Patterson Creek is a small body of water in the middle 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

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The creek was originally a small stream flowing east through a swampy area to the Rideau River

Rideau River

thumb|Rapids on the Rideau River opposite [[Carleton University]].The Rideau River is a Southern Ontario river which flows north from Upper Rideau Lake and empties into the Ottawa River at Rideau Falls in Ottawa, Ontario. Its length is 146 km...

. The construction of the Rideau Canal

Rideau Canal

The Rideau Canal , also known as the Rideau Waterway, connects the city of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on the Ottawa River to the city of Kingston, Ontario on Lake Ontario. The canal was opened in 1832 as a precaution in case of war with the United States and is still in use today, with most of its...

 blocked the creek causing it to become much larger in size. The Creek originally ran from near Lyon Street all the way to the canal. The creek was named after George Patterson, an early settler who owned the lot where the creek emptied into the canal. In the 1890s work began on landscaping the area. The western portion of the creek disappeared, replaced by Central Park

Central Park (Ottawa)

Central Park is a park in The Glebe neighbourhood in central Ottawa, Canada.The park has two sections, Central Park East and West divided by Bank Street. To the southeast of the park is the landscaped area around Patterson Creek creating a continued stretch of greenery all the way to the Rideau...

 in one of the first projects of the Ottawa Improvement Commission.

Today Patterson Creek runs for two blocks from the canal to just west of O'Connor Street. The creek is located in the northern part of 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...

 neighbourhood, just to the south of the Queensway

Queensway (Ottawa)

The Queensway is a major controlled-access freeway running through Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, from Kanata in the west to Orleans in the east. It is the primary east-west transportation artery in the Ottawa-Gatineau area....

 and Centretown

Centretown

Centretown is a neighbourhood in Ottawa, Canada defined by the city as "the area bounded on the north by Gloucester Street and Lisgar Street, on the east by the Rideau Canal, on the south by the Queensway Freeway and on the west by Bronson Avenue." Traditionally it was all of Ottawa west of the...

. The creek, and the landscaped park that surrounds it, are surrounded by large houses which are some of the most expensive in Ottawa. First Avenue Public School

First Avenue Public School

First Avenue Public School is an elementary school in Ottawa, Ontario Canada. Built in 1898 it is one of only three survivors of a group of school houses built in Ottawa in the late nineteenth century. The nearby Mutchmor Public School being another. The building is today an officially...

 also looks out upon the creek. The creek is crossed by two bridges one at O'Connor and the other at the Queen Elizabeth Driveway

Queen Elizabeth Driveway

Queen Elizabeth Driveway is a scenic parkway in Ottawa, Canada that runs along the western edge of the Rideau Canal. It runs from Laurier Avenue in the north to Dow's Lake where it turns into Prince of Wales Drive...

.

During the winter the creek is cleared and used as a skating rink, along with the rest of the canal. It is generally used by young children and others who wish to avoid the rapid speed of the main canal. The small island in the creek was once home to Cedar Lodge, but this structure was demolished in the 1930s.