviction order. Baird’s log book (OA,
N.H. Baird Papers, A­2­C(iii), Box 2,
Env. 1) shows the following (in places
undecipherable) :
1st entry:
“ 28
[September]
Ferguson ­ wait(in)g)­ I find he will
have about 500£ to get if a final
settlement is to be made and on
equal terms with others and for all I
detest the [Co....?} cannot see but
they ­ are entitled to it ­ I have
advised him to give up and believe
he will ­ he says he will clear his
debts with what prop:(erty?) he has
on the ground..............must get
them off or job will stick in the
mud”
2nd entry:
“ 29 September
wrote Mr. Pooley as to Ferguson ­
recommending him to accept of
resig:(nation) and to give him 500 to ­­
­take possession of offer in hand ­
Sent Richardson offer for Ferguson.
New questions arise! Was Ferguson
pushed into relinquishing title because
others were aspiring and/or conspiring
to obtain possession of the Island? If
Ferguson accepted £500, was this “the
equitable compensation” required to be
paid if civil authorities resumed the
lease on the grounds that the land was
required for public purposes? Who
paid any compensation?
Memorial #331, Book 2, in the City
of Ottawa Archives, does show for the
year 1830 an indenture of some sort
recorded in Col. By’s favour for land in
Lot Letter “O” in the Township of
Nepean at the mouth of the Rideau
River on the west side near Rafting
Bay. However, the description of the
property given for this Memorial #331
was imprecise and made no mention of
an island or any lease thereof.
However, Indenture #1167 (Land
Registry Office) tells that Col. By’s
lease on April 30, 1830, to Jean
Baptiste St. Louis (expiring May 1,
1860) gave the latter the right to
occupy a space of “four acres more or
less on which a saw mill is now erected
with the water privilege on the west
side of the Westerly Branch of the river
Rideau”. At least some part of the four
acres leased lay on Green Island.
Since the whole of Green Island is
located in Lot “O”, Conc. C, Rideau
Front, the registration of Memorial
#331 in Col. By’s favour should be
found there. A recent search in the
Land Registry Office, Ottawa, shows
the first entry for Lot “O” is Indenture
#1167 (mentioned above), dated March
1837, an assignment of a lease for four
acres, a “part” of Lot “O”, from
McTaggart to Thomas McKay. The
same Land Titles page indicates that
previous entries for Lot “O” were to be
found in Registered Plan 3. However,
this Plan 3 was not located.
Did Col. By have the legal right to
Page 7
make this lease on April 30, 1830? It
was not until Dec. 29, 1830 that Col.
By asked for a License of Occupation
for Lot “O” and six small islands at the
mouth of the Rideau River. In 1831 he
instructed Capt. Bolton to have the lot
surveyed and a lease to St. Louis made
ready. However, in 1833, Captain
Bolton discovered that “the lot was
held only at the pleasure of the civil
authority; he did not realize that the
licence had been made to By
personally”. (Elliott, Bruce S., The
City Beyond”, p. 94). That special
personal licence issued by the civil
authorities to Col. By presumably gave
Col. By the legal authority to lease the
4 acres of Lot “O” to Jean Baptiste St.
Louis in 1830.
This Indenture #1167, the assignment
of a lease from McTaggart to Thomas
McKay in 1837, gives us further
information on the title to Green Island
properties. It recites the fact that the
assignment in 1831 of the lease by
John Baptiste St. Louis to Joseph
Cuthbert St. Louis of four acres also
included an undescribed “lease or
agreement”. In 1832 Joseph Cuthbert
St. Louis in turn assigned, transferred
and set over his lease of the four acres
to William Graham, as well as an
undescribed “lease” which was subject
to the restrictions contained in the
original lease. In 1833 Graham in turn
assigned/transferred both these leases
to Isaac McTaggart. Then, in 1837,
McTaggart, whose property did lie on
Green Island, in consideration of £200
paid to him, assigned to Thomas
St­Louis Sawmill and Bridge, Rideau Falls, Bytown,
ca. 1830. Library and Archives Canada: C­2368.
Page 8
McKay the lease of the four acres, an
undescribed “lease”, and as well, the
“outhouses, easements, mills and
privileges” pertaining to the property.
Since no credible business man would
take possession of land on Green Island
and build on it without first receiving a
legal title to it, this undescribed “lease”
no doubt achieved that purpose.
A Committee set up to investigate
the status of Lot “O” lots (Bytown
Gazette, March 6, 1845), substantiated
the fact that in 1830 Green Island and
the falls of the Rideau River had been
considered part of Lot ”O”, saying:
“..... no other appropriation of the lot
has ever taken place except the sale of
ten acres thereof to the Honourable
Thomas McKay.......that this valuation
seems .........so widely different from
that affixed by and paid to the
Provincial Government by the Hon.
Thos. McKay (£3 an acre) for the most
valuable 10 Acres of the original
reserve, including the whole water
privilege of the falls of the Rideau
River.” However, Thomas McKay was
not a new owner of the Island in 1837,
but a leaseholder, and therefore would
be paying to the Provincial Treasurer,
his rent for the property, not the
purchase price. The other payment of
£200 mentioned in this Assignment of
Lease, was paid to McTaggart, for the
buildings, etc.
In 1860 when the 30­year lease to
Ferguson would have been expiring,
Queen Victoria [i.e., the Crown]
renewed an existing lease to Thomas
McKay, not for four acres but for all of
Green Island. (Indenture #16966, dated
Mar. 29, 1859 and registered Dec. 22,
1860) No doubt the lease in 1830 to
Ferguson for thirty years had been
resumed by the “Provincial Govern­
ment”, then re­routed in the early
1830s by a special personal licence to
Col. By, and then in 1860 renewed by
Queen Victoria to Thomas McKay.
A review of previous events helps to
clarify the situation. By Feb. 8, 1828
HSO Newsletter
the Colonial Dept. had given authority
to Sir Peregrine Maitland to issue the
lease of the Green Island to Ferguson,
reserving however the right to resume it
if ever needed for public purposes and
after payment for his improvements,
etc. The approval by the Colonial
Department in London was conveyed to
Ferguson by a personal letter of Sir
George Murray, said to be dated June 5,
1828. With Col. By’s approval,
Ferguson moved to Green Island. On
May 30, 1829, Col. By notified the
Provincial Government that he was
withdrawing his approval of the lease to
Ferguson, “being of the opinion the
Island in question should not be leased
to any person who would not expend at
least £5000". Not until Oct. 16, 1829
did Col. By notify Ferguson that he had
taken the land without authority and
must relinquish it.
The lease to Ferguson could be
resumed on the grounds that eastward
expansion of Bytown had become
necessary after Lord Dalhousie’s
refusal to pay LeBreton’s exorbitant
price for the purchase of Lot 40 at the
Chaudiere Falls. It is reasonable that
the Provincial authorities resumed the
lease, paid Ferguson for his
improvements, and then gave Col. By a
special personal licence which allowed
him to legally take possession of some
land in Lot “O” and then lease that four
acres to John Baptiste St. Louis in
1830. If the civil authorities had not
resumed the lease, or if Ferguson had
not assigned or transferred it in some
way, a new application to the Colonial
Office would be required, taking at
least two years to accomplish.
Ferguson had been personally
assured by Col. By that the land would
be left undeveloped until required for
public purposes. More than likely
Ferguson and his family were left in
quiet possession of the Island while he
was still alive ­ his sudden expiry
occurred sometime after Jan. 1830 (no
date or cause or other information
April 2015
given). By April 30, 1830 his family
was preparing to move. On that date
Col. By leased four acres to St. Louis.
On that same date, Apr. 30, 1830,
Ferguson’s
son,
Patrick
Milne
Ferguson, a former Midshipman with
the Royal Navy, applied for a 400­acre
grant of land in Upper Canada. (LAC,
U. C. Land Petitions, Reel C1898, RG
lL3, Vol. 192, bundle F16, petition 25).
In 1832, Com. James Grierson notified
Sir James Kempt, the new Governor,
that Patrick Milne Ferguson, had died
in 1831. Again no date of death was
given. By 1842, the first census of
Torbolton Township revealed that
Margaret Ferguson, age 90. a widow,
was living with her daughter and son­
in­law there.
Several contacts have recently been
made with members of the James
Ferguson family of Aberdeen, none of
whom can confirm the expiry of James
Ferguson in 1830 or the death of his
son, Patrick Milne Ferguson, in 1831.
However, all do confirm the wide­
spread textile and trading enterprises of
the whole family, and of their visits to
North America and the Carribean Sea
before 1815.
A Mr. Charles Wright and his
mother, Elspeth Ferguson Phillips,
(now of Flintshre, England, CH89EJ)
hold letters about James Ferguson of
Aberdeen, Scotland. and his family.
These letters dated in 1815, 1817, and
1819, are addressed to Mr. Wright’s
sire, a James Ferguson and to the
latter’s brother, Samuel, both then
living in Manchester, England. This
branch of the Ferguson family
maintained
cotton
manufacturing
enterprises in Manchester, England,
until the 1980s.
The first letter dated May 8, 1815
from Jas. Gardner in Glasgow speaks
of “the constant hurry and bustle of
business in which I find myself
engaged” and tells that Jas. Stark
(James Ferguson’s son­in­law) has
sailed for America, and that “your
April 2015
Cousin Patrick Ferguson came back
from America and may now have gone
back”. The 3rd letter, from Wm.
Gardner, of Glasgow, dated July 15,
1819, to Cousin Samuel Ferguson in
Manchester, tells of his important
business connections in Demerara and
that he will be leaving for there in the
course of six weeks.
The 2nd letter, addressed to Samuel
Ferguson in Manchester, England,
dated July 14, 1817, from Patrick
Milne Ferguson in Aberdeen tells of
the marriage of the latter’s sister,
Margaret, to James Grierson. It also
tells that his father, James Ferguson, is
just leaving for America in order to
settle business there.
The Royal
Gazette of Halifax (Aug. 27, 1817)
confirms the arrival there of the Brig
“Earl of Dalhousie” with the Earl of
Dalhousie and a Mr. Ferguson aboard.
In the 1840s a saw mill, a brewery, a
textile manufacturing enterprise did
flourish on Green Island and in the new
town of New Edinburgh in the
township of Gloucester on the east side
of Green Island.
The “important
manufacturing utensils”
which
Ferguson brought with him in 1827
probably are the nucleus of the woolen
and cotton manufacturing plant which
flourished in New Edinburgh in the
1850s, a plant which is said to have
used
special
Scottish
teasling
manufacturing equipment.
It has been told that “McKay made
pioneer New Edinburgh (including
Green Island) an industrial hive in the
wilderness. Mills, plants, breweries
and stores made it a rival settlement of
Bytown”. (Carleton Saga, Walker, p.
325) However, James Ferguson was
the one who brought to Green Island
all of the following: his textile
manufacturing equipment, his brewery
equipment, and “a sett of sawmills”
that overlooked the Rideau Falls, a mill
he was in the process of construction in
1829.
HSO Newsletter
Page 9
Query Re an Ottawa War
Memorial
The following query is from Elizabeth
Hutchinson, living in France in
Departement de Tarn. She moved
there with her husband in 2013,
previously having lived in Downton,
Wiltshire, UK.
There are two
Downtons, another in Hampshire. Her
mother's family was from Downton,
Wiltshire, going back to medieval
times. Hopefully that explains why she
is writing a book on Downton: The
Town that Became a Village.
Dear Mr. Neville,
03 Sept. 2014
I wonder if you or any other member
of The Historical Society of Ottawa
can help me please? I am writing a
book about the village of Downton in
Wiltshire, UK. On the village war
memorial is the name of Violet Shelly,
and all I can find out is that she is also
commemorated on the Ottawa war
memorial and that she was killed in an
air crash on 24th March 1944. The
short obituary I have traced says she
was killed in the USA, though I suspect
it may have been in Canada. On the
Commonwealth War Graves site her
name is also given as Qu'appelle
though this to me simply means
"known as" though it may be a married
name perhaps. I would be very
interested to find any more information
on her
Above inscription: 1939 — 1945
In Honoured Memory of the Men and Women of the
Air Forces of the British Commonwealth and
Empire Who Gave Their Lives in Canada in the
United States of America and in Neighbouring
Lands and Seas and Who Have No Known Grave
.org/find­a­cemetery/cemetery
/2059500/OTTAWA%20MEMORIAL).
Qu'Appelle
is
a
town
in
Saskatchewan; as she bore it as a
middle name likely she was born in or
near there. If Elizabeth visits a library
with a subscription to ancestry.com and
then branches out into other searches
looking for Violet's father, she should
find lots about Violet and her family.
Delighted with these responses to her
query, Elizabeth responded on 05 Sept.
2014 with the following portion from
her book in 'draft form' at the time:
"A glance at the Downton War
Memorial suggests that, in purely
statistical terms, the Second World
War had a lesser impact on Downton
than the First. Service casualties in
Britain and the Empire were fewer
between 1939 and 1945, but there were
Kind regards, Elizabeth Hutchinson
Bryan Cook first responded: Could she
be on the CRAF memorial beside the
Rideau at the Main Falls adjacent to
the old NRC building?
Prof. Bruce Elliott next responded:
Yes, the Commonwealth War Graves
Commission website identifies with a
photograph the Ottawa memorial
which commemorates her; it is the
Commonwealth Air Force Memorial
that Bryan suggests (http://www.cwgc
The Commonwealth Royal Air Force (CRAF)
Memorial beside the main falls of the Rideau River
adjacent to the old National Research Council (NRC)
building, 100 Sussex Dr. Photo by George Neville.
Page 10
HSO Newsletter
April 2015
CRAF Memorial tribute (above) to Violet B. Shelly
of Qu'Appelle, Sask., an Auxilliary Air Force Flight
Officer, honoured in the middle of the middle
column of the memorial plaque (see right) to
Commonwealth Airforce personnel who died in
service. Photos courtesy of George Neville.
more civilian casualties. The names of
ten who died for their country are
listed. The presence of a woman
among them, Violet Shelly, is unusual,
the circumstances of her death even
more so. Her father was a retired vicar
(not in Downton) and she served in the
WRAF, but was killed in an aircraft
accident in Canada. She is also
commemorated on a war memorial in
Ottawa.
Particularly tragic is the presence of
a father and son among the war dead,
Henry and Cecil Phillips.
Henry
Phillips was serving in the Home
Guard and is buried in St. Laurence
churchyard. Cecil was a rear gunner in
the RAF and was killed over Tunisia.
A notable feature of the names listed
for the Second World War is that old
Downton surmanes are less apparent.
People were more likely to have moved
away from their place of birth in the
twenty years between the two wars and
so names are more difficult to pin
down to one community. Also many
Downton residents have relatives
commemorated
on
memorials
elsewhere in the country and abroad.
Your members may also be
interested to know that in 1836 there
was sizeable government sponsored
emigration from Downton to Canada.
The details can be found on Ken
Light's website called: the downtown
story.com".
The Ottawa Memorial
In the Second World War air power
played an increasingly important role
in offensive and defensive capacities.
At the start of the war there was a
shortage of aircraft and trained pilots.
The United Kingdom was considered
too vulnerable to attack and so training
centres were established elsewhere.
Bases in north America trained over
137,000 Commonwealth air crew,
making a vital contribution to the
Allied victory, while much needed
aircraft and supplies were ferried to the
United Kingdom from the United
States and Canada by both civilian and
air force personnel.
This memorial, unveiled by Queen
Elizabeth II in 1959, commemorates by
name some 800 men and women who
lost their lives while serving or training
with the Air Forces of the
Commonwealth in Canada, the West
Indies and the United States and who
have no known grave. Their names are
arranged according to year of death,
force and rank.
The Commonwealth War Graves
Commission is responsible for the
maintenance of graves and memorials
in some 150 countries which
commemorate
around
1,700,000
members of the Commonwealth forces
who died in the two world wars. The
war dead commemorated here and
elsewhere include those of several
different faiths and of none.
Plaque explaining the "Ottawa Memorial". Text
reproduced to the left. Photo by George Neville.
HSO Newsletter
April 2015
Page 11
Historia Poetice Aperta
Commentary by Ed Bebee for The
Lay of the Antiquarian Geriaticus
It seems appropriate to begin the New
Year with a celebration of a general
"trait" of the Historical Society
membership. Any member, regardless
of age, can proudly state, "Je suis
antiquarien(ne)!" Not many can claim
the
further
distinction
of
"geriaticus"(You know who you are).
The following "lay" is evidently a
take­off of the "Major­General's Song"
from Gilbert & Sullivan's 1879 comic
opera, The Pirates of Penzance.
Naturally this lay describes in some
detail a particular antiquarian (Ahem!
Your humble ink­stained wretch!).
The description begins with the
general
characteristics
of
an
antiquarian and proceeds inexorably to
the particular topics that I relish.
Why did I write this "lay"? Just
because! Once engaged, it became a real
pleasure to mull over potential tidbits
and to test out various words and phrases
to fit the strict tempo and structure of the
Gilbert & Sullivan original. More
challenging were my attempts to actually
sing the words as they would be sung to
the music of the original.
You may sneer that my vocal efforts
are hardly a convincing test! Well .... I
am advised that an experienced Ottawa
vocalist and member of the Savoy
Society, Keith Bailey, was asked by
George for his opinion of the musical
merits of my scribbling and that Mr.
Bailey pronounced it, "Eminently
singable!" SO THERE!
To emphasize the "pirate" nature of
this modest work, I point out that it
appears likely that NO authorized
productions of The Pirates of Penzance
took place in Canada before 1924.
Why? Well, Canada had its
"idiosyncratic" way of dealing with
copyright. Thus, when Lord Lorne,
.....Cont'd page 12
The Lay of the Antiquarian Geriaticus
I am the very model of a modern antiquarian;
I soak up information both the musty and agrarian.
I seek out essays on the past from authors of the early days;
I winkle out all facts obscure to dazzle, obfuscate, amaze.
I lust for pages grimy with the fusty air of ancient times;
I quiver with delight when I uncover troves of mystic rhymes.
I love an archive dusty with its contents all in disarray,
Full of information quizzical, all triflers in deep dismay.
I'm very skilled in reading texts that are on microfilm displayed
Or pondering the survey maps from which the rock­ribbed locks were laid.
And so as I bemuse the world as did the famous platypus,
All hail the Antiquarian, the fabled Geriaticus!
I'm very good uncovering Rideau­vian­related facts;
I thrill at men, who sweat and strain with pry bar, spade and shining axe;
I wonder counting all the tons of muck and rock and timber high,
I marvel at the wisdom here displayed by clever Col. By.
I delight in deciphering account books' faint and spid'ry scrawls,
In log drives of the misty past, fictitious fights and rowdy brawls.
I scan poetic works of doughty sailors who had time to spare,
Play music sweet, toss horseshoes neat; alas, they are no longer there.
I recite names of skillful guides who rowed and drank and told fish tales,
I dubbed “pathfinders”, men and girls, who now are far down sunset's trails.
And so as I bemuse the world as did the famous platypus,
All hail the Antiquarian, the fabled Geriaticus!
I sleuth out tales of push and shove, viz., Elliott, J. Sutton, Esq.
Who led a life of storm and strife, 'tween figures dry or in burlesque.
I burrow into news of Burrows, both of John and Thomas “e”,
Sly John, who captured a fat prize, tricked Col. By most prettily.
I tell the tales of engineers, who thought they knew of how locks run.
I sing of ATP whose pride was great, (until he fell through one).
I sought the men (and women, too), who worked them under moon and sun,
An army strong, invisible, with quiet pride in day's work done.
I point out with a weary glance the folly of those truly lost,
They know not what they daily do, confusing value with its cost.
And so as I bemuse the world as did the famous platypus,
All hail the Antiquarian, the fabled Geriaticus!
Edward Bebee (12 Dec. 2014)
HSO Newsletter
Page 12
Governor­General
(1878­1883),
enjoyed a performance on May 19,
1880 at the Grand Opera House in
Ottawa, it was almost certainly
"pirated", and quickly too. The New
York debut had been December 31,
1879. The London debut did not take
place until April 3, 1880.
I conclude that the honourable
membership should feel themselves
well­served by this "lay" and I invite
them to personalize it by composing a
version that comports with their own
antiquarian interests. Perhaps the
Board could award an annual prize for
the best individual version of that year.
I should think that my modest
composition may well prove quite
attractive to potential members who are
pondering joining but are unsure of
what we are all about.
As a parting comment, I have begun
to set up a blog, Antiquariangeriaticus
.com, along with the corresponding
email
address,
<edward.bebee@
antiquariangeriaticus.com>.
Will I stop at nothing, you say?
Probably not.
April 2015
Ontario's Historical Plaques
By Alan L. Brown
Just thought your historical society
may be interested in a website called
"Ontario's Historical Plaques" which I
created in 2004 after retiring from my
job as an elementary school librarian.
Currently the site contains 1458 pages,
each with a photo of the plaque, a
location map, the plaque text, links of
interest and comments from visitors.
Located at ontarioplaques.com, the
plaques can be located through an
Index, a Subjects List, a Locations List,
and by a Search Box.
All the plaques on the site are ones
erected either by the provincial
government's Ontario Heritage Trust or
the federal government's Historic Sites
and Monuments Board of Canada.
Thank you
Alan L. Brown
ontarioplaques.com
[email protected]
The Historical Society of Ottawa
gratefully acknowledges the financial
support of the City of Ottawa and the
Ministry of Culture of the Government
of Ontario.
June 6 & 7, 2015
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