Devonshire Community Public School

Devonshire Community Public School
Address
100 Breezehill Avenue North Ottawa, Ontario Canada
Information
School board	Ottawa Carleton District School Board
Grades	junior kindergarten to grade six
Enrollment	380
Language	English, French
Campus	urban
Colour(s)	Red, Blue and White
Communities served	Hintonburg, Mechanicsville, Centretown, Lebreton Flats and Civic Hospital

Devonshire Community Public School is an elementary school in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB). Located at 100 Breezehill Avenue North, the school provides single-track Early French Immersion (EFI) programming for the surrounding Hintonburg, Mechanicsville, Centretown, Lebreton Flats and Civic Hospital neighbourhoods.

As of 2011, there are currently 380 students enrolled in classes from junior kindergarten to grade six.

Architecture

Devonshire Community Public School was built in 1910. Its Collegiate Gothic style is typical of Ottawa schools of this era. It features a Tudor arch entranceway, stone and brick details and stone foundation common to these structures. Its large windows and plan reflect its use as a school and the emphasis placed on providing adequate light and air circulation. For instance, the windows were designed specifically to allow sunshine to reach the interior wall of each classroom, thereby maximizing natural light and creating a healthy learning environment for its children.

History

Soon after the rapidly expanding village of Hintonburg was annexed by the City of Ottawa in 1907, the City secured the Slater Estate on the west side of Breezehill Avenue for the location of a new public school. A year later, the City of Ottawa designated funding for two schools on Breezehill Avenue: one public and one Catholic. Located at the eastern edge of the Hintonburg neighbourhood, the school was sited on a generous parcel of land with a girl’s play yard on the south, a boy’s play yard on the north and a front lawn between the building and street. At the time of its opening in 1910, the school was called Breezehill Avenue Public School.

The original eight-room school was designed in the popular Collegiate Gothic style by Ottawa Board of Education architect William B. Garvock. Hintonburg and surrounding areas expanded rapidly after the opening of the new school. The school was soon at capacity. As a result, substantial additions were made to each end of the building to accommodate eight more classrooms in 1920. The design was the work of Garvock’s successor, W.C. Beattie, who also developed the decorative panel treatment on the blank walls of the additions. In 1921, the Duke of Devonshire, Canada’s Governor General, attended the reopening of the school. The school was renamed “Devonshire” in his honour.

Devonshire housed the Sunshine Class for Crippled Children under the direction of Winnifred Hunt. At the time, similar classes, sponsored by the Rotarian Club, could be found throughout North America. The Sunshine Class moved to another location in 1931, when Devonshire became an intermediate school. W.K. Jeffery designed a gymnasium and further additions to the school in 1931.

In 1974, Devonshire underwent another major renovation, which replaced the original gymnasium with a larger structure and change rooms.

In 2003, Devonshire was slated to be closed by the Ottawa Carleton District School Board. The local community rallied to ensure that Devonshire stayed open; the school was removed from the closure list in 2005, and enrolment has been growing steadily ever since.

In 2008, the City of Ottawa granted a heritage designation to Devonshire Community Public School, thereby recognizing its cultural heritage value, history and importance to the surrounding community. The Hintonburg Community Association has been particularly supportive of the school and its role as a community school.

Devonshire celebrated its centennial in 2010, opening a 25-year-old time capsule created by students in 1985, holding a public celebration, and sealing a new time capsule for future students, staff and families, to be opened in 2035. Volunteers took the opportunity to collect memorabilia and stories about the school; these valuable archives and recorded history will be made available to the public.

One hundred years after it was built, Devonshire’s community has continued to grow, both in number and diversity. A survey completed by volunteers in 2010 estimates over 23 languages spoken at the school. In addition, Devonshire achieved Silver EcoSchool certification in 2010, the first OCDSB school to be recognized for its school-wide achievement in energy conservation, waste minimization, ecological literacy and school ground greening.

References

City of Ottawa Report: Designation of Devonshire Public School (12 June 2008)
Cummings, H.R. and W.T. MacSkimming. The City of Ottawa Public Schools: A brief History. Ottawa, ON: The Ottawa Board of Education, 1971.
The Evening Citizen (Ottawa), June 16, 1921. Page 3. "Devonshire School Is Opened by Governor General, Praise of Our System of Education"
The Evening Citizen (Ottawa), June 20, 1931. "Closing Exercises of Sunshire Class"
The Evening Citizen (Ottawa), March 1, 1947. Page 11. "Devonshire School Has Fine Background"
The Ottawa Citizen, June 3, 1970. Page 55. "Devonshire hits 60"

External links

Ottawa-Carleton District School Board schools

Secondary schools	A.Y.Jackson Secondary School Adult High School Bell High School Brookfield High School Cairine Wilson Secondary School Canterbury High School Colonel By Secondary School Earl of March Secondary School Glebe Collegiate Institute Gloucester High School Hillcrest High School John McCrae Secondary School Lisgar Collegiate Institute Longfields-Davidson Heights Secondary School Merivale High School Nepean High School Osgoode Township High School Ottawa Technical Learning Centre Rideau High School Ridgemont High School Sir Guy Carleton Secondary School Sir Robert Borden High School Sir Wilfrid Laurier Secondary School South Carleton High School West Carleton Secondary School Woodroffe High School

Primary or elementary schools	Adrienne Clarkson Agincourt Road A. Lorne Cassidy Alta Vista Assumption Arch Street Avalon Public Barrhaven Bayshore Bayview Bells Corners Berrigan Blossom Park Briargreen Bridlewood Community Broadview Cambridge Street Carleton Heights Carson Grove Castlefrank Castor Valley Cedarview Centennial Century Chapman Mills Charles H. Hulse Christie Churchill Clifford Bowey Connaught Convent Glen Corpus Christi Crystal Bay Centre D. Aubrie Moodie D. Roy Kennedy Devonshire Community Public Dunlop Dunning-Foubert Elgin Street Elizabeth Park Elmdale Emily Carr Fallingbrook Community Farley Mowat Featherston Drive Fielding Drive First Avenue Fisher Park Fitzroy Centennial Forest Valley General Vanier Glashan Glen Cairn Glen Ogilvie Goulbourn Grant Greely Greenbank Hawthorne Henry Larsen Henry Munro Heritage Henry Munro Hilson Avenue Hopewell Avenue Huntley Centennial Jack Donohue J. H. Putnam Jockvale John Young Kars Katimavik Knoxdale Lady Evelyn Lakeview Le Phare Leslie Park Manordale Manor Park Manotick Maple Ridge Mary Honeywell McGregor Easson Meadowlands Metcalfe Munster Mutchmor New Berrigan North Gower/Marlborough Orleans Wood Osgoode Parkwood Hills Pinecrest Pleasant Park Queen Elizabeth Queen Mary Street Queenswood Regina Street Richmond Rideau Valley Riverview Roberta Bondar Robert Bateman Robert E. Wilson Robert Hopkins Roch Carrier Rockcliffe Park Roland Michener Sawmill Creek Severn Avenue Sir Winston Churchill South March Stephen Leacock Steve MacLean Stittsville Stonecrest Summit Terry Fox Trillium Vincent Massey Viscount Alexander W.E. Gowling W. Erskine Johnston Westwind W. O. Mitchell Woodroffe Avenue York Street

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