MacDonald Street is located in downtown Ottawa’s so-called Golden Triangle.
This residential street is five blocks long and bookended by Somerset Street West to the north and Frank Street to the south.
The street is lined with old-style houses and duplexes, along with some modern apartment buildings.
It is just a five-minute walk, to the west, from the shops and restaurants on Elgin Street and three blocks east of the Rideau Canal.
The origin of the street name is unknown, but Serge Barbe, an archivist with the City of Ottawa says there are a number of possible origins for its name.
The area in which MacDonald Street is located is part of the former By Estate, which was acquired by three lumber barons — James Maclaren, Charles Magee and Robert Blackburn — in the 1870s, says Barbe.
Barbe says it’s likely that the owners of the land named MacDonald Street because they named many of the other streets in that area. But it is also possible that a previous owner named it.
Maclaren Street and Robert Street are both near MacDonald Street and were named by the lumber barons.
Even if they did name MacDonald Street, the identity of the person is unknown, says Barbe.
Another possibility, adds Barbe, is that the street was named after Sir John A. Macdonald. Saying that an error in capitalization, by the provincial land surveyor of the time, could be what has created the mystery surrounding the origins of this street name.