Doors Open Ottawa is a really cool event. Basically, it’s a license to snoop around heritage buildings… many of which we walk by every day and never really know anything about.
It was a crazy weekend for us here at Casa Fishbowl, and even though I really really wanted to, we didn’t have a lot of time to devote to Doors Open. What I do like about it is that there are places all across Ottawa that open to the public. If you’re in a hurry it’s easy enough to find something that’s close to where you live.
Sunday morning was realistically the only time we had available, so I scoured the list of participating buildings. Surprise! Many were closed on Sunday. Gah. So I chose the two that made the most sense to our family: (a) they were close and (b) are meaningful to our family for some reason.
My first pick was Saint-François d’Assise Church
The stone church (1914-15) was designed by architect Charles Brodeur of Hull. Inside, it is entirely free of columns. Two lateral lofts and a third, that of the organ, give the church its Gothic style. St-François d’Assise is recognized for its collection of old statues: St. Anthony (1894), the Sacred Heart (1896), Our Lady of Piety (1897), St. Pascal Baylon (1899). The organ, manufactured in 1886 by the Toronto firm Karn-Warren, was acquired in 1933. On the church’s façade, two niches contain statues of St. Francis and St. Anthony. Two bell towers of different heights contain five bells. The imposing front steps have two levels and 23 steps.
Once upon a time, Mark and I used to live in an apartment in behind the church on St. Francis Street. Sadly, I have never been inside this lovely old church that figures so prominently in this neat little neighbourhood of Hintonburg.
So we parked on St.Francis and cut through the pretty little park and made our way around to the front of the church.
And this is as far as we got.
There was a service going on, and neither Mark nor I wanted to (a) interrupt or (b) sit through it.
So much for that idea.
Later on in the day we had a tiny window of time to check out Westboro Masonic Hall, a place that has been shrouded in mystery (at least for me) ever since we’ve lived here.
“Situated in the heart of Westboro, the Westboro Masonic Hall has an Edwardian-style stone and brick exterior. The main-floor Banquet Hall is a splendid Victorian room with a high ornate ceiling, crystal chandelier and sconces, lovely theatre drapes and window curtains, and original solid hardwood floors. Built in 1924 to house the Masons of West Ottawa, it is only in the last three years that it has been opened to the community for entertainment shows, banquets, meetings and special events. The upstairs Lodge Room, ordinarily closed to the public, will be opened for guided tours both days after 2 p.m.”
It wasn’t as exciting as I thought it would be.
You should have seen Emma’s face when we told her that this was the room where they practiced ritual beheadings:
I am kidding.
I would have hung around longer and asked some questions, but there was a heated discussion going on upstairs that had a rather DaVinci Code kind of flavour to it, so we vacated and I had to wait until we got home before I could look up what the Masons actually do.
Portraits of older fellows wearing their masonic aprons was probably the most interesting things about our visit there. The Flintstones had a great spoof of organizations like this one. Do you remember? Fred and Barney were members of the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes. They had a Grand Poohbah, secret handshakes, special lingo, and a propensity for hats, but as far as I know, Freemasonry does not condone the gratuitous consumption of cactus juice.
Simply put: the Masonic lodge is a boys club. Case closed. As one of the fellows there put it, it’s what boy scouts do when they grow up.
I am, however, satisfied that I now know what the inside of the building looks like. Thank you Doors Open. My curiosity is satisfied.
Did you take part in Doors Open this year? If so, where did you go? What would you recommend? I’m trying to plan ahead. :)
