The idea of creating an organization to bring together representatives from all the Canadian capital cities came about after a preliminary meeting that took place in Ottawa in 1994, initiated by the National Capital Commission. The participants at this meeting, which brought together representatives from each of Canada's capitals, decided that such a forum was invaluable for their discussions about matters of common interest. Therefore, they decided to meet on an annual basis.

In 1996, the Canadian Capital Cities Organization was officially formed and with it a board of directors and several committees were created. Since then, the members of the CCCO have been very busy. For example, they

• launched the CCCO website;
• ran the millennial Celebrate Canada in the Capitals program; and
• collaborated with the writers of the magazine Plan Canada to publish a special issue about the capitals.

The CCCO supports many interesting projects that promote the capitals, such as Mosaïcultures Internationales Montréal.

The newsletter Capital Connection was launched in 1996 to maintain a strong link between the participants from the capitals and the CCCO. In it are updates on many CCCO activities as well as news about the capitals.

Over the years, the CCCO has earned the recognition of many representatives from all levels of government and the private sector. In 1999, Governor General Roméo LeBlanc accorded his viceregal patronage to the CCCO. In 2001, Governor General Adrienne Clarkson renewed that support.

In 2000, the CCCO earned a bronze Pinnacle Award from the International Festivals and Events Association for its family exchange program Celebrate Canada in the Capitals.