Sandy Hill and Sussex Drive: The Empty House
Three official residences within three kilometres of each other. One open as a museum because its owner has been dead for three quarters of a century. One empty and gutted because its institution has not decided what to do with it. One continuously occupied for one hundred and sixty-one years because the institution it represents still works. The corridor is the institutional record.
4.35|95 minutes|3.5 km|7 Stops
Start
Confederation Square: The Gate
1
Confederation Square: The Gate
The symbolic centre of the capital. The National War Memorial dedicated 21 May 1939 by King George VI. Looking north up Sussex Drive: the corridor begins.
2
Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat: The 2008 Pavilion
The Fumihiko Maki and Moriyama Teshima Architects building opened by Stephen Harper on 6 December 2008. The first embassy of the walk. The first asymmetry.
3
Embassy of the United States: The 1999 Bridge
David Childs of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Dedicated 8 October 1999. Foreign-power infrastructure on the corridor while the Prime Minister's residence two blocks north began its slow vacancy.
4
Embassy of France: The 1936 Cornerstone
Eugène Beaudouin's 1939 Art Deco chancery. The first foreign chancery on Sussex Drive. The cornerstone was laid by Mackenzie King on Bastille Day 1936.
5
24 Sussex Drive: The Empty House
Joseph Merrill Currier built it 1866 to 1868 as a wedding gift. Federally expropriated 1943. PM residence 1951 to 2015. The 2021 NCC report. The 2023 abatement. The decision deferred.
6
Earnscliffe: The Inversion
Thomas McKay's firm built it 1855 to 1857 for his son-in-law John McKinnon. John A. Macdonald died here 6 June 1891. The British High Commissioner's residence continuously since 1930.
7
Rideau Hall: The Closer
Thomas McKay's 1838 villa. The Crown leased it in 1864, Frederick Preston Rubidge oversaw additions in 1865, the Crown bought it in 1868. Every Governor General since Viscount Monck has lived here. The lights are on.
Best Time to Visit
Weekday mid-morning, Tuesday through Thursday, between nine and noon, in shoulder season (late April through early June, September through October). Sussex Drive carries diplomatic and ceremonial traffic throughout the working week; the corridor is quieter on weekday mornings than on weekends, when the National Gallery and ByWard Market draw heavier foot traffic at the south end. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier ceremonial guard rotates at Confederation Square in spring through autumn; the audio at Stop 1 is anchored to respect the guard's quiet zone. The Rideau Hall grounds at Stop 7 are open year-round during daylight hours; interior tours are by reservation. Avoid Sunday afternoons in summer when the south end of the corridor is congested with ByWard Market visitors. Winter walks the corridor with almost no foot traffic, but the wind off the Ottawa River bluff at Earnscliffe and Rideau Hall is sharp in January and February.
Pro Tips
- •OC Transpo bus and LRT serve Parliament/Rideau Centre station, two minutes' walk from Confederation Square; Stop 1 is the recommended start
- •Bring proper walking shoes; the three and a half kilometre corridor includes the bridge over the Rideau Canal and the long curve along the Ottawa River bluff between 24 Sussex and Rideau Hall
- •Do not photograph through the gates at 24 Sussex Drive if security personnel object; the south sidewalk opposite the front gates is the audio anchor and the line of sight is usable from there
- •The US Embassy at Stop 3 has active security; the pedestrian plaza on the south side is the closest the audio asks you to stand; do not loiter at the embassy gate itself
- •Doors Open Ottawa, typically the first weekend of June, opens the interiors of Earnscliffe and the Embassy of France to the public for one day each; if your visit lands on Doors Open weekend, the interiors of Stops 4 and 6 are accessible
- •The Rideau Hall grounds at Stop 7 are open year-round during daylight hours; interior public tours run free by reservation through the Office of the Governor General
- •Heritage Ottawa publishes a Sussex Drive walking tour pamphlet with additional architectural detail; available at Heritage Ottawa events and through their website
- •Library and Archives Canada holds the Mackenzie King diaries online at the LAC Collection Search; the diaries span 1893 to 1950 and are searchable by date if you want to read the entries for the days mentioned on this tour
Safety & Precautions
- Sussex Drive carries vehicular traffic at most hours; cross at marked lights and stay on the sidewalk between stops
- The perimeter fences at 24 Sussex Drive and Earnscliffe are security infrastructure; do not approach the gates or attempt to photograph through them at the request of personnel
- The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Confederation Square is a ceremonial site; keep your voice down when the guard is present and do not cross the marked ceremonial area
- The Ottawa River bluff between 24 Sussex and Rideau Hall is exposed to wind in all seasons; the curve along the bluff has no shelter and rain runs across the corridor in autumn
- The Rideau Hall gates are the audio anchor for Stop 7; the grounds beyond the gates are open to the public during daylight hours but the audio is complete from the gate without entry
Gallery
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