Harrington Lake
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The Harrington Lake estate is both the name of the official country retreat of the Prime Minister of Canada and of the land which surrounds it. It is located in Quebec a few kilometers North of Ottawa, the capital of Canada, in an area known as Gatineau Park, amidst the Gatineau Hills.
The lake itself and the area around it are also referred to as Lac Mousseau. The name "Harrington" is thought to be a misspelling of "Hetherington", the name of a family which settled in this area. The French name "Mousseau" comes from another early settler to the area, Louis Mousseau.
The lake and the property had been acquired by the federal government in the 1950s in order to build up preserves of natural areas around the Capital. They became an official residence in 1959 when supporters of prime minister John Diefenbaker suggested that he needed a quiet place to go fishing, not too far from Ottawa.
The estate is not open to the public, but the Mackenzie King Estate, the retreat of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King at Kingsmere, offers a bucolic tourist attraction filled with echos of Canada's past a few kilometers south in Gatineau Park. Meech Lake, where the Meech Lake Accord was negotiated in 1987, is also nearby.
Other Canadian official residences
- Rideau Hall (1 Sussex Drive, Ottawa) - Residence of the Governor General
- La Citadelle (Quebec City) -- Residence of the Governor General in Quebec City
- 24 Sussex Drive (Ottawa) - Residence of the Prime Minister
- Stornoway (residence) - Residence of the Leader of the Opposition
- The Farm (Gatineau Park) - Residence of the Speaker of the House of Commons
- 7 Rideau Gate (Ottawa) - Official guest house of the Canadian government