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Canadian Urbanism Uncovered

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5 comments

  1. Nice, that central part of Montreal looked like a village just less than 60 years ago.

  2. Looks more to me like it was just being built. Most of the streets of houses on the west side of St-Laurent there are postwar and were very new in the first picture. There were established buildings not far away, just east of St-Laurent (look at the streets in Villeray between Crémazie and Jarry – mostly buildings a good generation older). And the beautiful St-Alphonse d’Youville religious complex – the church and the grounds, which belonged to a monastic order.

    The Catholic church in the picture, St-Thomas Apôtre, now serves a Filipino community, which is an interesting development.

  3. Yeah but a village with street car tracks. I THINK they continued north right up to Gouin, but I could be wrong.

  4. More research is required, but, I understand the Street Car Tracks on St. Laurent from Youville Shops at Cremazie NORTH to Henri Bourassa/Kelly were removed in 1941?? over some ‘Political’ Issue regarding Tramway Service Bordeaux/St. Laurent Blvd./Ahuntsic Station at Millen.

    Tramways Retaliated by putting on an Autobus, which connected Tramways Ahuntsic Terminus with Tramways Cartierville Terminus along Gouin.

    At one Time Montreal Tramways Serviced Bordeaux, with a Wye adjacent to the CPR Bordeaux Station at Gouin.

    A Spur was Projected West from Kelly to the CPR Main Line Near Jacques Cartier Junction to Interchange FREIGHT Cars from CPR to Buisnesses in the Vicinity of MTC Ahuntsic Station just East of Kelly/LaJeunnesse at Millen.

    Tramways Electric Locomotives were used to Haul the Cars on Tramways’ Tracks.

    This Alleviated the need to Move Freight Cars North/South on St. Denis from CPR at De Fleurimont Car Barns.

    At one time, Prisoners were Transported from Downtown to Bordeaux Jail in Two Electric Prison Cars on the Tramways, a Spur from the Tramways Bordeaux Line to the Front of the Jail.

    I understand Heating Fuel for the Jail was moved by the Tramways to the Jail from the Connection on the CPR at Bordeaux.

    One Evening in the Thirties, just after Midnight, a Street Car Southbound on St. Laurent hit a Truck full of Revelers returning from the North that had gotten ‘Hung Up’ on the Tracks, Killing Several who were Riding on Chairs in the Rear of the Truck.

  5. I do know that the tram preceded the development of Villeray and was built as a spur to it, but that was decades earlier.

    I’m quoting a booklet my tenants’ association produced on the history of Villeray:

    “Le tramway électrique et son impact: train-train, boulot, dodo

    Le tramway électrique s’implanta en 1893, sous l’égide de la Montreal Park and Island Railway. Le nouveau service de transport public est de type interurbain et vise à faciliter l’accès aux villages de la banlieue. Il contribue généreusement à la formation de quartiers résidentiels ouvriers ou “quartiers dortoirs” et préside à l’expansion géographique de la ville cntre. Rapide et régulier, il draine la population des travailleurs et travailleuses de la vieille ville qui peuvent dorénavant élire domicile loin de leur lie de travail. Dans le secteur, le tronçon du tramway électrique emprunte l’axe nord-sud sur l’actuelle rue Lajeunesse. Le terminus sud de la ligne se trouve sur la rue Jean-Talon, entre Drolet et Saint-Denis et la première gare loge à la hauteur de la rue Dufour. Les anglophones surnomment “Back River Line” le circuit “Sault-au-Récollet”, d’après leur appellation de la rivière des Prairies, ves laquelle se dirigent les “p’tits chars”. L’hôtel Bougie, rebaptisé hôtel Vervais, set de station d’alimentation électrique au tramway”.

    “Villeray, une traversée du siècle”. Association des locataires de Villeray,

    I don’t see a date, but early 2000s. There may be similar volumes available for Spacingistas, for other neighbourhoods, as it was funded among others by le programme ‘Les quartiers de Montréal an 2000- Partager la fête’ du service de la culture de la Ville de Montréal.

    But Lajeunesse is just east of St-Denis and several streets east of the photo along St-Laurent. The development of that particular area (St-Thomas parish) looks a lot more like parts of adjacent Ahuntsic just north of Crémazie and the 40.

    A question, CdnLococo, why all the capital letters on nouns? It is almost as if you are writing in German.

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