Aylmer
Explore Aylmer’s historic core, residential neighbourhoods, riverfront parks and everyday services.

Aylmer is a sector of Ville de Gatineau, Quebec, on the Ottawa River’s north shore opposite Ottawa. Its historic core grew around a landing and a road that bypassed river rapids. The wider sector includes neighbourhoods shaped by industrial, agricultural and summer-resort development. Daily destinations include rue Principale’s Lucy-Faris Library and parc des Cèdres, while STO links Aylmer with the downtowns of Hull and Ottawa. By car, downtown Ottawa (Parliament Hill) is about 13.4 km away, roughly 20 minutes in free-flowing traffic (OSRM estimate).
Updated · Facts on this page link to their sources
About Aylmer
Aylmer is a sector of Ville de Gatineau, Quebec, on the Ottawa River’s north shore opposite Ottawa. Its historic core grew around a landing and a road that bypassed river rapids. The wider sector includes neighbourhoods shaped by industrial, agricultural and summer-resort development. Daily destinations include rue Principale’s Lucy-Faris Library and parc des Cèdres, while STO links Aylmer with the downtowns of Hull and Ottawa.
Boundaries
The municipal Aylmer sector follows the territory of the former city of Aylmer, now part of Gatineau. It lies along the north shore of the Ottawa River in western Gatineau. Definitions vary when people mean the whole sector or only Vieux-Aylmer: the latter’s planning area is generally bounded by parc des Cèdres to the west, parc Paul-Pelletier to the east, rue North and chemin Eardley to the north, and boulevard de Lucerne to the south. These are Vieux-Aylmer planning limits, not the limits of the whole sector. www3.gatineau.ca openstreetmap.org
Homes
Aylmer’s historic core has detached and semi-detached houses, row houses, duplexes and apartment buildings. In the city’s Vieux-Aylmer study area, 37.9% of occupied private dwellings were built in 1960 or earlier, using 2021 census data. These findings describe Vieux-Aylmer, not the housing mix or construction dates of the entire Aylmer sector. gatineau.ca
- Historic buildings around rue Principale.
- Parc des Cèdres waterfront and beach.
- Voyageurs–Portageurs cycling route along the Ottawa River.
- Forêt Boucher access from chemin Antoine-Boucher and rue Samuel-Edey.
- Lucy-Faris Library at 115, rue Principale.
- Seasonal Marché du Vieux-Aylmer at parc Commémoratif.
Community
How Aylmer came to be

- 1828
Charles Symmes acquired land and had lots laid out in what became Aylmer’s historic core. gatineau.ca
- 1847
Aylmer was incorporated as a municipality. gatineau.ca
- 1852
A courthouse was built, reflecting Aylmer’s role as a regional administrative centre. gatineau.ca
- 1921
A major fire damaged the area around rue Principale; reconstruction contributed to the historic core’s present streetscape. gatineau.ca
- 1938
Aylmer’s library opened with support from a bequest left by Lucy Faris. gatineau.ca
- 1975
Aylmer, Lucerne and Deschênes were amalgamated. gatineau.ca
- 2002
On 1 January, Aylmer joined Buckingham, Gatineau, Hull and Masson-Angers to form the present Ville de Gatineau; Aylmer remained a sector name. www3.gatineau.ca
- Before European settlement
Gatineau’s historical account identifies the shores of lac Deschênes as a passage used by Indigenous peoples, principally the Anishinabeg, with portages around the river’s rapids. gatineau.ca
Local names worth knowing
- Lucy Faris
Lucy Faris (1855–1924) lived in Aylmer throughout her life. Her bequest helped establish the community’s library, which opened in 1938. gatineau.ca
Around Aylmer
Walking rings at 5, 10 and 15 minutes from the neighbourhood centre.
Schools
10 nearbyLord Aylmer Elementary School (Cycle 1)
WQSB130 Avenue Frank-Robinsonopenstreetmap.org
390 m5 min walkÉcole internationale du Village
CSSPOGrades Preschool (age 5)–Grade 6Limoges: 19, rue Symmes, Gatineau, QC J9H 3J3; Saint-Paul: 45, chemin Eardley, Gatineau, QC J9H 4J9csspo.gouv.qc.ca openstreetmap.org
530 m7 min walkEardley Elementary School
WQSBGrades K4–6180, rue North, Gatineau, QC J9H 6Y9westernquebec.ca openstreetmap.org
540 m7 min walkLord Aylmer Elementary School
WQSBGrades K4–6Junior campus: 130 Frank-Robinson; senior campus: 116 Frank-Robinson, Gatineau, QC J9H 4A6westernquebec.ca openstreetmap.org
570 m7 min walkWestern Quebec Career Centre
WQSB100 Avenue Frank-Robinsonopenstreetmap.org
700 m9 min walkCentre L'Arrimage
450 Rue LeGuerrieropenstreetmap.org
890 m11 min walkÉcole secondaire Grande-Rivière
CSSPOGrades Secondary I–V100, rue Broad, Gatineau, QC J9H 6A9csspo.gouv.qc.ca openstreetmap.org
990 m12 min walkÉcole Euclide-Lanthier
CSSPOGrades Preschool (age 4)–Grade 650, rue Élizabeth, Gatineau, QC J9H 1E9csspo.gouv.qc.ca openstreetmap.org
1.1 km14 min walkÉcole du Vieux-Verger
CSSPOGrades Preschool (age 5)–Grade 6550, boulevard Wilfrid-Lavigne, Gatineau, QC J9H 6L5csspo.gouv.qc.ca openstreetmap.org
1.2 km15 min walkÉcole des Trois-Portages
CSSPOGrades Preschool (age 5)–Grade 6120, rue Broad, Gatineau, QC J9H 6W3csspo.gouv.qc.ca openstreetmap.org
1.3 km16 min walk
Straight-line distances from the Aylmer centre. Living near a school does not guarantee a place: confirm the designated school for an address with each board. All schools and board locators.
Parks & places
10 nearbyBibliothèque Lucy-Faris
40 m1 min walkParc Commémoratif
40 m1 min walkCentre Aydelu
140 m2 min walkArena Frank-Robinson
190 m2 min walkCentre communautaire Ernest-Lattion
190 m2 min walkCentre Jeunesse d'Aylmer
270 m3 min walkParc Broad
400 m5 min walkParc Woods
570 m7 min walkParc Tibérius
620 m8 min walkChalet Chénier
660 m8 min walk
Shops & dining
10 nearbyWilliam J. Walter
60 m1 min walkMarché Laflamme
130 m2 min walkBoulangerie aux Deux Freres
180 m2 min walkSuper C
550 m7 min walkPharmaprix
630 m8 min walkHome Hardware
760 m10 min walkUniprix
860 m11 min walkLa Vieille Alliance
930 m12 min walkHadalyna Bakery
1.3 km17 min walkProxim
1.6 km20 min walk
Getting around
TransitTerminus des Allumettières
2.2 km27 min walkRivermead
4.0 kmfrom centreSTO bus
STO serves Aylmer and downtown Ottawa. Its current service guidance describes rush-hour routes through downtown Hull, with many Aylmer peak-period routes using Rivermead.
Park and ride
Parc-o-bus Rivermead is at 852, chemin d’Aylmer; Parc-o-bus des Allumettières is at 305, rue des Hautes-Rives. STO lists both as free parking for its users.
Bus and O-Train
STO identifies route 58 as an option for reaching Tunney’s Pasture and transferring to the O-Train. Check the trip date and departure time in the current planner.
Road connections
The Champlain Bridge links Aylmer’s place Samuel-de-Champlain with Ottawa’s Island Park Drive. The Portage Bridge links boulevard Maisonneuve in Hull with Wellington Street in Ottawa; no fixed Aylmer-to-downtown drive time is asserted.
For sale in Aylmer
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Neighbouring areas
Quick answers
Short answers first; each links to the full answer and its sources.
Is Aylmer a good place to live?
Aylmer has riverfront recreation at parc des Cèdres, a public library on rue Principale and STO bus connections with downtown Hull and Ottawa. English public schools are listed by the Western Québec School Board, and French public schools by the Centre de services scolaire des Portages-de-l’Outaouais.
As of 2026-10-30 · tourismeoutaouais.com gatineau.ca
Where is Aylmer?
Aylmer is a sector in western Gatineau, Quebec, on the north shore of the Ottawa River opposite Ottawa. Its municipal sector corresponds to the former city of Aylmer, which became part of the present Ville de Gatineau in 2002.
As of 2026-10-30 · en.wikipedia.org www3.gatineau.ca
How far is Aylmer from downtown Ottawa?
By road, Aylmer's centre is about 13.4 km from Parliament Hill in downtown Ottawa, roughly 20 minutes by car in free-flowing traffic (OSRM routing estimate). A road approach to downtown Ottawa is through Hull to the Portage Bridge, which links boulevard Maisonneuve with Wellington Street. The Champlain Bridge is another Ottawa crossing from Aylmer, reaching Island Park Drive.
As of 2026-10-30 · router.project-osrm.org gatineau.ca
What schools serve Aylmer?
Aylmer’s English public schools include Eardley, Lord Aylmer and South Hull elementary schools, followed by Symmes Junior High and D’Arcy McGee High School. French public options in the CSSPO network include École du Vieux-Verger and École des Trois-Portages, with secondary schools including Grande-Rivière, de la Nouvelle-Ère and de la Cité. The school serving a household must be confirmed using its address, language eligibility and programme requirements.
As of 2026-10-30 · westernquebec.ca csspo.gouv.qc.ca
What are homes like in Aylmer?
Aylmer includes historic neighbourhoods and residential areas developed from former rural and summer-resort landscapes. For Vieux-Aylmer specifically, Gatineau documents detached and semi-detached houses, row houses, duplexes and apartments, with 37.9% of occupied private dwellings built in 1960 or earlier in the 2021 data. That percentage describes the Vieux-Aylmer study area, not the whole sector.
As of 2026-10-30 · gatineau.ca gatineau.ca
How do you get downtown from Aylmer by transit?
Take an STO service towards downtown Hull or Ottawa; the agency describes several Aylmer rush-hour routes travelling through Hull to Ottawa. Routes 55 and 59 appear in STO’s current information with Ottawa/Centre Rideau destinations. Use the current trip planner for the exact address and travel time, since the required route or transfer depends on the departure.
As of 2026-10-30 · sto.ca