Students examine Manor Park history
Note from Polaris teacher Kate Punette: Last school term, teens in the Local History and Community News class at The North Star, a small high school program at the Polaris School and Centre on Gaspé Ave., learned about Manor Park hiostory.
They gathered information about the the school’s neighborhood, learned oral history techniques, and visited the City of Ottawa Archives, where they dug into old newsletters, maps and directories. The students also spent time in the streets interviewing residents, including one of the first to move into the neighbourhood, about their experiences living here.
They compiled their research into the following article about Manor Park history.
Manor Park is a neighbourhood located near Rockcliffe Park in the east end of Ottawa. In the 1920s, a small community called Rockcliffe Annex arose in the marshy area adjacent to Canadian Forces Base Rockcliffe Park, mostly used for riding trails by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, several Ottawa developers, including Rhodes & Radcliffe, a real estate company that would go on to become widely popular in the 1950s and 1960s, rebuilt this area into the new residential subdivision of Manor Park, intended to be “Canada’s first completely co-ordinated community.”
In 1948, the first families moved into the neighbourhood. There weren’t any buses until the fall of that year, and there was no mail delivery, so everybody went to the post office to get their mail. The sewers were in, but there weren’t any covers for them. There were just a few stores, and the funding of community spaces like playgrounds, community centers and schools had just begun.
Community events
Manor Park used to be a small community in which all were friends. It is still like this today, to some degree. But, back then, even though the neighbourhood had fewer roads, people met each other on the street far more frequently, with many walking or biking through the neighbourhood or just standing to chat, starting new friendships.
The neighbourhood also offered a lot of different events in those early days, including the firework displays put on during the summer season by the precusor to the Manor Park Community Council. People from Manor Park and even all across Ottawa would go to the Mile (Mile Circle, a nearby federally-owned park) to watch the dazzling display.
Another event popular with the locals was the airshow at C.F.B. Rockcliffe Park, which is now sadly shut down. At these shows, the Royal Canadian Air Force would display what they have to offer to the public, not only to delight the public but also to recruit new cadets.
Horses round the block
With fireworks displays and the airshows and more, the Manor Park community was definitely lively, but it was also close-knit. People used to take care of each others’ pets and kids.
The RCMP would ride horses around the block, and the children would look forward to seeing them. Children and teenagers didn’t stay indoors much and were often found running around outside, getting fresh air. Kids would also bump into their friends from school at the grocery store or the barber shop. The neighborhood of Manor Park was and still is a close and caring community in which to grow up.
Even before there were schools or playgrounds, the children always found ways to play together, whether it was biking through the streets, sitting under the old trees hiding from the summer’s heat, or finding ways to warm up in the cold of winter just to stay out with your friends a bit longer. Climbing up the loft of a barn which is now a church to talk and laugh together. Or giving each other kittens as a welcoming gift. It was wonderful for kids growing up here.
Manor Park history in real estate
One resident moved into Manor Park in the early 2000s with her husband and young daughter. At that time, it was really hard to find a house to buy, since Manor Park was a popular place to live during the technology boom in the early 2000s. When they found a house, they only had thirty minutes to look at it to decide whether or not to buy it. Since her family moved to Manor Park, the neighbourhood has changed a lot.
And what about now? It is true that Manor Park has become a lot more expensive in recent years, with people buying and tearing down the old homes and replacing them with modern houses, and some are buying the houses to resell them. Also, older homeowners are leaving the area or dying, and it feels like history is leaving with them. But, despite this, it seems like the community was established from the moment people started to move in, and it has just kept growing.
