Blackburn Hamlet
East
Fast Facts
- Population: 8,172 (City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study)
- Size: 2.93 km² (Computed from the City of Ottawa Neighbourhood Study boundary polygon)
- Distance from Parliament Hill: About 10.7 km east (straight-line distance)
- Who's building: Costain Developments
Overview
Blackburn Hamlet is a planned suburban community in Ottawa's east end, built mainly in the late 1960s and 1970s on land that took its name from a post office named for reeve and later MP Robert Blackburn in 1876. It is one of only two Ottawa communities fully surrounded by the National Capital Greenbelt, giving residents direct access to more than 250 km of hiking and cross-country ski trails.
Boundaries
The Ottawa Neighbourhood Study boundary follows the National Capital Greenbelt that surrounds Blackburn Hamlet on all sides, roughly bounded by Innes Road to the north and the Blackburn Hamlet Bypass to the south and west.
Map
History
The area's earliest European settlers, mostly of English and Irish descent, arrived in the early 1800s and farmed the land. The community went through several names before its post office, established in 1876, was named after reeve and later MP Robert Blackburn, who had campaigned for it.
Blackburn Hamlet was developed as a planned suburban community starting in 1967, when families began moving into the new subdivision built by Costain Developments. Before Ottawa's 2001 amalgamation, the area was part of the City of Gloucester.
The community grew up surrounded by the National Capital Greenbelt, a ring of protected farmland, forest and wetland established by the National Capital Commission; Blackburn Hamlet is one of only two Ottawa communities entirely encircled by it.
The 3.3 km Blackburn Hamlet Bypass (Ottawa Road 128) was built in the late 1980s to route through-traffic around the community's residential streets, and Innes Road remains the neighbourhood's main commercial corridor.
Claim to Fame
Blackburn Hamlet's defining feature is being one of only two Ottawa communities entirely surrounded by the National Capital Greenbelt, giving residents direct access to over 250 km of Greenbelt hiking and cross-country ski trails just outside their door.
Surrounding Neighbourhoods
The neighbourhood is encircled by the National Capital Greenbelt; Orléans lies further east, Gloucester-South Nepean and the Ottawa Airport area lie south, and Vanier and the inner east end lie west along Innes Road.
Architecture
Blackburn Hamlet's housing stock dates almost entirely from its planned development in the late 1960s and 1970s, with the low-rise, suburban single-family and townhouse forms typical of that era, built by Costain Developments and other builders on land acquired directly from Greenbelt-area farms.
Restaurants
- Halibut House Fish & Chips — Seafood
Fish and chips restaurant at 2672 Innes Road, part of an Ontario chain.
Visit website - Jumbo Restaurant — Chinese
Chinese takeout restaurant at 2672B Innes Road.
Visit website
Bars
- Blackburn Arms Pub — Pub
Neighbourhood pub at 2586 Innes Road, a Blackburn Hamlet landmark since 1984.
Visit website
Grocery Stores
- Metro — Grocery store
Metro grocery store at 2636 Innes Road, anchoring the Blackburn Shoppes plaza.
Visit website
Pedestrian and Cycling
Blackburn Hamlet is ringed by the National Capital Greenbelt, giving direct access to more than 250 km of hiking and cross-country ski trails; the residential streets themselves are laid out for suburban driving more than walking.
Schools
- Glen Ogilvie Public School — Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
Elementary school (JK-5) at 46 Centrepark Drive, within the Blackburn Hamlet community.
Visit website
Transit Options
OC Transpo bus routes run along Innes Road and the Blackburn Hamlet Bypass; 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