The lake is named after Abram Dow, an American-born settler who came to Ontario in the early 19th Century and who owned land in this area in 1816. Before the construction of the canal, this area was known as Dow's Great Swamp.[1] The lake was created when a dam was constructed along the north shore (Queen Elizabeth Driveway is now atop the dam) to allow flooding for the canal. Originally, the Rideau Canal was to run north from Dow's Lake, but land speculation and Colonel John By's reluctance to reward such speculation resulted in the current location of the canal.
20th-century developmentsEdit
In past years, the parkland to the north and east was rail yards until the 1940s and the area was mostly industrial.
Situated next to the pavilion on the western shore is Canadian Forces Reserve Barrack Dow's Lake. This installation, opened in 1943, is home to HMCS Carleton, a unit of the Canadian Naval Reserve.
A rail tunnel, which was formerly owned and operated by Canadian Pacific, passes under the lake. This tunnel replaced a rail line that once crossed the lake on the surface. The OC Transpo introduced the O-Train (today's Trillium Line) in 2001, a light-rail transit system, which remains the primary user of the tunnel.
Unveiled by Princess Margriet of the Netherlands, The Man with Two Hats is a 4.6-metre sculpture by Henk Visch [nl]. It commemorates the role Canadian forces played in the liberation of the Netherlands, and a reproduced cast of the sculpture exists as the National Canadian Liberation Monument in Apeldoorn, Netherlands.[2] Facing to the lake, it symbolises the historic links between Canada and the Netherlands as well as Princess Margriet's birth at the Ottawa Civic Hospital.[3]
During the winter, Dow's Lake freezes and becomes part of the world's longest skating rink and one of the primary sites of the Winterlude festival in February, with events such as the 'bed races' and 'waiter races' on the ice.
Two scenic drives along the canal pass to either side of the lake. The Queen Elizabeth Driveway, named after the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (who traveled along it during the 1939 royal visit) runs beside the north and west sides of the lake. The Colonel By Drive, named after the founder of the city, Lieutenant-Colonel John By, runs beside the south side of the lake.
At the north end of the lake a pavilion is situated over the water with three restaurants overlooking the water. They are Umbrella Bar, Lago and Mexi's. Other services of the pavilion include canoe, kayak and paddle boat rentals, boat mooring and an indoor change area for skating. It is open year-round.
Dows Lake Pavilion Privately run Dows Lake Pavilion
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dow's Lake.
October 21, 2023
lake, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, april, 2021, learn, w. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Dow s Lake news newspapers books scholar JSTOR April 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message Dow s Lake in Ottawa Ontario Canada is a small man made lake on the Rideau Canal situated two kilometres north of Hog s Back Falls in the middle of Ottawa It is at the south end of Preston Street just south of Carling Avenue and just to the west of Bronson Avenue At the south end of the lake is Carleton University and to the west is the Dominion Arboretum at the edge of the Central Experimental Farm Dow s LakeDows Lake PavilionDow s LakeLocationOttawaCoordinates45 23 40 N 75 42 06 W 45 394412 N 75 701551 W 45 394412 75 701551Lake typeArtificial lakePrimary inflowsRideau CanalPrimary outflowsRideau CanalBasin countriesCanada Contents 1 History 1 1 Early settlement 1 2 20th century developments 2 Visitor activities 3 Notes 4 References 5 External linksHistory Edit nbsp Map of Dow s Lake and adjacent area Early settlement Edit The lake is named after Abram Dow an American born settler who came to Ontario in the early 19th Century and who owned land in this area in 1816 Before the construction of the canal this area was known as Dow s Great Swamp 1 The lake was created when a dam was constructed along the north shore Queen Elizabeth Driveway is now atop the dam to allow flooding for the canal Originally the Rideau Canal was to run north from Dow s Lake but land speculation and Colonel John By s reluctance to reward such speculation resulted in the current location of the canal 20th century developments Edit In past years the parkland to the north and east was rail yards until the 1940s and the area was mostly industrial Situated next to the pavilion on the western shore is Canadian Forces Reserve Barrack Dow s Lake This installation opened in 1943 is home to HMCS Carleton a unit of the Canadian Naval Reserve A rail tunnel which was formerly owned and operated by Canadian Pacific passes under the lake This tunnel replaced a rail line that once crossed the lake on the surface The OC Transpo introduced the O Train today s Trillium Line in 2001 a light rail transit system which remains the primary user of the tunnel Unveiled by Princess Margriet of the Netherlands The Man with Two Hats is a 4 6 metre sculpture by Henk Visch nl It commemorates the role Canadian forces played in the liberation of the Netherlands and a reproduced cast of the sculpture exists as the National Canadian Liberation Monument in Apeldoorn Netherlands 2 Facing to the lake it symbolises the historic links between Canada and the Netherlands as well as Princess Margriet s birth at the Ottawa Civic Hospital 3 Visitor activities Edit nbsp Tulip Festival at Dow s Lake 2006In May the surrounding park Commissioners Park displays tulips planted by the National Capital Commission NCC for the annual Canadian Tulip Festival Over 50 varieties and approximately 300 000 tulips bloom each May along the Rideau Canal During the winter Dow s Lake freezes and becomes part of the world s longest skating rink and one of the primary sites of the Winterlude festival in February with events such as the bed races and waiter races on the ice Two scenic drives along the canal pass to either side of the lake The Queen Elizabeth Driveway named after the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother who traveled along it during the 1939 royal visit runs beside the north and west sides of the lake The Colonel By Drive named after the founder of the city Lieutenant Colonel John By runs beside the south side of the lake At the north end of the lake a pavilion is situated over the water with three restaurants overlooking the water They are Umbrella Bar Lago and Mexi s Other services of the pavilion include canoe kayak and paddle boat rentals boat mooring and an indoor change area for skating It is open year round nbsp Dow s Lake during Winterlude Notes Edit Woods 34 The Man With Two Hats National Defence Canada 2008 04 16 Archived from the original on 2014 05 24 Retrieved 22 May 2014 Unveiling of the Man with Two Hats Veteran Affairs Canada 2002 10 05 Archived from the original on 25 August 2012 Retrieved 10 December 2008 References EditWoods Shirley E Jr Ottawa The Capital of Canada Toronto Doubleday Canada 1980 ISBN 0 385 14722 8External links Edit nbsp Ontario portalDows Lake Pavilion Privately run Dows Lake Pavilion nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dow s Lake Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Dow 27s Lake amp oldid 1179561234, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
