The Rideau Canal Locks at the Ottawa River

This photo was taken c. 1901.  It faces north towards Hull, Quebec.  It shows the Royal Alexandra Inter Provincial Bridge in the distance.  The train (I believe) belonged to E.B. Eddy and was used for his company's use.  The rail lines ended at Union Station downtown across the street from  the Chateau Laurier on Wellington Street.  The building on the left belonged to the Royal Engineers during the construction of the Rideau Canal in the 1820's and still stands today.

I took this photo in October 2010 and much has changed, and much is still the same as it was over 100 years ago.  The locks are still there as picturesque as ever, the stone building on the left still stands (currently owned/operated by the NCC as part of the Bytown Museum) and you can see the Royal Alexandra bridge in the distance.

What's new?  Well, Parliament Hill's East Block is visible on the left, the Chateau Laurier expanded and used the land which was previously used for the rail line heading North of Union Station, Nepean Point is visible with the statue of Samuel de Champlain at the forefront, the city of Gatineau (Wrightsville then called Hull, now known as Gatineau) has exploded in the distance and some of the general scenery has changed as well.

The Royal Alexandra Inter Provincial Bridge

This photograph was taken c. 1900 and shows the construction of the 'Inter Provincial Bridge' between Ontario and Quebec.  It is taken from the Ontario side of the Ottawa River right behind Parliament Hill.

This is The Royal Alexandra Inter Provincial Bridge taken by me in 2010.  The vantage point is slightly different than the original.  I tried to get it as close as possible, however I believe the original may have been taken from Lover's Walk - which was located on the hillside behind Parliament Hill since the late 1800's.  It has been closed for some time now (more than likely for security reasons, both structurally and to prevent access to Parliament Hill).

In this photograph, you can see that there has not been much change in the general scenery from the original, with the exception of the MacDonald-Cartier bridge in the background.

If you are interested in more information on The Royal Alexandra Bridge, here is a link for more information http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_Bridge