Symmes Inn Museum

Built by Charles Symmes, the founder of Aylmer, in 1831, the Auberge Symmes is the only regional history museum in the Outaouais. In the heart of the old town of Aylmer’s Heritage Square, the museum has earned many honours: classified a historic monument, designated a national heritage site of Canada, and declared a “heritage gem” par excellence by the City of Gatineau.

The permanent exhibition, Symmes Inn: Windows onto the Ottawa River, covers two levels of this lovely old house, which was initially designed as a hotel. The windows, many overlooking the water, invite the visitor to gaze out on the Ottawa River, which has played many roles over the years, serving as a landing place, a passageway, a centre of industrial activity, a steamboat corridor and a recreation trail.