By Nancy Miller Chenier
Sometimes the research to determine the history of a Lowertown house leads into unusual territory. In this case, the story of 156 Bolton Street, one half of a double built around 1902, uncovered connections to two different Sir Richards, both associated with Ireland. The tale unfolded when looking at two occupants in very different time periods.
John Arthur St George, the first recorded occupant in 1904, was the grandson of Sir Richard Bligh St. George, the second Baronet of Athlone in the county of Westmeath, Ireland. This Sir Richard was an Irish Protestant, a hereditary baronet, and a landowner. There is no evidence he ever saw the Ottawa where his younger son William Oliver St. George settled with his family.
Nancy Scott Colton, an occupant in the late 1990s, was the great granddaughter of Sir Richard William Scott, who was created a Knight Bachelor in 1909 by King Edward VII. This Sir Richard was born into an Irish Catholic family in Prescott Upper Canada, and established a law practice on George Street in the early 1850s. One-time mayor of Bytown, the knighthood was granted for his long commitment to community through municipal, provincial, and federal politics.
John Arthur St. George held a position as elevator operator in the Langevin Building that initially housed the departments of Agriculture, Interior, Indian Affairs and the Post Office. He did not stay long at Bolton Street and moved often with his family to various houses around Lowertown.
Nancy Scott Colton moved into the house after living in England, and lived there for several decades while her work activities took her to the Department of Public Works across the Alexandra Bridge. During her years in the house, she and her neighbour at 158 Bolton restored the front porch in a tribute to Lowertown’s past craftspeople.
The descendants of these Sir Richards would have experienced Ottawa in very different ways in the different eras when they occupied 156 Bolton Street. And like so many Lowertown residents, even this minimal glimpse of their stories shows the diversity and complexity that exists in the personal histories of our neighbours.
The descendants of these Sir Richards would have experienced Ottawa in very different ways in the different eras…
Painting of 156-158 Bolton by Susan Smith. Photo: Tim Smith