Ottawa

Ottawa (pop. 920,900), capital city of Canada, located at the junction of the Ottawa and Rideau rivers, near the southeastern tip of the province of Ontario. Across the Ottawa River is the twin city of Hull, Quebec. In 1968 the city of Ottawa was combined with a number of communities to form a regional government area called Ottawa-Carleton. Ottawa is principally concerned with the business of government. Its most striking feature is the group of Parliament buildings in Victorian Gothic style on a bluff (Parliament Hill) overlooking the Ottawa River. The city has numerous educational and cultural institutions. The National Arts Center (1969) contains a theater and an opera house-concert hall. Over a third of the metropolitan area's residents are French Canadians. Ottawa developed in the early 19th century when the Rideau Canal was built by Colonel John By, and was known as Bytown until it was incorporated (1854) as the city of Ottawa. In 1858 Queen Victoria selected the city as the capital of the United Provinces of Canada, and on confederation (1867) it became the national capital.

See also: Canada.