MacLaren Street, which runs through Centretown from Bronson Avenue to the Queen Elizabeth Driveway, was named after James MacLaren, a Scottish-born lumber baron who lived in Quebec in the 19th century.
MacLaren took advantage of Canada’s vast forests and owned many different saw mills throughout the Ottawa region and Quebec, and also invested in lumber operations in the northern United States. He overcame the drop in the lumber market during the U.S. Civil War and was actually able to continue to expand his business.
He helped found and served as president of the Bank of Ottawa, which later amalgamated with the Bank of Nova Scotia. By the end of his life, MacLaren was one of the richest men in Canada, with a net worth of about $5 million.
His namesake street is also full of history. It’s home to Dundonald Park, which has a memorial plaque recalling a famous Cold War episode in which RCMP officers kept watch over Igor Gouzenko’s nearby apartment to protect the turncoat Soviet spy from Communist assassins.
The park takes up a whole city block with Somerset Street on the north side, Bay Street on the west and Lyon Street on the east.
MacLaren Street today maintains the charm of old Ottawa with many 19th-century homes and towering trees. Located close to downtown and running past Bank Street, MacLaren is also part of Ottawa’s bustling downtown scene. The Greek and Iranian embassies can also be found at the east end of the street, a not to Ottawa’s role as the country’s political centre.