The Upper Ottawa Valley to 1855

John Kendle is a professor of History at St. John’s College,
University of Manitoba, and author of Ireland and the Federal Solution.

The Upper Ottawa Valley to 1855 is Vol. 14 in the Champlain Society’s
Ontario series. The introductory and documentary sections are divided
into seven parts: “British Emigration and Policy and the Settlement of
the Ottawa Valley”; “Social Order and Growth in the Valley”;
“From Timber to Lumber”; “Changing Patterns of Transportation”;
“Urban Growth in the Ottawa Valley and the Rise of Bytown”;
“Ottawa Valley Politics, 1820–1855”; and “Religion and Education
in the Valley.” Reid’s introduction is a clear, scrupulously
researched contribution that provides an excellent context for the
documentary material, which is drawn from a wide range of sources.

The Upper Ottawa Valley had a distinctiveness all its own, and its
growth was developed and nurtured often quite separately from the rest
of the colony. Its origins and economic survival were firmly linked to
the fluctuating demands of the trans-Atlantic trade; its dependence on
emigration from Ireland and England compounded that tie and provided the
valley with a vibrant and often volatile history. Reid traces the
origins of settlement through the punishing development of the lumber
trade to the more stable community of mid-century, and the documents
impart a rich texture to his informative comments.

This important contribution will be useful for professional scholars,
students, and the informed general reader.