BRINGING HISTORY ALIVE IN WESTBORO.
Dave Allston says there are many interesting facts about Westboro’s history, and wants to create a history book of the neighbourhood. The Keg Manor on Richmond Road is an example of a heritage building in the community.
Photo by Kristy Wallace
A lot of places in Ottawa’s west end already have books that chronicle their community’s unique history, something Dave Allston wants for the Westboro neighbourhood.
“Westboro has arguably the most interesting and detailed history, but there’s nothing out there,” said Allston. “Westboro’s the hottest neighbourhood right now, and there needs to be a book that ties it all together and ensures people take notice.”
Allston majored in history at the University of Ottawa, and has had an interest in history since he was a teenager. At 17, he started his own business doing research on residents’ homes and finding information through land registry and city archives.
“There are neat stories that come out of it,” Allston said. “I’ll dig up the exact date it was built, and even go beyond that like what the former residents did for a living.”
When he started reading more about the Westboro area, he realized what a fascinating place it was and how different it looked in days gone by.
“It was a streetcar suburb, had its own golf course and movie theatre – and people have no idea,” Allston said.
There were huge pockets of Westboro that didn’t get developed until the 1930s, he said and it had a completely different character than it has today. Champlain Park, for example, was mainly cottages. There was also a feeling that the neighbourhood was its own city.
“I just want to see more acknowledgment made of historical sites in Westboro,” Allston said. “There are buildings from the 1920s that weren’t that old, but it’s starting to get there.”
There hasn’t been a history book written about Westboro since the 1920s, he said, and even that was a brief history.
Even though there have been books about the former Nepean Township, Allston said there hasn’t been a thorough history book made of the immediate neighourbood.
He said that you don’t have to be from Westboro to find the book interesting.
“People city-wide would find this interesting,” Allston said. “Anyone with an interest in community development (would enjoy the book).”
He hopes readers will take the information they see in the book have a greater appreciation for the neighbourhood’s heritage building, including developers.
“I’m not a big preservation fighter, I just love history,” Allston said.
He also said that he’s looking for long-time residents who are interested in having a role in the book or who might like to be interviewed. He can be contacted by email at daveallston@rogers.com.