An Acre of Time: The Enduring Value of Place

by Phil Jenkins

Book Overview

"I've come here to unearth a story . . . the biography of the field beneath my feet". So begins a journey at once eclectic, invaluable, and unique. Winner of both the Lela Common Award for Canadian... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1551990024
• ISBN13: 9781551990026
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: MacFarlane Walter & Ross
• Length: 243 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

History of a significant acre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Jenkins has extensively researched the history of an acre of land in LeBreton flats near the centre of Ottawa. He begins with the geological formation of the area: the layers of rocks and sediments that were formed. He then discusses the natives that inhabited the land and their first interactions with the explorers of Canada (Champlain) etc. The land is then surveyed and settled. Jenkins shines with his stories of the people that lived there in the '40s and 50's. Then in the late 50's the land was expropriated for government office complexes that were never built and other than for a brief flurry of activity when the Pope came to Ottawa and gave a mass it has stood almost empty since.Do the natives still have a claim on the land?A pleasant read for Ottawa Valley residents and a must read and must have for historians of the area. It would make an excellent history textbook for high schools - makes history come alive.Bernie Geiger, Ottawa