Ottawa's Building and Monument Stones

Photo:  Colored stone used in gatepost, part of the stone wall around Parliament Hill.

From the location in front of the Parliament Buildings, we'll discuss the construction of the current buildings and the type and origin of the stone used in the Centre and East blocks, and as the pedestal of the statue of Laurier.  Walking to the Rideau Canal will take us toward the Fairmont Chateau Laurier and the National War Memorial. From there, we will walk south past the Langevin Building, Post Office, Lord Elgin Hotel, Place Bell Canada, and then cross Elgin St. to the Ottawa Courthouse and, finally, City Hall. Participants will hear something about the history of these buildings and monuments, but mostly about the wide variety of rock from which they were constructed and the local, provincial, and foreign localities from whence the stones were quarried.