Description of Historic Place

The La Salle Academy is a complex of buildings and grounds located on Sussex Drive in Ottawa. It includes two fine 19th century buildings, the Bishop’s Palace and College Building. The restored Bishop’s Palace has a grand classical façade and a bell-caste roof topped by a lantern. The La Salle Academy is an important visual landmark on Sussex Drive. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

The La Salle Academy property has been designated a Classified Federal Heritage Building, primarily because of its important historical associations with educational development in Ottawa and in Upper Canada. The academy also played a significant role in the physical evolution of Sussex Drive and continues to contribute strongly to the character of this "Mile of History" in the nation's capital.

The original College of Bytown, founded by Father J.E. Bruno Guigues on the property in 1847, was the region's first bilingual school and its first secondary school; it expanded and moved, and eventually became the University of Ottawa. The College Building and the attached residence continued to service the educational needs of the area in a variety of ways. The restoration and expansion of the property by architect John Leaning in 1975 was used as a model for sensitive urban renewal by the Ministry of State for Urban Affairs, who occupied the refurbished premises.

Sources: Joan Mattie, LasalleAcademy, Ottawa, Ontario, Federal Heritage Building Review Office Building Report 87-033; LasalleAcademy, Ottawa, Ontario, Heritage Character Statement, 87-033.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage character of this property is defined by:
-the careful juxtaposition of two fine 19th-century stone buildings on Sussex Drive with more contemporary elements to the north and east;
-the exterior of the Bishop's Palace, which was restored to its mid-19th century appearance in 1975. The stonework is original; the design of the reconstructed doors, windows and roof was based on documentary and physical evidence;
-the exterior of the College Building, which was restored at the same time to its post-1890 appearance.