The 1960s was a period of massive urban transformation in Westmount, as in Montreal and the rest of North America. Victorian housing was demolished to widen Dorchester Blvd., to make way for the Ville Marie expressway and to construct Westmount…
The site of Westmount High School and the adjacent Westmount Athletic Grounds (WAG) has a fascinating history. When Westmount was still the Village of Côte St. Antoine, the land between Hallowell Street and Hillside Avenue stretching from today’s St. Catherine…
A century ago, most Westmounters travelled by horse, streetcar or train. Tradesmen delivered their milk, bread, and other goods by horse and cart. Many residences on large lots had coach houses for horses, carriages, and sleighs. Horses were also housed…
The three blocks of Sherbrooke Street’s Victoria Village are reminiscent of the high street in an English town, supplying the daily services needed by local residents...
With hockey season here again, it’s interesting to recall where the game was played locally before the old Montreal Forum was built. Until 1918, professional hockey was played on the site of today’s condominium complex at 1 Wood Avenue....
The early churches in Westmount were missions for congregations from down- town Montreal. As parishioners moved westward, some churches opened up small venues to accommodate them in the sparsely settled municipality. Across de Maisonneuve Blvd....
The arched doorways of Victoria Hall welcome us to a myriad of events and activities—the Friends of the Library book sales, the Artisans’ Festival, dramatic presentations, concerts, large gatherings, classes, and much more. In 1898, as Westmount Public Library was…
The official name of the park located between Westmount Avenue and Côte St. Antoine Road is King George Park, but most Westmounters call it Murray Park. The land was part of a large country estate acquired by William Murray, founder…
Two heritage houses are set back on Côte St. Antoine Road across from bottom of Forden Avenue. Numbers 168 and 178 (the Goode House) are the only remaining homes of four identical stone cottages built in 1840 by Moses Judah…
The opening of Westmount Public Library in 1899 highlighted the great importance residents attached to reading and higher education. Architect Robert Findlay was responsible for the library’s first three phases—the initial building, the Children’s Library of 1911, and the 1924…