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153:. In 1912, Alex Merkley, who ran a lumber and brick business with his brothers took over management of the brickyard. In 1924 (or possibly 1919), he and his brothers Duncan and Willie bought out the brickyard. Clay used in the brickworks was originally drawn from the property but later had to be brought in from the outside. The business was run by sons Cameron and Hugh Merkley from 1947 until the factory closed in 1958, following expropriation by the
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This early bridge was washed out and rebuilt in 1847 and again in 1862. Bridges at the time were more vulnerable to this, as they only had a clearance of about 1m above the water level. The concrete central span of the bridge collapsed 21 March 1913. Construction of a new bridge began in 1914. It was
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Gloucester
Township was incorporated in the Ottawa District in 1816. The Billings Bridge area slowly grew with the progressive arrival of settlers, including friends and family of Billings. In 1823, Braddish Billings built a sawmill on a creek running through his property, near today's Bank Street.
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There were two grocery stores located at the foot of
Billings Bridge. The Nelson Graburn store, to the west of the bridge, was sold to Cliff Cummings then J.L. Brulé in 1936. The business was closed around 1955. On the opposite side of the road, Dave Campbell owned a grocery and butcher's shop. It
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In the wake of the 1905 Russian
Revolution, Lazarus Greenberg, his wife Esther Bencher and their three children left Belarus for Canada. Before the First World War, they settled in Billings Bridge and opened a general store on the Metcalfe Road near the rail tracks. The Greenbergs were the first
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in 1812 and cut out a farm on the Rideau River at the present-day
Billings Bridge. The area was widely forested at the time and the early British settlement was focused on subsistence farming, as had Iroquois settlement elsewhere in the Ottawa Valley. The following year he married Lamira Dow of
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In the early 19th century, the Ottawa area was sparsely settled by
Europeans. In 1783, a large tract of land including what is now Billings Bridge was purchased from the local aboriginal nations as part of the Crawford Purchase. First named in Lunenburg District in 1788, the area became part of
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There were several businesses in
Billings Bridge. In the late 1800s, the Ottawa Brick and Terra Cotta Co. Ltd. brickyard opened at the foot of the hill, to the east of Sawmill Creek, on 58 acres of land now occupied by the
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The community around the bridge and the
Billings estate slowly grew over the years. Billings Bridge extended along the Metcalfe Road (now Bank Street) from the Bridge, up to the plateau at the top the hill.
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The first bridge was built by
Billings across the Rideau River at Bank Street in 1831. Originally called Farmers Bridge, by 1859 both the bridge and the community became commonly known as Billings Bridge.
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inaugurated 2 September 1915. The ceremony was conducted on the North bank of the river. The mayor of Ottawa then drove across the bridge, turned around without pause and drove straight back into town.
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also referred to a village, located south of the river near the bridge, which became part of the city of Ottawa in 1950. The area, now an Ottawa neighbourhood, is still referred to as
Billings Bridge.
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45:, who settled in this area and established a farm nearby in 1812. The first bridge, originally called Farmers Bridge, was built over the river here in 1830. The current bridge was built in 1916.
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The only other general and grocery store in the heart of the village was
Regimbald's. It was bought by Aimé Gagnon, a returning veteran, in 1945. He and his wife ran the store until 1965.
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Jewish family to settle in the village of Billings Bridge. There followed several other families, some related to them, which became the core of the Billings Bridge Jewish community.
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and included in Dundas County. Billings Bridge was not yet settled in 1800 when Russel County was established and Gloucester Township incorporated into it.
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On 1 January 1950 14,605 acres of the then-township of Gloucester were annexed by the
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Source:Illustrated Historical Atlas of the County of Carleton inc. City of Ottawa
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One consequence was that Billings Bridge streets were nearly all renamed.
513:"Russia, rags and riches: the quiet success of a most private Greenberg"
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passes over the river by way of this bridge. The bridge was named after
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466:"No Speeches for the Mayor When He Can Make His Getaway In Auto".
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Source: William James Topley/Library and Archives Canada/PA-009204
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Directory of Companies, Organizations in K1H (NCF Directory)
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Prince William Frederick, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh
378:"A Historical Timeline for the Township of Gloucester"
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Township B in 1792. In 1793, the township was renamed
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52:Older bridge over Rideau River at Billings Bridge
168:closed and a gas station was built in its place.
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538:"The Billings Family virtual exhibit: 1901-1940"
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115:Settlement accelerated with the development of
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230:Learn how and when to remove this message
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488:Billings Bridge: mon village, ma vie
208:adding citations to reliable sources
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104:Merrickville and returned with her.
643:1830 establishments in Upper Canada
490:. Le Écrits d'Or. pp. 81–105.
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404:"1783-1825 Farming for sustenance"
352:Billings Bridge Transitway Station
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544:. City of Ottawa. Archived from
443:. City of Ottawa. Archived from
410:. City of Ottawa. Archived from
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384:. Gloucester Historical Society
648:1916 establishments in Ontario
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331:Bowesville Road and River Road
62:Map of Billings Bridge c.1879
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357:List of Ottawa neighbourhoods
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511:Egan, Kelly (25 May 2014).
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266:, Rideau Park, Hawthorne,
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633:Bridges completed in 1916
628:Bridges completed in 1830
382:www.gloucesterhistory.com
623:Neighbourhoods in Ottawa
638:Road bridges in Ontario
486:Pelot, Gérard (1999).
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347:Billings Bridge Plaza
172:Billings Bridge today
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594:45.3892°N 75.6778°W
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470:. 3 September 1915.
87:Gloucester Township
517:The Ottawa Citizen
468:The Ottawa Journal
318:Rockingham Avenue
155:Federal Government
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326:Ohio Street
323:Creek Street
294:Bank Street
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202:Please help
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437:"1812-1865"
307:Hill Street
39:Bank Street
612:Categories
585:75°40′40″W
582:45°23′21″N
363:References
315:Elm Street
272:Alta Vista
264:Manor Park
260:Hog’s Back
101:Brockville
80:Early days
542:ottawa.ca
408:ottawa.ca
286:New name
268:Riverview
248:Overbrook
220:July 2023
191:does not
157:in 1954.
151:RA Centre
341:See also
283:Old name
119:and the
89:, after
552:20 June
522:17 July
451:19 June
418:19 June
388:19 June
256:Ellwood
212:removed
197:sources
75:History
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35:Ottawa
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