The Plaza Bridge in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, is an automotive and pedestrian

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

that crosses the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal is a 202-kilometre long canal that links the Ottawa River at Ottawa with the Cataraqui River and Lake Ontario at Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Its 46 Lock (water navigation), locks raise boats from the Ottawa River 83 metres (272 ...

just south of the Ottawa locks. It joins Wellington Street and Elgin Street in the

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

core to the west with

Rideau Street Rideau Street () is a major street in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and one of Ottawa's oldest and most famous streets running from Wellington Street in the west to Montreal Road in the east where it connects to the Vanier district. Ride ...

to the east. The Chateau Laurier abuts the bridge at the east end, while

Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (), colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern bank of the Ottawa River that houses the Parliament of Canada in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. It accommodates a suite of Gothic revival buildings whose ...

is just beyond the west end. It is the northernmost bridge over the canal, just north of the Mackenzie King Bridge. The bridge is constructed of three masonry spans. The western span is over a roadway along the western bank of the Canal. The central span is over the Canal. The eastern span is over a former railway tunnel running along the east bank of the Canal.

History

Sappers' Bridge

Sappers Bridge was one of Ottawa's first bridges (

Bytown Bytown is the former name of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded on September 26, 1826, incorporated as a town on January 1, 1850, and superseded by the incorporation of the City of Ottawa on January 1, 1855. The founding was marked by a sod ...

at the time), built in 1827 over the

connecting

Lower Town Lower Town (also spelled "Lowertown" () is a neighbourhood in Rideau-Vanier Ward in central Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, to the east of downtown. It is the oldest neighbourhood of the city, with construction beginning in 1826. It includes the comm ...

with Upper Town. The bridge got its name from the builders, the

Royal Sappers and Miners The British Army during the Victorian era served through a period of great technological and social change. Queen Victoria ascended the throne in 1837, and died in 1901. Her long reign was marked by the steady expansion and consolidation of th ...

.. It was demolished in mid 1912. The current Plaza Bridge connecting Rideau Street with Wellington Street near the

Rideau Centre The Rideau Centre () (corporately styled as CF Rideau Centre) is a three-level shopping centre on Rideau Street in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It borders on Rideau Street, the ByWard Market, the Rideau Canal, the Mackenzie King Bridge, and N ...

stands roughly in its location.

Construction

On September 26, Dalhousie presented Colonel By, the overseer of the construction of the

, with a letter authorizing him to divide the land into lots, and sod was turned. Construction of the canal's entrance took place in 1827, dividing Upper Town from Lower town. Colonel By laid the cornerstone. Construction proceeded in September 1827 and was finished in December.* The stone arch bridge was constructed by 15th Company of the Royal Sappers and Miners. The eastern end connected directly to Rideau Street, and its western side joined with a wagon trail leading to Wellington and Bank Streets. The land east of Bank Street had been acquired from Nicholas Sparks by the military, who returned it to him in late 1849, where he commenced its development. Thereafter, Sappers' Bridge became connected directly to Sparks Street. Ottawa Post Office Sappers Bridge Dufferin Bridge2

Ottawa Post Office Sappers Bridge Dufferin Bridge2

The bridge was modified in the early 1870s with the construction of the Dufferin Bridge. Around the turn of the century, a hole was blasted in Sappers' Bridge to allow for rail traffic to pass. A railway station (predating Union Station) was built east of the Rideau Canal, immediately south of the bridge. With the completion of the

Alexandra Bridge The Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge (), also known as the Alexandra Bridge () or Interprovincial Bridge (), is a steel truss cantilever bridge spanning the Ottawa River between Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. In addition to carryin ...

rail traffic passed from the station onto Hull.

Demolition

Between 1910 and 1912, the area saw extensive construction, principally the construction of the

Union Station A union station, union terminal, joint station, or joint-use station is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway company, railway companies, allowing passengers to connect conveniently bet ...

and the Chateau Laurier, as well as the need to move railway traffic along the canal's eastern side, under the bridge bypassing the west side of the Chateau Laurier and continuing on towards the Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge. The bridge itself was part of this new centralized railway station. By late July 1912, the Sappers' Bridge was demolished to allow for the development of Connaught Place (now Confederation Square) In 1915, two of its stones were placed on the site of Colonel By's home in

Major's Hill Park Major's Hill Park is a park in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. The park stands above the Rideau Canal at the point where it enters the Ottawa River. The parliament buildings can be seen across the canal to the west, to the north of the park is the Nat ...

Dufferin Bridge

The Dufferin Bridge was built in the early 1870s, forming a triangle with the existing Sappers Bridge. In 1912, both the Sappers Bridge and the Dufferin Bridge were demolished in favour of Connaught Place, today part of Confederation Square.

Plaza Bridge

The Plaza Bridge replaced two bridges across the Canal, the Sappers Bridge and the Dufferin Bridge. Construction on the new Plaza Bridge was finished by December 1912. Several buildings, including the Russell Hotel and Ottawa's first City Hall, existed in the place of today's National War Memorial. In the 1930s, the memorial was erected and Elgin Street was rerouted around the Cenotaph, southbound traffic along the west side of the square and the northbound section along the path of the southern bridge. The bridge was also widened at that time. In the 1990s, the bridge structure was renovated, adding an extra access to the canal via a staircase in the area between the original two bridges. The Sapper's Bridge memorial was erected by the Canadian Military Engineer Centennial 1903-2003 Committee and the

National Capital Commission The National Capital Commission (NCC; , CCN) is the Crown corporation responsible for development, urban planning, and conservation in Canada's Capital Region (Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec), including administering most lands and build ...

. The plaques, which were unveiled on April 29, 2004, are dedicated in honour of a century of contributing service by Canadian Military engineers.

References

{{Coord, 45.424932, N, 75.695457, W, region:CA-ON_type:landmark, display=title Bridges completed in 1912 Bridges in Ottawa Deck arch bridges in Canada Road bridges in Ontario 1912 establishments in Ontario