Ottawa Electric Railway
Encyclopedia
Ottawa Electric Railway Company was a streetcar public transit system in the city of Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...

, Canada, part of the electric railway streetcars which operated between 1891 and 1959. Ottawa once had tracks through downtown on Rideau Street
Rideau Street
Rideau Street is a major street in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and one of Ottawa's oldest and most famous streets running from Wellington Street in the west to Montreal Road in the east where it connects to the Vanier district...

, Sparks Street
Sparks Street
Sparks Street is a street in downtown Ottawa, Canada that was converted into an outdoor pedestrian street in 1966, making it the earliest such street or mall in North America....

, and others and extended outside of the downtown core to provide services which helped form communities such as Westboro, Old Ottawa South
Old Ottawa South
Old Ottawa South is an older urban neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. As of the Canada 2006 Census, 8,168 people lived in Old Ottawa South, a relatively small and compact neighbourhood, located between the Rideau Canal and the Rideau River . The eastern boundary is defined by Riverdale Avenue and...

 and The Glebe
The Glebe
The Glebe is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It is located just south of Ottawa's downtown area, with its northern border being demarcated by the Queensway highway. It is bounded by the Rideau Canal to the south and east. Many maps show the western edge as Bronson Avenue, but some also...

. Prior to this, starting in 1866, public transportation had had been provided by Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company, a horse-drawn tram service. Today Ottawa employs a bus rapid transport and light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...

 (LRT) service provided by OC Transpo
OC Transpo
OC Transpo is the urban transit service of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. An integrated hub-and-spoke system of services is available consisting of: regular buses travelling on fixed routes in mixed traffic, typical of most urban transit systems; a bus rapid transit system — a high...

, in operation since 1973.

Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company

Preceding the use of electric streetcars, Ottawa's first public transportation system had been the operation of a horsecar
Horsecar
A horsecar or horse-drawn tram is an animal-powered streetcar or tram.These early forms of public transport developed out of industrial haulage routes that had long been in existence, and from the omnibus routes that first ran on public streets in the 1820s, using the newly improved iron or steel...

 system. Tramway service began in July, 1870. under the Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company, which was incorporated on August 15, 1866.

The O.C.P.R. was financed largely by the estate of Thomas McKay
Thomas McKay
Thomas McKay was a Canadian businessman who was one of the founders of the city of Ottawa, Ontario. He was born in Perth, Scotland and became a skilled stonemason...

 (an early founder of Ottawa). In 1868, Thomas Reynolds bought control of the company intending to use it to transport lumber at night from the Chaudiere mills to McTaggart Street, the terminal of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Railway
Bytown and Prescott Railway
The Bytown and Prescott Railway, Ottawa's first railway to outside markets, was a railway joining Ottawa, Ontario with Prescott, Ontario on the Saint Lawrence River. The 52 mile railway facilitated shipments of principally lumber via the Saint Lawrence River to markets in the United States and...

. In 1871, Reynolds sold his streetcar company interest to Thomas Keifer.

The horse-drawn streetcars travelled back and forth from New Edinburgh
New Edinburgh
New Edinburgh is a small neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. It is located to the east of the downtown core. It is bordered on the west by the Rideau River, to the north by the Ottawa River, to the south by Beechwood Avenue, to the east the border is less regular but is marked in part by Springfield...

 to the Chaudière Bridge. The trams for passengers and freight had a line extending from Rideau Falls
Rideau Falls
The Rideau Falls are two waterfalls located in Ottawa, Canada where the Rideau River empties into the Ottawa River. The falls are divided by Green Island, with the Old City Hall just to the south. To the west of the falls is the headquarters of the National Research Council while to the east are...

 in New Edinburgh, to Sussex
Sussex Drive
Sussex Drive is a major street in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and one of the city's major ceremonial and institutional routes....

, Sparks, Wellington
Wellington Street (Ottawa)
Wellington Street is an important street in Ottawa, Canada most notable for being one of the first two streets laid out in Bytown in 1826 Wellington Street (French: Rue Wellington) is an important street in Ottawa, Canada most notable for being one of the first two streets laid out in Bytown in...

, Duke (in Lebreton Flats
Lebreton Flats
LeBreton Flats is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. It lies to the west of Centretown neighbourhood, and to the north of Centretown West with "Nanny Goat Hill" as the dividing line...

) and the Suspension Bridge. The service provided sleighs in the winter and had 273,000 passengers in its first year of operation. In 1891, it had four miles of track, 25 horses and 15 employees.

The Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company had tram cars holding 20 passengers which were made of wood with bench seats. The company applied to the city to convert to electricity but was refused, and later it proposed a merger of two companies.

A new company, Ottawa Electric Railway Company, would appear on the scene in the early 1890s and would later dominate public transportation in Ottawa.

Electricity in Ottawa

Ottawa's first electric lights operated near the Chaudière Falls in 1882, and in 1885, electric lighting came to the city streets under Ottawa Electric Light Company.

Thomas Ahearn
Thomas Ahearn
Thomas Ahearn, PC was a Canadian inventor and businessman. Ahearn, a native of Ottawa, was instrumental in the success a vast streetcar system that was once in Ottawa, the Ottawa Electric Railway, and was the first chairman of Canada's Federal District Commission in 1927...

, born in LeBreton Flats
Lebreton Flats
LeBreton Flats is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada. It lies to the west of Centretown neighbourhood, and to the north of Centretown West with "Nanny Goat Hill" as the dividing line...

, also became an important figure in the early years of electricity in Ottawa. Ahearn had been a telegraph operator, and in 1892 filed patents for both an "electric oven" and a "system of warming cars by means of electrically heated water". Ahearn formed a partnership with Warren Y. Soper, and for years the office of Ahearn and Soper was on Sparks Street. Ahearn merged existing companies (Clemow's) Ottawa Electric Light Company, and Ahearn's company, Chaudière Electric Light and Power Company, with a third company, naming it Ottawa Electric Company. It became part of Ahearn's Ottawa Light, Heat and Power Company, which eventually was taken over by Ottawa Hydro
Hydro Ottawa
Hydro Ottawa is an electricity distribution company based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. As of 2010, Hydro Ottawa provides power to over 296,000 customers in Ottawa and Casselman.-History:...

.

Ottawa Electric Railway Company

The horsecar was providing public transporation for Ottawa into the 1890s when, for a short time, electric streetcars were also employed. Initially Thomas Ahearn
Thomas Ahearn
Thomas Ahearn, PC was a Canadian inventor and businessman. Ahearn, a native of Ottawa, was instrumental in the success a vast streetcar system that was once in Ottawa, the Ottawa Electric Railway, and was the first chairman of Canada's Federal District Commission in 1927...

's new company started streetcar operations until it was merged with the existing horsecar company, and in the process, it was renamed to the Ottawa Electric Railway Company.

In 1890 Mayor Howland of Toronto offered to provide Ottawa with an electric streetcar service. He backed out and Ahearn stepped in, and he along with Soper petitioned the city in order to obtain the franchise. They succeeded, and got granted a 20 year charter for on November 5, 1890, city council gave them permission to operate an electric railway. They formed a company on February 13, 1891 called the Ottawa Electric Street Railway Company(sic).

On June 25, 1891 the first electric street cars began operation in a display of five (four on June 29) streetcars with Ahearn and Soper as drivers. Mayor Thomas Birkett
Thomas Birkett
Thomas Birkett was mayor of Ottawa, Canada in 1891 and a member of the Canadian House of Commons representing Ottawa City from 1900 to 1904....

 was aboard, as well as some dignitaries and they ran to the exhibition grounds on Bank Street.

The Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company was amalgamated with the Ottawa Electric Street Railway Company in 1893. The merger took place resulting in the formation of a new company; on June 28 the Ottawa Electric Railway Company was incorporated. O.E.R. purchased W. W. Wylie Carriage Works in 1893 and started making its own cars. Patterson and Corbin of St. Catharines provided ten trams. In the winter, some of the fleet was equipped with plows and rotating brushes to clear the track. In 1893 three cars had heaters. Later models were equipped with underfloor heaters; the first heated tramcars on the continent. This company operated in conjunction with the Ottawa Transportation Company, which was granted a charter in 1892 (which would last until February 21, 1942.)

Its first tracks started from Broad Street Station (in LeBreton Flats) to Albert and Metcalfe, then to the exhibition grounds via Bank Street, to the Protestant Hospital at Charlotte and Rideau, to Wellington and Rideau, the Canada Atlantic Station at the end of Elgin to Sparks and Metcalfe. Street cars allowed access to areas such as Brittania Park, Rockliffe Park and Queen's Park in Alymer.
In the city's first eleven months of electric streetcar service, it had a ridership of 1.5 million whereas the horse tramway had 575,000. The city agreed to a 30 year electric railway in 1893 following which the horse tramways disappeared. The city for years renewed the charter rather than exercising its right to purchase the company's property.

By 1900, Ottawa Electric Railway had a double-tracked line to Brittania Bay. Sunday service started in 1900 despite strong protests from citizens wanting to maintain the Sunday as a Sabbath Day.. The Alexandra Bridge
Alexandra Bridge
The Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge is a steel truss cantilever bridge spanning the Ottawa River between Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. It is known locally as both the "Alexandra Bridge" and the "Interprovincial Bridge".-History:...

 opened for traffic on February 22, 1901 by the Ottawa Northern and Western Railway Company to bring service from Waltham and Maniwaki After the Alexandra Bridge was built, it was employed with the O.E.R. The Alexandra Bridge had a single track for steam trains, and two tracks for electric trams and two roadways for cars and two foot paths.

In 1924, fares were five cents; 3 cents for children. The O.E.R. introduced buses in 1924 but they were removed, only returning in 1939 (for a service between Elgin and Ottawa East). In August 1948, city council finally agreed to purchase the company's assets. The city bough the O.E.R. for $6.3 million in 1950. The Ottawa Transportation Commission
Ottawa Transportation Commission
Ottawa Transportation Commission was the public transit operator for the city of Ottawa from 1948 until the creation of OC Transpo in 1973.OTC took over streetcar operations from the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, but they were gradually abandoned for trolley bus and bus operations...

 was set up to operate it and 54 million passengers rode in 1950.

By 1958 financial problems of the O.T.C. caused a study to be conducted by Urwick, Currie Ltd. In March 1958, they acknowledged the 96 aging cars and recommeded diesel buses. The Ottawa Transportation Commission began implementing the plan and removed the cars; the last electric car ran on May 1, 1959 when the Brittania line was closed. A parade was held on May 4 celebrating an end to 68 years of tram service in Ottawa. The O.T.C. in 1960 reported its first profit since 1956.

OC Transpo

The current public transit system is operated by OC Transpo
OC Transpo
OC Transpo is the urban transit service of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. An integrated hub-and-spoke system of services is available consisting of: regular buses travelling on fixed routes in mixed traffic, typical of most urban transit systems; a bus rapid transit system — a high...

, a department of the city. It provides regular bus services in mixed traffic, as well as a bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...

 (BRT) system operating on the transitway
Ottawa Rapid Transit
In Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, the public transit service operated by OC Transpo has two rapid transit systems: the Transitway, a bus rapid transit network, and the O-Train, a diesel-powered light rail transit service operated on one line.-Major routes:...

 with right-of-way lanes. It also operates the O-Train
Ottawa O-Train
The O-Train is a light-rail transit service in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada operated by OC Transpo. The present line runs north-south on a railway line, from Bayview to Greenboro, a distance of approximately...

on one route and a service called ParaTranspo. Both OC Transpo and the Quebec-based Société de transport de l'Outaouais
Société de transport de l'Outaouais
Société de transport de l'Outaouais is the transit service of the Outaouais region of Quebec. It operates public transit routes in Gatineau, Quebec, including the Hull, Aylmer, Gatineau, Buckingham and Masson-Angers sectors, plus limited service to suburban communities such as Chelsea and...

 (STO)
operate bus services between Ottawa and Gatineau.

See also

  • OC Transpo
    OC Transpo
    OC Transpo is the urban transit service of the City of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. An integrated hub-and-spoke system of services is available consisting of: regular buses travelling on fixed routes in mixed traffic, typical of most urban transit systems; a bus rapid transit system — a high...

  • Ottawa Car Company
    Ottawa Car Company
    Ottawa Car Company was a builder of streetcars for the Canadian market and was founded in Ottawa, Ontario, in 1891. The plant was located at Kent and Slater Streets, a short distance from Parliament Hill...

  • Ottawa Transportation Commission
    Ottawa Transportation Commission
    Ottawa Transportation Commission was the public transit operator for the city of Ottawa from 1948 until the creation of OC Transpo in 1973.OTC took over streetcar operations from the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, but they were gradually abandoned for trolley bus and bus operations...

  • Light rail in North America#History of Streetcar and Light rail
  • List of town tramway systems in Canada
  • Montreal Tramways Company#Predecessor companies
  • Streetcars in North America
    Streetcars in North America
    Electric streetcars—trams outside North America—once were the chief mode of public transit in scores of North American cities. Most municipal systems were dismantled in the mid-20th century....

  • Thomas Ahearn
    Thomas Ahearn
    Thomas Ahearn, PC was a Canadian inventor and businessman. Ahearn, a native of Ottawa, was instrumental in the success a vast streetcar system that was once in Ottawa, the Ottawa Electric Railway, and was the first chairman of Canada's Federal District Commission in 1927...

     founder and president of the Ottawa Electric Railway Company, founded Ahearn & Soper.
  • William Goodhue Perley
    William Goodhue Perley
    William Goodhue Perley was a businessman and member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1887 to 1890.He was born in Enfield, New Hampshire in 1820. His emigrant ancestor was Allan Perley. During the 1840s, he established a lumber business based on timber from northern New York...

     helped establish the Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company.
  • Robert Blackburn (politician)
    Robert Blackburn (politician)
    Robert Blackburn was a member of the Canadian House of Commons.Blackburn was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1828, the son of Robert Blackburn, and came to Canada in 1842. He became a lumber merchant and partner in woollen mills. He was reeve of Gloucester Township, Ontario in 1864...

     helped establish the Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company.
  • Henry Herbert Horsey
    Henry Herbert Horsey
    Henry Herbert Horsey was a Canadian Senator.Born in Kingston, Ontario, the son of Henry Hodge Horsey and Amey Ann Rose, Horsey attended Queen's University at Kingston, Ontario where he was noted as a scholar and athlete as a member of the school's championship rugby teams. He went into business in...

     a director of Ottawa Light, Heat and Power Company and the Ottawa Electric Railway Company.
  • E. A. Bourque
    E. A. Bourque
    E. A. "Eddy" Bourque was Mayor of Ottawa in 1949 and 1950.Bourque was born in Ottawa's Lower Town. He was a longtime city councilor and member of the city's Board of Control from 1937 to 1949, and owner of the Twin City Ice and Coal Company, later to become E.A...

     squired the purchase of the Ottawa Electric Railway, that became Ottawa Transportation Commission.
  • C. T. Bate
    C. T. Bate
    Charles Thornton Bate was mayor of Ottawa in 1884.He was born in Cornwall, England in 1823 and grew up in St. Catharines, Ontario. He founded a large wholesale grocery business in Ottawa with his brother, Henry Newell Bate, who became the first head of the Ottawa Improvement Commission, later the...

     president of the Ottawa Electric Street Company
  • William H. Hutchison
    William H. Hutchison
    William H. Hutchison was a mill owner and political figure in Ontario. He represented the City of Ottawa in the Canadian House of Commons from 1896 to 1900 as a Liberal member....

     director of the Chaudiere Electric Light Company, the Ottawa City Passenger Railway Company, the Ottawa Electric Railway Company
  • Vimy House
    Vimy House
    Vimy House is a warehouse in western Ottawa, Canada, that used to store most of the collection of the Canadian War Museum. Originally built as Ottawa's streetcar garage, it was turned over to the war museum when its Sussex Drive building ran out of storage and office space...

     Ottawa's streetcar garage is still there near the Canadian War Museum
    Canadian War Museum
    The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Located in Ottawa, Ontario, the museum covers all facets of Canada’s military past, from the first recorded instances of death by armed violence in Canadian history several thousand years ago to the country’s most recent...

  • The Glebe#History A community which grew from this streetcar line.
  • Westboro
    Westboro
    Westboro is a neighbourhood of Ottawa, Canada, often referred to as Westboro Village. Located along the Ottawa River, the neighbourhood is bordered on the east by Island Park Drive, and on the west by Woodroffe Avenue. The Southern border can be stretched up to Carling Avenue...

     A community which grew from this streetcar line.
  • Lornado
    Lornado
    Lornado is the official residence of the United States Ambassador to Canada in the Rockcliffe Park area of Ottawa.The 32 room limestone facade 2½ storey manor has been an official residence since 1936. Built in 1908 for American -born Ottawa raised businessman Warren Y. Soper, founder of the Ottawa...

     home of Warren Y. Soper, it is still there, and is now an ambassador's home.

Further reading

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