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The Main Media Inc. 2026

✦ Built By Field Office
    The Main

    Montreal's Cultural Directory

    Help us improve! Share your thoughts on how we can make your experience better.

    Leave feedback

    For partnerships and collaborations:

    partnerships@themain.com

    Explore

    • About us
    • Shop
    • Advertise
    • Pitch us

    Connect

    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • Tiktok
    • Linkedin

    Resources

    • RSS Feed
    • Subscribe

    Legal

    • Terms of service
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    • Privacy Policy

    The Main Media Inc. 2026

    ✦ Built By Field Office

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        La bonne bouffe.

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      • See all original stories
      Explore Montreal
      Popular Guides
      • The Best Restaurants in Montreal
      • Best new Restaurants
      • Best Cafés
      • Unique Boutiques
      • Romantic Restaurants
      • Best Bookstores
      • See all Guides
      Neighbourhood
      • Downtown
      • Le Plateau-Mont-Royal
      • Mile End
      • Mile-Ex
      • Saint-Henri
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      • Restaurant
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      • Boutique / Store
      • Bar
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      1. Articles
      2. History Lesson

      The Soap Maker Who Bent the Jacques-Cartier Bridge

      On Tête de Cheval soap, stubborn French-Canadian industrialists, and the fire that just gutted a quiet landmark.

      By The MainJanuary 23, 2026 - Read time: 7 min
      The soap maker who bent the Jacques-Cartier Bridge
      The Familex factory, formerly the Barsalou soap factory, circa 1950. | Photograph: Familex Collection / Écomusée du fier monde

      The Jacques-Cartier Bridge ain't straight. It has this distinctive curve on the city side, the one that swings the roadway northward just before you hit De Lorimier Avenue. That bend has been baked into the muscle memory of commuters crossing from the South Shore for nearly a century.

      The reason for this lies below the bend, a hulking brick factory at 1600 De Lorimier: the Familex building. Largely felt-yet-forgotten as a lot of infrastructure is below the bridge's foundations, this structure landed in headlines on the night of January 20, 2026 after a fire tore through the vacant structure. This forced the bridge's closure and mobilized over 120 firefighters. By morning, one of Montreal's most quietly significant industrial landmarks was gutted.

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      1. Articles
      2. History Lesson

      The Soap Maker Who Bent the Jacques-Cartier Bridge

      On Tête de Cheval soap, stubborn French-Canadian industrialists, and the fire that just gutted a quiet landmark.

      By The MainJanuary 23, 2026 - Read time: 7 min
      The soap maker who bent the Jacques-Cartier Bridge
      The Familex factory, formerly the Barsalou soap factory, circa 1950. | Photograph: Familex Collection / Écomusée du fier monde

      The Jacques-Cartier Bridge ain't straight. It has this distinctive curve on the city side, the one that swings the roadway northward just before you hit De Lorimier Avenue. That bend has been baked into the muscle memory of commuters crossing from the South Shore for nearly a century.

      The reason for this lies below the bend, a hulking brick factory at 1600 De Lorimier: the Familex building. Largely felt-yet-forgotten as a lot of infrastructure is below the bridge's foundations, this structure landed in headlines on the night of January 20, 2026 after a fire tore through the vacant structure. This forced the bridge's closure and mobilized over 120 firefighters. By morning, one of Montreal's most quietly significant industrial landmarks was gutted.

      Free account required

      For readers who care about Montreal

      Create a free account to read this story and access 3 articles per month, plus our weekly Bulletin.

      Independent. Local. Reader-supported. Join 10,000+ Montrealers today.

      or

      Already a member? Sign in

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