Lieutenant Colonel John BY, R.E., 1783-1836
Royal Sappers and Miners
Rideau Canal, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

May 29, 2008:
The following drawing (bust?) of Lieutenant Colonel John By is from For King and Country: Lieutenant Colonel John By, R.E.,
by Mark Andrews, 1998, ISBN 0-9684014-0-6, page 50.
Hello,
I’ve been searching the web to find where John By’s Estate was. Apparently some of my
ancestors lived on the estate in the late 1860s. Do you have any idea where the property was?
Thank you!
Rebecca Macdonald
_____________________
Al,
Thank you for your response to my e-mail! It would be awesome if you could get your hands
on that map. I did see a map with the Sparks property noted. If only those men knew what
their property would look like today – I guess it’s beyond any imagination during their day!
Yes, you can add my e-mail address.
Are you aware of any directories for Ottawa from the time 1868 to 1880? That is when our
family (James and Elizabeth Connor) lived there.
Actually . . . another branch of our family John "Charles" Bacon + Annie Beatrice Bartlett
also lived in Ottawa at the end of 1800s and early 1900s. They were married in St. George's
Church on April 26, 1903. I don't know when they came to Canada. Charles worked for the
Ogilvy family of Montreal and Annie was the lady in waiting for Lady Minto before Annie
got married. After Charles and Annie got married they lived on the Ogilvy property
(in Montreal) as Charles continued working for them for many years. If you have any
resources that can help me find which boat they came from England on that would be
awesome too.
Thank you!
... Rebecca
_____________________
Rebecca, here is a map showing the extent of the By estate in downtown Ottawa. Barrack's
Hill is where our Parliament Buildings are today. The By estate was bounded by Maria Street,
now Laurier Avenue to the north, Bronson Avenue on the west (Concession Line Road on the map),
Gladstone Avenue to the south, and the Rideau River in the east.
... Al
Map Source: Ottawa, An Illustrated History by John H. Taylor, 1986, James Lorimer and Company,
Publishers, ISBN 0-88862-981-8, page 14
Keywords for the search engine: Thomas McKay, Rideau Falls, Rideau River, Rideau Canal,
Nicholas Sparks, Sandy Hill (Louis T. Besserer), Wrightstown, Bradish Billings, Chaudiere Falls,
Captain John Lebreton (Lebreton Flats), Major's Hill Park and Uppertown.
May 31, 2008:
Colonel By's House in 1861
Photo Source: Dr. Lucien Brault, Ottawa Old and New, pages 80-81

October 27, 2009:
I believe that the following sketch shows Colonel By's house on the east side of the head of the Rideau Canal locks.
The commisariat building (out of view) is across the canal locks to the west. It is now used as the Bytown Museum.
The East Block of the Parliament Buildings is on top of the hill, on the left.
Source: Selections from Picturesque Canada, An affectionate Look Back, Sketch number 32,
from the Original Illustrations and Text of 1882-85
Pandora Publishing Company, Victoria, B.C., 1975 (no ISBN)

June 25, 2010:
Source: Ottawa: City of the Big Ears, page 89,
Keywords: J.P. Bainbrigge, Major Daniel Bolton, Joseph Bouchette (Surveyor-General, surveyed much of the Gatineau area).
From our Philomen Wright web page:
Hull Township was surveyed by Joseph Bouchette in 1802. Land grants totalling 12,000
acres in all parts of the township were allotted to eleven men - Philomen Wright Sr.,
his three sons Philomen Jr., Tiberius and Ruggles Wright, James McConnell, Luther Colton,
Isaac Remic, Edmond Chamberlain, Harvey Parker and Daniel Wyman. Encouraged by the prospect
of inexpensive farm land, other settlers arrived soon after.
January 21, 2011:
Map Source: Ottawa, The Capital of Canada
by Shirley E. Woods, page 74
This map shows the location of the Thompson and Perkins Sawmill,
the McLachlin Saw Mill, the tavern of Isaac Firth and Richmond Landing
E-mail Rebecca and Al Lewis
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