Jackson did not drive. With bus service between Manotick and Ottawa reduced to twice daily, transportation to and from the city became difficult.

It could take all day to purchase art supplies. His niece had a busy family life and could rarely drive Jackson around, so in 1962, he made the decision to move to downtown Ottawa.¹⁵

Jackson was suddenly thrust into city life not possible in Manotick. There were upwards of seventy people at his moving-in party and always someone willing and available to drive him somewhere to sketch. There was always a dinner party, an event at St. John the Evangelist Anglican church on the corner of Somerset and Elgin, or an art opening to attend. These events always presented opportunities for Jackson, who had been described as a “natural raconteur, ¹⁶ to talk about his life.

Despite this busy social schedule, Jackson still went on sketching trips in the surrounding area.

15. O. J. Firestone, The Other A.Y. Jackson, Toronto, The Canadian Publishers, 1979, p. 40.

16. Wayne Larsen, A. Y. Jackson: The Life of a Landscape Painter, Toronto, Dundurn Press, 2009, p. 204.