Construction, 1859-1916

How Big?

The first step was to figure out how much room the government would need. The goal was to fit the entire government onto Parliament Hill. To do this, they needed: two legislative chambers (the Hall of Assembly and the Council Chamber), a picture gallery, library, 85 assorted committee rooms, reading rooms, clerks' rooms, an apartment for the Speaker, and about 170 offices. The total — around 110,000 square feet — would be divided among three buildings, one for the legislature, and two departmental office buildings. They also planned to build a proper residence for the Governor General on Nepean Point across the canal from Parliament Hill.

There were some people who thought the buildings would be far too big for such a small country and that there was going to be more space than they could use for 200 years. One even suggested that the governments of several European countries would all fit into it at once!