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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

    Content

    • Articles
    • Food & Drink
    • Arts & Culture
    • History Lesson
    • Bulletin
    • Events

    Guides

    • All Guides
    • Best Restaurants
    • Best Cafés
    • Best Bars
    • Best Brunch
    • Best Bakeries

    Explore Montreal

    • Browse Directory
    • Restaurants
    • Bars
    • Cafés
    • Bookstores
    • Leaderboard
    • Editor's Picks
    • New Places

    About

    • About us
    • Subscribe
    • Shop
    • Advertise
    • Pitch us
    • RSS Feed

    Legal

    • Terms of service
    • Membership Terms
    • Privacy Policy
    Follow us
    InstagramTwitterTiktokLinkedin

    The Main Media Inc. 2026

    ✦ Built By Field Office
      --°C|Tuesday, May 5, 2026|
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      --°C|Tuesday, May 5, 2026|
      Subscribe today to get 3 free articles per month.Get 50% off your first 5 rides with Lyft
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      • Arts & Culture
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      • Design
      • Food & Drink
      • History Lessons
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      Explore
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      • The Best Restaurants in Montreal
      • Best new Restaurants
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      • Unique Boutiques
      • Romantic Restaurants
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      • See all Guides
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      • Bar
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      Near the Metro
      • Peel
      • Mont-Royal
      • Place-Saint-Henri
      • Place-d'Armes
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      • View all
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      More History Lesson

      The Historic Mount Royal Hotel Is Now Home to Montreal's Best Office Space
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      The Historic Mount Royal Hotel Is Now Home to Montreal's Best Office Space

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      The Little Store That Runs Montreal: A Complete History of the Dep

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      The Day a Downtown Campus Burned and What Came After
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      The Day a Downtown Campus Burned and What Came After

      What began as a complaint about grading bias escalated into a two-week occupation, a fire, and one of the most consequential reckonings with institutional racism in Canadian higher education.

      The Flying Cathedral That Made a City Lose Its Mind
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      J.P. Karwacki

      The Flying Cathedral That Made a City Lose Its Mind

      In the summer of 1930, a British airship the length of two and a half Boeing 747s locked onto a mooring mast on the South Shore. Nearly a million people came to watch.

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      The Fascinating History of Montreal's Spiral Staircases

      This history lesson explores how Montreal's exterior spiral staircases came to be and how they came to be one of Montreal’s most iconic symbols.

      ByDaniel Bromberg

      July 6, 2023 · 3 min read

      The Fascinating History of Montreal's Spiral Staircases

      In a city that can accumulate up to six feet of snow in winter—not to mention the threat of major ice storms every generation or so—visitors to Montreal often wonder why our plexes (residential buildings with individual units stacked on top of another) have exterior spiral staircases, particularly in neighbourhoods like the Plateau, Rosemont, Villeray, Hochelaga, and others. That left us wondering: Do locals know the reason?

      It does seem kind of preposterous to think that in a city where a significant portion of its population is made up of renters, this means the annual ritual of Moving Day on July 1st can get pretty complicated navigating up and down those stairs—especially when you factor in things like fridges, stoves, and washing machines.  So where did they come from?

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      History Lesson

      The Fascinating History of Montreal's Spiral Staircases

      This history lesson explores how Montreal's exterior spiral staircases came to be and how they came to be one of Montreal’s most iconic symbols.

      ByDaniel Bromberg

      July 6, 2023 · 3 min read

      The Fascinating History of Montreal's Spiral Staircases

      In a city that can accumulate up to six feet of snow in winter—not to mention the threat of major ice storms every generation or so—visitors to Montreal often wonder why our plexes (residential buildings with individual units stacked on top of another) have exterior spiral staircases, particularly in neighbourhoods like the Plateau, Rosemont, Villeray, Hochelaga, and others. That left us wondering: Do locals know the reason?

      It does seem kind of preposterous to think that in a city where a significant portion of its population is made up of renters, this means the annual ritual of Moving Day on July 1st can get pretty complicated navigating up and down those stairs—especially when you factor in things like fridges, stoves, and washing machines.  So where did they come from?

      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.

      or

      Already a member? Sign in

      The Main

      Comments

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      Share your thoughts and join the conversation. Please be respectful and constructive.

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      The Bulletin: Moving Day madness, new restaurant openings & more [Issue #32]

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      The Bulletin: Moving Day Madness, New Restaurant Openings & More [Issue #32]

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      Shopping for Wine? Head Down to Your Local Caviste.

      Shopping for wine? Head down to your local caviste.
      The Bulletin: Moving Day madness, new restaurant openings & more [Issue #32]

      Previous

      The Bulletin: Moving Day Madness, New Restaurant Openings & More [Issue #32]

      Next

      Shopping for Wine? Head Down to Your Local Caviste.

      Shopping for wine? Head down to your local caviste.