Meeting in Montréal

So we were off on an adventure to see the autumn leaves. Our journey

Fall foliage 

took us from Montréal up through the Saint Lawrence River, out into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, around Nova Scotia, and down the east coast of the U.S., into New York. In some ways it was what we expected – being coddled by Viking, seeing things we hadn’t seen before, and meeting interesting people. What was a bit disappointing was the quality of the shore excursions; we’re not tickled about spending lots of hours on a tour bus. The next few blogs will chronicle our exploration of cities in Canada, and revisiting Boston, and New York City.



Montréal is the second largest French speaking city in the world – that seems odd to me, but how can a local guide be wrong? It is also the

Notre-Dame Basilica

largest city in Quebec and the second largest city in Canada. It was once named the City of Mary, but was renamed after Mount Royal, a hill with three peaks in the middle of the island and thus in the center of the city. This area has been occupied for about 8000 years beginning with the St. Lawrence Iroquoians who used the site as hunting grounds, then adapted to a more settled lifestyle, cultivating maize to supplement their hunting and fishing. By the 14th century, these people had built fortified villages similar to those described by one of the first Europeans to enter the area, Jacques Cartier. Cartier arrived in Montréal in 1535 when he was searching for a passage to Asia. He wrote about the natives living in this area and paved the way for other European explorers to follow. Some seventy years later, Samuel de Champlain tried and failed to create a fur trading post at Montréal, but the Mohawks took exception to this use of their hunting grounds. Where an explorer failed, the Catholic Church succeeded. The mission Ville Marie (City of Mary) was built in 1642 and along with creating a foothold for the French colonial empire, it became a center for the fur trade until 1760 when the British troops defeated the French during the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. British immigration and a booming fur trading business, supported by the North West Company, caused to city to grow very quickly.

Officially Montréal became a city in 1832; the opening of the Lachine Canal and being named the capital of the United Province of Canada

Bridge over the St. Lawrence

from 1844 to 1849 catalyzed the growth of the city. By 1860 Montréal was the largest city in British North America as well as the economic and cultural center of Canada. However, this area of North America was not immune to the Great Depression; unemployment increased but began to decrease when skyscrapers were constructed in the mid-1930s. The city received another blow when World War II generated the need for men to go into the military; this wasn’t a popular war and the Conscription Crisis of 1944 brought strife to the country. But the economy came back by the 1950s with the installation of a new metro system, the expansion of the Montréal harbor, and the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway. The city has continued to expand with the support of Expo 67, the 1976 Summer Olympics, and the Montréal Expos major league baseball team (1969 to 2004).

Sculpture by Sophia Ryder

I knew very little about Montréal when we arrived, and I still don’t know as much as I’d like. In particular, I’d like to visit the Galerie de Bellefeuille that sells Sophie Ryder sculptures. I’ve loved her creations since I saw them in Vancouver, Canada many years ago. I was completely smitten with the rabbit sculptures and how she juxtaposes them with minotaurs, horses, and dogs; I still am. I also would like to actually go inside some of the universities, museums, and churches we flew by in the bus. There is much to be learned in this city so a return visit is now a requirement.

McGill Student Statue

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