When Sir Walter Scott published his first work of fiction in 1814, the success of the book gave the Scottish novelist and poet the beginnings of an international following that at the time had never been seen.
Waverley, set during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1794 and considered by many scholars to be the first example of the historical fiction genre, was an immense success.
Today, a reminder of this international triumph remains in Centretown, in the form of a quiet street skirting the southern edge of the downtown core, named after the novel itself.
Waverley — formerly known as Charles and Neville streets in earlier eras — runs from Bank Street to the Rideau Canal, and is intersected by some of the busiest routes into the city’s core: O’Connor, Metcalfe and Elgin.
However, the roar of urban traffic is only a distant hum along the sidewalks of Waverley Street, where in mid-November the sounds of birds and wind-blown leaves are more prominent than the sirens in the distance.
A few cars park along the street, next to small apartment complexes and historic brick buildings, many of which now house law offices or dental clinics.
A park surrounding the Jack Purcell Community Centre momentarily interrupts the street, and the playful shouts of children make it an even stronger contrast to the sounds of cars, pedestrians and construction that pervades much of the rest of downtown.
Past the park, east of Elgin, Waverley is even more subdued. Vines climb untamed up fences, and there are even fewer cars parked along the street.
Signs cautioning, “Quiet please, residential zone,” are almost unnecessary in the hush of this stretch of the street. Aside from the faint electrical hum coming from the back of the Lieutenant’s Pump restaurant, the street is relatively quiet.
Toward the canal there are homes rather than offices, most with brick facades. Some even look old enough to have a turn-of-the-century edition of Scott’s novel hidden in some forgotten niche.