Bytown Museum | Musée Bytown

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Bytown Museum | Musée Bytown Open 11:00 am - 4:00 pm, Wednesday to Saturday in October Join us for family events, new exhibits and daily programs and guided tours.

Located in the heart of downtown Ottawa, the Bytown Museum explores the stories of an evolving city and its residents from its early days as Bytown to present day Ottawa. Housed in Ottawa's oldest stone building, the Museum is located at the Rideau Canal locks between Parliament Hill and the Château Laurier—one of the most picturesque sites in the city. A six-language audio-tour, available in English, French, German, Spanish, Mandarin and Japanese, is included with the admission ticket. Our Summer hours are: Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 4pm; closed Monday and Tuesday.

This month, Ottawa is heading to the polls for our municipal election! 🗳Throughout October we will take a look back at s...
10/01/2026

This month, Ottawa is heading to the polls for our municipal election! 🗳

Throughout October we will take a look back at some of the mayors in Bytown and Ottawa history.

This photograph in our collection taken by Alfred G. Pittaway shows Mayors of Bytown and the City of Ottawa from 1847 to 1907 as well as the first two Town/City Hall buildings.

[Bytown Museum, P2792]

Spooky season is here! This October, the Bytown Museum will be open Wednesdays to Saturdays, from 11:00am - 4:00pm. Come...
10/01/2026

Spooky season is here! This October, the Bytown Museum will be open Wednesdays to Saturdays, from 11:00am - 4:00pm. Come check out our cozy museum and take advantage of the beautiful view of the river as the leaves begin to show their Fall colours 🍂

Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day.Since 2021, the National Day for Truth and R...
09/30/2026

Today is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day.

Since 2021, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation has been recognized in response to Call to Action 80 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This called for the creation of a statutory holiday to honour and recognize the Survivors of Canada's Residential School system. The day is a profound reminder of the impact of residential schools, honouring the children who never returned, the Survivors, and their affected families and communities.

It is recognized on the same day as Orange Shirt Day, a day that began as a grassroots initiative in 2013 to remember that "Every Child Matters."

The Bytown Museum is located on the traditional unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Anishinàbe Algonquin Nation and is committed to reconciliation in action. As a community museum, we recognize the responsibility to tell fuller and more inclusive stories of the land, its peoples, and its histories — past, present, and future.

In recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the Museum will be open and free for all 🧡

On this day in 1914, Miss Dorothy Cook was appointed a Nursing Sister with the Canadian Army Medical Corps. 🎖🇨🇦👩‍⚕️Dorot...
09/28/2026

On this day in 1914, Miss Dorothy Cook was appointed a Nursing Sister with the Canadian Army Medical Corps. 🎖🇨🇦👩‍⚕️

Dorothy (pictured here), was born in Ottawa on March 13, 1892. She was the daughter of Louise and Frederick Cook, who was Mayor of Ottawa between 1902 and 1903. He was a member of Ottawa's elite social clubs and during the summer months, he vacationed with his wife and four daughters at Britannia, then considered one of Ottawa's most exclusive cottage destinations. The family resided at 323 Metcalfe Street.

Miss Cook was a student nurse at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto at the outbreak of the First World War. She enlisted at age 22 and was appointed a Nursing Sister with the Canadian Army Medical Corps. She sailed from Gasp' with the First Division on September 29 and reached England on October 15, 1914 (sailing aboard the H.M.S. Franconia).

Dorothy Cook married then Major R. J. Orde in 1919 and died on October 4, 1978.

[Bytown Museum, P1914]

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔On this day in 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel Joh...
09/26/2026

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔

On this day in 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel John By and Thomas MacKay met with Lord Dalhousie (the Governor General of British North America) to make the formal decision on where the entrance for the Rideau Canal would be.

Lord Dalhousie traveled from Quebec City to approve the final plans for the Rideau Canal construction project. On September 26, formal approval was granted to proceed with the Canal beginning at Entrance Bay.

Six years later, the Rideau Canal would be finished, and the burgeoning settlement of Bytown was well underway at the hand of Lt.-Col. By.

The events of 1826 represent a time of significant change in the region. The Anishinàbe Algonquin lived and hunted in the territory surrounding the Kichi Sibi (the Ottawa River), and the construction of the Rideau Canal disrupted their way of life and displaced their people who have lived on this territory for millennia.

While many members of the Anishinàbe Algonquin Nation continue to live in the region to this day, their lands and ways of living were irreparably altered by this project. Their land remains unceded.

200 years later, Ottawa is no longer called Bytown. Today, it is the Capital City of Canada and home to over one million people. The canal is still at the centre of the action however, all these years later.

Join us this TODAY, September 26 for Ottawa 200 Day: Bytown Together for a day of full FREE bicentennial programming at the museum from 9-5:30! 💙

[Bytown Museum, P1408]

Tomorrow is the big day! We are marking 200 years of Ottawa with our Ottawa 200 Day: Bytown Together event. From Board M...
09/25/2026

Tomorrow is the big day! We are marking 200 years of Ottawa with our Ottawa 200 Day: Bytown Together event.

From Board Members, volunteers, and Bytown Museum staff, we want to invite YOU to gather, socialize, and reflect on this milestone together. See you tomorrow!

Wooo!💙

09/25/2026

Bytown 200 Day is THIS SATURDAY!! WOOO!!

9:00am - 11:00am ➡️ Free community breakfast for the first 500 visitors! Catered by the amazing Chef Ric’s Daily Specials & Catering

11:30am, 1:00pm, 2:30pm ➡️ Pierre Brault performs an immersive theatrical production that reimagines a day-in-the-life of Colonel By! 30 visitors per show, no registration required

11:00am - 3:00pm ➡️ Visit our Heritage Fair and meet our fantastic heritage partners! Check out our website for a list of participating organizations

3:00pm - 5:00pm ➡️ Paul Weber performs live music at our Canalside stage

🔗For a full agenda, check out the link in our bio!

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔Between September 22 and 25 in 1826, Lieut...
09/23/2026

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔

Between September 22 and 25 in 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel John By and Thomas Mackay travelled across the Ottawa River (the Kichi Sibi) from Hull to inspect possible sites for the entrance of the Rideau Canal.

Some of these possible sites included Governor's Bay, Richmond Landing, and Entrance Bay (also known as Sleigh Bay). Ultimately, Entrance Bay was the top choice for the project.

Join us this Saturday, September 26 for Ottawa 200 Day: Bytown Together for a day of full FREE bicentennial programming at the museum from 9-5:30! 💙

[Bytown Museum, D1522]

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔On this day in 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel Joh...
09/21/2026

Did you know that September is an important anniversary month for our city? 🤔

On this day in 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel John By arrived in Wright’s Town (Hull) and met Philemon Wright.

A few months prior, Lt.-Col. By (first image) was appointed to be the superintending engineer of the Rideau Canal construction project by the Corps of Royal Engineers in Britain. He first journeyed to Quebec City from England with his wife, Esther and their two daughters in May 1826. There he met with Lord Dalhousie (the Governor General of British North America) (second image) and reviewed the initial land survey and cost estimates of the project.

After submitting his revised cost estimate, Lt.-Col. By went to Montreal for the summer and set up a temporary office there. Along with Thomas MacKay (third image), a Scottish stone mason and contractor, he journeyed along the Ottawa River (the Kichi Sibi) to Wright’s Town to begin the project of a lifetime.

Join us this Saturday, September 26 for Ottawa 200 Day: Bytown Together for a day of full FREE bicentennial programming at the museum from 9-5:30! 💙

[Bytown Museum, P92, P1850, and P1964b]

Address

1 Canal Lane
Ottawa, ON
K1P5P6

Telephone

6132344570

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