Police and fire services did not begin as essential public services in Bytown but gradually emerged as the town grew. This week in “Keeping Bytown Safe”, we look at how that happened over the early years of the settlement. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

In early Bytown, public safety emerged long before formal civic institutions. This is the story of how police and fire services were gradually brought into play as the city grew. Youtube: youtu.be/kvEeeVqlvxs?... Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/2JuW... Apple: podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/k...

I had a stroll around the Canadian War Museum this past weekend. Wasn't really my cup of tea, and I think $23 per head was a little expensive. ottawahistoryhub.com/war-museum

Sparks Street is one of the oldest streets in Ottawa, and was the home to Nicholas Sparks before Ottawa, and even before Bytown. Give a listen to the story of the namesake here in Chapter 21: ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Nicholas Sparks was an Irish immigrant who became one of Bytown’s leading citizens. Leveraging connections with the Wrights, Sparks was the richest man in Bytown throughout the early life of the settlement.

There are a lot of good small museums in the Ottawa area. Osgoode is a great example! ottawahistoryhub.com/osgoode-town...

Language matters. #UrbanTruth #StreetsForPeople

The fur trade did not end with New France in the 1700s. In fact, it’s still a pretty large industry! In early Bytown and the surrounding area, many families augmented their income with hunting, trapping, and processing. Have a look! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

The episode examines the fur trade’s continued role in the early 19th‑Century Ottawa Valley. Though dominated by lumber, the region still relied on furs as a seasonal income source for settlers and Indigenous hunters.

Shiner’s War, by Conor Ryan is an interesting retelling of the middle days of Bytown in the 1830s and 40s. It’s like a impressionist painting, in that the details are off when you look up close, but from a step back, it’s a stark image of the time. ottawahistoryhub.com/shiners-war

Religion in Bytown was uniformly Anglican for the first month in 1826, and then by month two it got a little confusing. Let’s see if I can talk for 20 minutes without earning an angry email or two! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

We’ve been using terms like Catholic, Presbyterian, Anglican, Protestant and Methodist so far, and in this episode we break down those terms to discuss what the different religious groups of early Bytown were and how they interacted with one another.

I had a great time on the Jane’s Walk a couple of weeks ago. I hope you took advantage of this as well! ottawahistoryhub.com/janes-walks

#OtD 14 May 1940 Emma Goldman, legendary anarchist and advocate of women's rights and sexual freedom, died in Toronto, Canada. A Lithuanian-born Jew, she moved to the US from which she was eventually deported because of her activism. Books & more: shop.workingclasshistory.com/en-gb/collec...

In this week’s episode, we take a stroll across Bytown from 1826-36, and see what the town would have been like during its first decade of settlement. From Upper-town to Lower, over bridges and from Lebreton Flats to Vanier, I hope you enjoy the stroll. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Happy Monday! This episode walks through Bytown in its first decade. Starting in Wrightstown, we cross the Union Bridge to Richmond Landing, then into Upper Bytown, the military precinct, Lowertown, New Edinburgh, and Janeville, looking at the early town as it first developed.

Five thousand downloads! That is well more than I thought I would be getting, and thanks to everyone who gave this little project of mine a listen.

The Night Piece, by André Alexis, is a collection of short stories, some historical and some fantastical, many of which take place in and around an imagined or real version of Ottawa. ottawahistoryhub.com/the-night-pi...

Episode 17: Thomas McKay was Bytown's first significant builder, whose influence rivals even that of Col. John By! Give a listen! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Welcome back to Bytown proper! Today, we’re going to be learning about master mason and builder Thomas MacKay. MacKay started work on the canal, and ended up building most of the serious buildings of the early settlement, including Rideau Hall.

Ottawa steps out for Jane’s Walk tours across the capital. I had a great time yesterday! #janeswalk

Happy May Day! I explored the online Worker’s History Museum recently and was pleasantly surprised by what I saw in this virtual gallery! An important part of all social history is the history of all who participate, not just the elites and a section of laws. ottawahistoryhub.com/workers-museum

Timber! Fortunes were made and lost with trees, and bringing them to market, especially when the Napoleonic Wars cut off England’s supply from Russia. It seemed like a never-ending source of wealth, as lumber literally grew in trees. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Timberrrr! Lumber was the third cash producer of the area that would become Ottawa after the fur trade and agriculture. Fortunes were made and lost with trees, and bringing them to market, especially when the Napoleonic Wars cut off England’s supply from Russia.

One of largest and one of my favourite museums in the Ottawa area! I went on a tour here over the winter break. ottawahistoryhub.com/canadian-his...

Episode 16 explores the life of George Ramsay, the Earl of Dalhousie, whose long shadow had a huge influence on the decision to build the canal, and its location. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Dalhousie Street, Dalhousie University, Dalhousie District… who was George Ramsay, the Earl of Dalhousie, and why did he matter to us here in Ottawa? Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t... Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/3lWM... YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnbH...

Flooding of the Ottawa River is an almost annual event, going back to the last Ice Age. The riverside clay is a result of the withdraw of the Wisconsin Glacier. Learn about it here: www.buzzsprout.com/2535232/epis...

One really nice museum that has some great pre-Bytown artefacts is the Nepean Museum on Rowley. It’s worth a checkin! ottawahistoryhub.com/nepean

I joined members of our community at the National Holocaust Monument to mark Yom HaShoah, the Day of Remembrance.

In this episode, we read through the diary of a traveller as he wends his way through the Rideau Valley towards Kingston and back in February of 1830. We look at what he experienced along the way. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

In this episode, we read through the diary of a traveller as he wends his way through the Rideau Valley towards Kingston and back in February of 1830. We look at what he experienced along the way.

The controversy of the Rideau Treaties and the Crawford Purchase are what set the tone for relations between the Algonquin and the English colonial administration. These documents are still unresolved today! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Happy Easter Monday to those celebrating! It being a Monday, we’ve a new episode of the Ottawa History Hub, this week dealing with the Rideau Treaties and Crawford Purchase. These are the dodgy agreements that justified the total British colonization of what had been until then Algonquin territory.

With all of this talk about Col. By and the Canal, here’s my review of the Bytown museum, based in the headquarters building of the project! ottawahistoryhub.com/bytown

This week’s episode is a little more technical than other weeks, as we focus on the construction of the Rideau Canal. ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2. I hope you enjoy it!

Happy Monday morning! Today, let’s look at the engineering marvel that is the Rideau Canal! Built form 1826-1832, a hybrid of nature and engineering, this was the largest government project of its time!

Today I, along with some other storytellers, was given the François Bregha Storyteller Award by the The Historical Society of Ottawa. I'm proud of the award!

Chaudiere Falls was a different kind of book. It wasn’t quite historical fiction, but it wasn’t a dry history of the area, either. It was an interesting read, and I thought about it long after I finished the book. It’s worth a gander. ottawahistoryhub.com/chaudiere-fa...

John By is credited as the founder of Bytown, which would probably surprise him to hear! If you’d like to learn about his life beyond the town, give a listen to this podcast from the website here: ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Enter stage right, John By, bringing with him such a large group on labourers that camp came to be known as “Bytown”. This week’s episode of the Ottawa History Hub introduces the man whose six year stay was what laid the groundwork for the future city.

Took me a minute.

The War of 1812 continues and concludes in this week’s episode! If you’re not into accessing podcasts through podcatching apps, then you can listen to the episodes directly from the website here: ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2. Advance, Ottawa!

Good morning, Ottawa History people and welcome to the end of the War of 1812! This episode closes up the war and prepares us for the impetus behind the Rideau Canal project. I hope you enjoy it!

This was one of the first works of fiction that I read which took place in Ottawa. The first time I realized that stories didn't need to take place somewhere far away to be exotic. ottawahistoryhub.com/moonheart

This week, we’ve started a two-parter, looking first at the setting leading up to the so-called War of 1812, and next week, we’ll be looking at the war itself, insofar as it relates to the setting up of the Rideau Canal project. I hope you enjoy it! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Happy Monday and welcome to the War of 1812! This war gave the British the impetus to take on the Rideau Canal, and build a settlement at the north end, which would one day become Ottawa!

I'm really shocked that there would be this much interest in a slow-burn history of Ottawa. I haven't even hit Colonel By yet! Thanks to everyone who's given it a listen!

In case anyone missed yesterday’s podcast, we’re talking about Philemon Wright, who migrated from Massachusetts and founded Columbia Falls, the future city of Gatineau in 1801. I hope you enjoy his trip! ottawahistoryhub.com/chapter-2

Happy Monday, Ottawa history enthusiasts! In this week’s episode, Philemon Wright enters the region and founds a little colony on the other side of the river to be the future Gatineau. A Chalcedon to our Byzantium! Give it a listen now!