PO Box 523, Station B, Ottawa, ON, K1P 5P6
Slide 1 - With Welcome Message - Bottom

Lady and Lord Aberdeen with the National Council of Women at Rideau Hall, shortly before their return to the United Kingdom, October 1898, Topley Studios/Library and Archives Canada, PA-029033

Truss Bridge over the Chaudière Falls, Ottawa River, watercolour by John Burrows, 1828, Library and Archives Canada, I.D. No. 2833217.

Timber raft on the Ottawa River, date unknown, John William Woolsey and family fonds, Library and Archives Canada, I.D. No. 319157.

Welcome

The Historical Society of Ottawa (HSO) is Ottawa’s oldest historical organization.The principal aim of the Society is to increase public knowledge of the history of Ottawa and the surrounding region through meetings, tours, awards, publications, and sponsored research.

Historical Society Articles

  • Women on Ice: Ottawa’s Own

    26 March 2024 Speakers Presentations
    It was just coincidental, though perhaps entirely appropriate, that the presentation on March 23, 2024, at the Main branch of the Ottawa Public Library titled “Ottawa Women on Ice” took place against the backdrop of the World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal and a game between Ottawa and Toronto in…
  • A Look at Scouting & Guiding in Ottawa

    19 March 2024 Speakers Presentations
    February 22 nd is the birthday of Baron Robert Baden-Powell, (1857-1941), the founder of the Scouting Movement. Coincidentally, it is also the birthday of his wife, Olave (1889-1977), the first Chief Guide. As such, the day has special meaning for Scouts, who call it BP Day, and Guides, who call…
  • Ottawa's Caribbean Community

    1 March 2024 Speakers Presentations
    On February 7, 2024, the Historical Society of Ottawa was pleased to feature Dave Tulloch on our Zoom Speaker series, who spoke to us about the history of Ottawa’s Caribbean Community. Dave came to Ottawa from Jamaica as a student in 1970, graduating from Algonquin College, the University of Ottawa,…
  • Dave Allson: Ottawa’s Shoreline - Built from Garbage

    11 February 2024 Speakers Presentations
    Dave Allston is a ‘trash talker’. Specifically, on the afternoon of Saturday, January 27, 2024, he talked to the Historical Society of Ottawa at our first in-person presentation of 2024 on how the Ottawa River shoreline was reshaped during the early 1960s using garbage. Dave is the senior asset manager…
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Upcoming Events

Apr 10 2024
7:00PM - Online via Zoom

Paupers, Peddlers, Purveyors & Parishioners

David C. Martin

Apr 27 2024
1:00PM - Ottawa Public Library, Main Branch Auditorium

The Karsh Brothers, Canadian Legends of Photography

Paul Couvrette

Special Event

6

April

1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Ottawa Stories

Ottawa has an interesting and varied history.
Enjoy stories from this month in history or discover other Ottawa stories.

old house

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