The property was a prized piece of land overlooking the Rideau Falls that was not far from the residence of the Governor General and, at the time, connected to the city centre by a tram.

[1] Construction on the new mission building began on the property in 1936 with the first stone being laid by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King on Bastille Day.

[1] At the same time, France acquired, for one symbolic dollar, a narrow strip of land along the Ottawa River, belonging to the Ontario provincial government.

[1] On 4 January 1939, the mission was opened in the presence of seven hundred people, including the Governor General of Canada Lord Tweedsmuir and Prime Minister Mackenzie King.

The main room features furniture and decorations also in an Art Deco style, including Marcel Gromaire tapestries representing the four seasons: the Canadian winter, the Parisian spring, summer in Saint-Malo and fall in Quebec.