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PO Box 523, Station B,
Ottawa, ON, K1P 5P6

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

  • Ottawa U Scrapbooking Ottawa History

    9 December 2024 Society News
    On the morning of December 2nd, 2024, eight members of the Historical Society of Ottawa attended the final presentation of the HIS4135 Canadian Digital History Course at the University of Ottawa, The class had taken on the project of digitizing several of the scrapbooks created by our founders, the Women’s…

  • Touring the National Research Council

    23 November 2024 Special Events
    Our final Museum Club outing for 2024 took place on the morning of Wednesday, November 20, and was a private tour of the National Research Council of Canada’s facility at 100 Sussex Drive. Thirteen of our members were greeted by Steven LeClair, Chief Archivist of the NRC. We were surprised…

  • Fire Fighting from Early Bytown to Modern Ottawa

    5 November 2024 Speakers Presentations
    Given that our 1st English language presentation of our 2024 / 2025 series fell on September 11, it was most appropriate that our guest that night, Peter McBride, spoke about the contrast between fire fighting in Bytown and early Ottawa, as compared to fire fighting in Ottawa today. Peter is…

  • Solidarity in the Chaudière District

    15 October 2024 Speakers Presentations
    The Main Branch of the Ottawa Public Library welcomed us back on Saturday, September 28, a beautiful fall afternoon, for our first in-person English language Speaker Session of the 2024 / 2025 series. We were pleased to partner with the Workers History Museum for this presentation and honoured to have…
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Upcoming Events

Jan 18 2025
French-language
1:00PM
Online

Samuel de Champlain - The Man Behind the Statue

Eric Thierry

Jan 25 2025
Afternoon Series
1:00PM
Ottawa Public Library, Main Branch Auditorium

Being “BADO”

Guy Badeaux

Feb 1 2025
French-language
1:00PM
Ottawa Public Library, St-Laurent Branch, 515 Coté Street

Workers’ Struggle in 1980 – Rights of Franco-Ontario Workers

Andréane Gagnon

Feb 12 2025
Evening Series
7:00PM
Online via Zoom

Black History in Ottawa Streets

Jean-Marie Guerrier

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Ottawa Stories

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

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