Metcalfe is a friendly village south of the city of Ottawa, and is predominantly a residential community with a population of roughly 1723. The local agricultural fair, the Metcalfe Fair, has been held each fall since 1856, and is a popular destination for folks of all ages and backgrounds.

Colonel Archibald Macdonell, believed by some to be the first settler in the township, settled just south of the current location of Metcalfe in March 1827. In 1877 the village was officially named Metcalfe in honour of Charles Metcalfe, Governor General of Canada from 1843 to 1846.

In its early days, Metcalfe was a stop on the stagecoach route from Ottawa (known at the time as Bytown) to Cornwall. The village of Metcalfe was bypassed in the construction of railway lines, limiting its further growth at the time.

The village is home to various sports facilities, most notably the Metcalfe Community Centre which bears the name of former Montreal Canadiens all-star defenceman Larry Robinson. The Centre's arena houses the local Junior B hockey team: the Metcalfe Jets. Notable Jets alumni include Larry Robinson and two of his brothers, as well as Boston Bruins' Marc Savard.

The family-oriented community also boasts seven baseball fields, a tennis court, curling club,  various soccer fields, and numerous playgrounds. Metcalfe has two golf courses, Poplar Grove, a public links course and Metcalfe Golf & Country Club, a private club offering a peaceful and scenic 27-hole golf experience nestled among mature trees and intertwining creeks and streams.

Metcalfe has one public elementary school, one catholic school and a Christian school.  Osgoode Township High School is the only high school located in the entire township of Osgoode.

Rural tradition meets modern family entertainment at the annual Metcalfe Fair; 2011 marks the 155th anniversary of this fall tradition. The Metcalfe Fair is more than just an annual rural fair, it has become a thriving major agricultural event in Eastern Ontario and the last fair of the season. It first began in the communities south and east of the newly founded town of Ottawa eleven years before Canadian Confederation.  That was before the American Civil War, and before Abraham Lincoln became President of the United States.  

The County of Russell Agricultural Society was formed in 1856 for the purpose of presenting an Agricultural Fair in September. Originally intended to rotate annually in the Townships of Gloucester, Osgoode, Russell, and Cumberland, the fair found a permanent home in the Village of Metcalfe in 1861.  In 1912, the year the Titanic sank, the County of Russell Agricultural Society changed its name to the Metcalfe Agricultural Society, there’s something for everyone at the last Ottawa Valley Fair of the season!

Metcalfe offers an agreeable rural lifestyle with spacious country-size lots and it’s only a 30 minute drive from downtown Ottawa and handy to the airport. It offers all the advantages of country living, with big city services a short drive away.