What does the name "Rockcliffe" bring to mind? To most of us it suggests posh mansions for old moneyed Ottawa families and modern techno-plutocrats -- more like a state of mind than a community. To military people it brings back memories of the airbase that used to be the showpiece of the RCAF. To commuters it represents a handy way to get downtown from the east end without getting stuck in traffic. In fact, Rockcliffe is all those things and more, as we will see in this tour, which runs eastward from the Prime Minister's residence, along the Ottawa River.

Rockcliffe Village

In 1838 Thomas MacKay built a mansion on 1,000 acres (c. 400 ha) of scenic woodlands east of (then) Bytown, above a rocky cliff overlooking the Ottawa River. In 1864 he sold about half the land (a bit less than a square mile) for development into a tranquil suburban village. The Village of Rockcliffe was incorporated in the 1920s, to be a community of single-family dwellings only, with strict bylaws and no commercial activities of any kind. It remained independent until 2000, when it was reluctantly amalgamated into Ottawa. Over the years it has been home to prime ministers, ambassadors, royalty, senior officials and military officers, judges, Nobel Prize winners, scientists, hi-tech entrepreneurs, and unheralded residents who were fortunate enough to settle there when land was still available and relatively inexpensive. Today many of the houses are owned or rented by diplomats. There are still no shops.

Rockcliffe Parkway

The federal government acquired the land between the Village and the Ottawa River, then extended it eastward as parkland. Today about 340 acres of green space, hiking and cycling trails belong to the National Capital Commission. The Parkway stretches eastward a distance of 8.5 miles (14km) along the Ottawa River from the Prime Minister's residence. The final part was completed around 1990, to join up with an existing artery. It now provides a peaceful and relatively traffic-free access to downtown Ottawa. At about its mid-point the Parkway traverses an area of about 2 square miles in size that was once RCAF Station Rockcliffe. It now harbours the National Aviation Museum, a Flying Club, the Canadian Police College, part of the National Research Council, and the RCMP stables with the world-famous Musical Ride.

RCAF Station Rockcliffe, a.k.a. CFB Ottawa North

It was first established as a rifle range in 1898, on about 400 acres (c. 160ha) of land, and became an official air station in 1920. That was where William Barker, VC, with 52 enemy planes to his credit, crashed and died in 1930. The first RCAF aerobatic display was held there in 1934. In 1935 more land was acquired, and the airfield expanded to almost 2 square miles. During WWII it became RCAF Station Rockcliffe. After the war, it became the home base for the aerial mapping of northern Canada. About 350 acres were ceded to the National Capital Commission for an extended parkway, and other acreage went to the National Research Council in the mid 1980s. The new Canadian Aviation Museum opened in 1988. In 1993 the General Officers' Mess, built in 1852, was demolished.