Honouring Women in the City of Ottawa

City Hall Lawn Named for Marion Dewar
As of September 25, 2009, City hall’s north lawn is renamed after former mayor Marion Dewar. Marion Dewar was mayor of Ottawa from 1978 to 1985. Read my post on Marion Dewar under "D" in this blog.

www.ottawacitizen.com

Streets and Hall named for Charlotte Whitton
Whitton Hall was opened in 1973, in the former city hall building on Green Island. The other locations bearing the Whitton name in Ottawa are two streets in Overbrook, Whitton Place and Whitton Crescent.

Charlotte Whitton was Ottawa's first female mayor. Read my post on her under "W" in this blog.

www.ottawacitizen.com

Streets in the Glebe Named for Mutchmor Daughters
The following streets in the Glebe neighbourhood were named for female members of the Mutchmor family: Adelaide, Ella and Muriel. In the 1860's, the Mutchmor family farm covered the land south of Fifth Avenue to Broadway, and extended from Bronson Avenue in the west to Main Street in the east. Part of this property had been expropriated by Colonel By to build the canal.

www.communitytree.com

Zoé's Lounge named for a musician, wife of Prime Minister Laurier
The lounge was named after Sir Wilfrid Laurier's beloved wife Zoé. She  was a young piano teacher known for her kindness and simplicity. Read my post on her under "Wives of Canadian Prime Ministers".

http://www.fairmont.com/laurier/GuestServices/Restaurants/ZoesLounge.htm

Claudette Cain Park
Claudette Cain was the mayor in the city of Gloucester, Ontario from 1991 until 2001 when Gloucester became part of the city of Ottawa. A small park near Riverside South, used for soccer, is named for her. Read my post on her under "C".

http://wikimapia.org/1191501/Claudette-Cain-Park

Jean Edmonds Towers
Two towers of office buildings located at 300 Slater Street in Ottawa are named for Jean Edmonds. She was a pioneer journalist and a public servant who eventually became the first woman executive in the federal government as an executive director with the Department of Manpower and Immigration in 1966. Read my post on her under "E".

www.famouscanadianwomen.com

Dr. Lotta Day
In recognition of the 100th anniversary of the birth of one of its most prominent and beloved residents, the City of Ottawa has proclaimed November 28, 2009 to be “Dr Lotta Hitschmanova Day”.

The proclamation notes that Dr Lotta, who founded USC Canada (Unitarian Service Committee) in 1945, “dedicated her life to helping people in far-off lands” and that she “helped mobilize Canadians from coast to coast to coast, putting Ottawa on the map as not only a seat of national government and political debate, but also a center of Canadian concern for the rest of the world.”

There is a bust of Dr. Hitschmanova in the Worship Hall of the First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa on Cleary Avenue with whom she orginally founded the Unitarian Service Committee.

Read a more complete post on her under "H".

http://usc-canada.org
http://www.firstunitarianottawa.ca

Agnes Macphail Bust, House of Commons
Agnes Macphail became the first female Member of Parliament in Canadian history after she was elected to the House of Commons in 1921. The Agnes Macphail bust is located outside the House of Commons, Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, Ontario.

The bronze bust of Agnes Macphail was created by a young Austrian refugee called Felix de Weldon, who later became a famous sculptor. A ceremony to unveil the bust was hold on March 8, 1955.

Cairine Wilson Bust, Senate of Canada
Cairine Wilson beame the first female Senator in Canadian history after she was appointed in 1930. The Cairine Wilson bust is located in the Senate ante chamber of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, Ontario.

The white marble portrait bust was sculpted in 1939 by Felix de Weldon. At the age of seventy-five, Cairine Wilson attended the unveiling of her likeness at a ceremony on June 10, 1960 in the Red Chamber of the Senate. You can read about her on this blog under "W".

www.heroines.ca

Canadian Nursing Sister's Memorial, Parliament of Ottawa
The Canadian Nursing Sister's Memorial commemorates the contribution of nurses in Canada from the earliest days until World War I. The memorial panel is mounted in the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, Ontario in the Hall of Honour located in the Centre Block. Montreal artist G.W. Hill sculpted the panel in Italy, from marble of the Carara quarries.

www.heroines.ca

Women Are Persons! Monument, Parliament Hill
The Women are Persons! Monument is located on the grounds of Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario. The monument was unveiled at a special event on October 18, 2000 to commemorate the Persons Case and the Famous Five women.

Five Alberta women fought to have Canadian women recognized constitutionally as "persons" who were eligible to be named to the Senate. Emily Murphy led the battle and she was supported by Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney, Henrietta Muir Edwards and Nellie Mcclung. The Supreme Court of Canada rejected their case in 1928 but the Judicial Committee of the British Privy Council decided in favour of the women on October 18, 1929. These courageous ladies came to be known as the "Famous Five" and October 18 is now known as Persons Day in Canada.

www.heroines.ca

Wilson House
In 1982, Wilson House at Elmwood School (originally called Rockliffe Prep School) was created and named in honour of Cairine Wilson, Canada's first female senator and Elmwood patron. Wilson attended Elmwood and was Head girl in her final year.

www.elmwood.ca
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmwood_School_%28Ottawa%29

Susan Mann House
The Women Studies House at the University of Ottawa, located at 134 Séraphin-Marion (near Tabaret Hall) is named in honour of Canadian historian Susan Mann (Trofimenkoff). You can read a post on her under "M".

www.uottawa.ca

Theatre Seat Named for Gladys Cameron McGregor Watt
Upon retirement from the Ottawa Little Theatre, Gladys Cameron McGregor Watt was presented with a seat bearing her name in the theatre as a way to honour her for her contribution to live theatre in the city. Read her entry under "M" in this blog.

www.famouscanadianwomen.com

The Pauline Jewett Institute of Women's and Gender Studies
The Women's Studies Institute at Carleton University was renamed The Pauline Jewett Institute of Women's and Gender Studies. You can read a post on her under "J".

École Charlotte-Lemieux
In November 1988, the Public School Board of Eastern Ontario named a school in honour of Charlotte Lemieux in Ottawa West. She is the first francophone to be director of education for a school board in Ontario and has received the Order of Canada for her exceptional contribution to youth education. Read an entry on her under “L”.

Elizabeth Manley International Rink and Liz Manley Park
A Rink at the Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex in Orleans was named for Olympic skater Elizabeth Manley as was a park in the Huntclub area. You can read a post on her under "M".

Sylva M. Gelber Piano Studio
The main piano studio of the University of Ottawa Piano Pedagogy Research Laboratory was named in honour of Sylva M. Gelber in 2007. The room is located at the Piano Pedagogy Research Laboratory, Pérez Hall, Room 207, at 50 University Street, Ottawa.

http://www.media.uottawa.ca/mediaroom/news-details_1372.html

Myrtha Lapierre Day

In 1956, Myrtha left Haiti for Ottawa to complete her post secondary education. She subsequently earned her nursing diploma (1959), along with a BA in Nursing Education, (1961), and a Master in Education (1975), all from Ottawa University, along with Human Resources Management, Intercultural Communications and Conflict Resolution certificates. Myrtha went on to teach nursing for 45 years; 36 years full-time and 9 years part-time (1961-2005). Myrtha was the first Black Francophone nurse in the Ottawa region.

Through her volunteer work, she has empowered 1000 immigrant female nursing to succeed in the provincial education and health systems. She has also facilitated cross-cultural sensitization to students, teachers and service providers of the mainstream, from La Cité collégiale and community health centres; facilitated discussions on the attitude of Canadian-born staff toward afro-Caribbean people affected with Sickle cell Anemia and/or HIV/AIDS; and worked on committees to collect and send medical supplies to Haiti.

She started a fund at Ottawa University to help educate Haitians and other professionals who are attempting to gain professional recognition/designation in Ontario.

In 2006, the City of Ottawa has declared October 25th to be “Martha Lapierre Day”.

http://sites.google.com/site/bourseml/home/bio-english

Linda Thom Park

This small urban park is located in Old Ottawa South at 1324 Bank street at Billings Bridge. It honours Olympian Linda Thom who won a gold medal in shooting at the 1984 Summer Olympics. She is the only Canadian to have won an Olympic medal in this sport. The park includes an oversize replica of her gold medal.

Hélène Campbell Day
March 30th, 2012 will be Hélène Campbell Day in the capital, as Councillor Doug Thompson launches the Ottawa leg of the Torch of Life Relay by honouring the 20-year-old Barrhaven woman whose battle with idiopathic lung fibrosis has inspired thousands of people to volunteer to become organ donors.

Béatrice Desloges Catholic High School
The school École secondaire Béatrice-Desloges is named after an early twentieth century Franco-Ontarian teacher in Ottawa who, with her sister Diane, successfully opposed Regulation 17 which aimed at rendering illegal all French language teaching in the province of Ontario. The school opened its doors in 1997.

Sheila E. McKee Park
On June 14, 2012, the city of Ottawa named a West Carleton-March park in honour of Sheila E. McKee. The park, located at 1730 Sixth Line Rd., was formerly named Riverfront Park. Ms. McKee was honoured for her extensive contribution to her community. You can read a post on her in this blog under the letter "M".