The Work

Native peoples were in the Ottawa Valley for millennia before white men first came. The Anishinabe lived here from time immemorial. 

Some of what they left behind- stone tools predating the current era.

In the decades from the founding of Bytown to its change of name, it was a turbulent time.

This is a larger than life bust of Colonel John By. We don't really have a portrait of him- silhouettes in profile of him and his wife are the only works done in his lifetime.

The Rideau Canal was a response to the War of 1812 and the ongoing tensions with the Americans. 

Americans had fired this cannonball at Fort Wellington from Ogdensburg. It was fired back by the British, hitting the Ogdensburg courthouse.

This is the trunk of Colonel By and his wife, taken when they came over for the Canal project.

Some of the tools that were used for the project.

It would be the work of a mix of people- French-Canadian, Scottish, Irish, and military units. Its legacy stands strong today. By would return to Britain following the completion of the Canal, and find himself under a storm of controversy, having had gone over budget, even though he had been cleared to make changes as needed in the field. The scandal stayed with him for his remaining years, but history has entirely vindicated him.