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Bells Corners

West

A street view of Bells Corners, Ottawa.
Photo: P199, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Fast Facts

  • Population: 8,887 (City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study (sum of the two combined boundaries))
  • Size: 4.69 km² (Computed from the combined City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study boundary polygons)
  • Distance from Parliament Hill: About 15.3 km west (straight-line distance)

Overview

Bells Corners is a residential neighbourhood in Ottawa's western Greenbelt, named for Hugh Bell, who built a tavern here in 1834 to serve travellers between Ottawa and Richmond. Once a small crossroads village, it grew into a substantial suburban community after the Second World War, and its main commercial corridor, Robertson Road, today includes the East India Company restaurant, housed in the historic Hartin's Hotel building.

Boundaries

The City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study covers this area with two separate boundaries — Bells Corners East and Bells Corners West — merged here into a single shape spanning both sides of Robertson Road in Ottawa's western Greenbelt.

Map

History

Bells Corners is named for Hugh Bell, who built a tavern at the site in 1834 to serve travellers between Ottawa and Richmond. Known informally as "the Corners," the community took its more official name when its post office opened on August 6, 1851.

By 1869, Bell's Corners was a village of about 120 people in the Township of Carleton County, though it was almost destroyed by a catastrophic fire that swept much of the Ottawa area in 1870.

The community remained small until after the Second World War. Lynwood Village, the area's first major housing development, was built in stages between 1950 and 1966, and further residential development followed in subsequent decades.

Robertson Road developed as the neighbourhood's commercial spine, today home to the East India Company restaurant, housed in the historic Hartin's Hotel building, alongside other longtime local businesses.

Claim to Fame

Bells Corners' defining feature is its origin as an 1834 crossroads tavern stop between Ottawa and Richmond, now a substantial residential community along Robertson Road within Ottawa's western Greenbelt.

Surrounding Neighbourhoods

Bayshore and Britannia lie north, Centrepointe and Craig Henry lie east, and the National Capital Greenbelt and rural West Carleton lie south and west.

Architecture

Lynwood Village, built between 1950 and 1966, and later postwar subdivisions give Bells Corners a mid-20th-century suburban character, while Robertson Road retains some older commercial buildings, including the historic Hartin's Hotel, alongside newer retail development.

Restaurants

Grocery Stores

Pedestrian and Cycling

Robertson Road carries most of the neighbourhood's commercial activity and is walkable in stretches, while the surrounding residential streets are typical low-density suburban blocks.

Schools

  • Bell High School — Ottawa-Carleton District School Board

    Secondary school (grades 7-12) at 40 Cassidy Road.

    Visit website

Amenities

Transit Options

OC Transpo bus routes run along Robertson Road and Moodie Drive; the neighbourhood does not have its own O-Train station. Check octranspo.com for current route numbers, since the network is periodically redesigned.

Nearby on This Site

No listings yet in this area.

Official Information

Last verified: August 27, 2026