History Lesson

The Day the Décarie Became a River

On July 14, 1987, two hours of rain drowned the Décarie, shut down the métro, and became the storm so many Montreal floods are still measured against.

History Lesson

Why “North” Doesn’t Mean North in Montreal

The St. Lawrence River, French colonial planning, and centuries of habit created a directional system where “north” has almost nothing to do with a compass.

History Lesson

The Century Club: Montreal's Oldest Businesses Still Standing Today

An eclectic collection of Montreal businesses approaching, reaching, and surpassing the 100-year mark.

History Lesson

Before Jazz Had Festival Stages, It Had Coffeehouses

Montreal’s jazz culture grew in the city’s espresso bars and coffeehouses. This summer, Le Café Lavazza pays tribute to that legacy at the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal.

History Lesson

The Entire History of a City Told in Six Kilometres

From a country road out of a fortified colony to a corridor of immigrants, artists, labour organizers, gangsters, and entrepreneurs, Saint-Laurent Boulevard tells the story of Montreal better than any other street.

History Lesson

Everyone's Street, Nobody's Neighbourhood: The Story of Plaza St-Hubert

The 200-year story of a street that's always belonged to everyone and no one.

History Lesson

The Day the Décarie Became a River

On July 14, 1987, two hours of rain drowned the Décarie, shut down the métro, and became the storm so many Montreal floods are still measured against.

History Lesson

Why “North” Doesn’t Mean North in Montreal

The St. Lawrence River, French colonial planning, and centuries of habit created a directional system where “north” has almost nothing to do with a compass.

History Lesson

The Century Club: Montreal's Oldest Businesses Still Standing Today

An eclectic collection of Montreal businesses approaching, reaching, and surpassing the 100-year mark.

History Lesson

Before Jazz Had Festival Stages, It Had Coffeehouses

Montreal’s jazz culture grew in the city’s espresso bars and coffeehouses. This summer, Le Café Lavazza pays tribute to that legacy at the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal.

History Lesson

The Entire History of a City Told in Six Kilometres

From a country road out of a fortified colony to a corridor of immigrants, artists, labour organizers, gangsters, and entrepreneurs, Saint-Laurent Boulevard tells the story of Montreal better than any other street.

History Lesson

Everyone's Street, Nobody's Neighbourhood: The Story of Plaza St-Hubert

The 200-year story of a street that's always belonged to everyone and no one.

History Lesson

Montreal Pool Room: Serving a city's hot dogs for over a century

How a Bulgarian immigrant's billiard hall became one of Montreal's most enduring institutions, from pimp steaks to late night eats infamy.

History Lesson

When Montreal had a steam-powered shortcut to the top of Mount Royal

From 1884 to 1918, a steam-powered cable railway hauled Montrealers to the summit in minutes, despite a park designer's vision of leisurely mountain strolls.

History Lesson

The Gothic mansion where the CIA broke minds with LSD and electroshock

The Ravenscrag manor housed the Allan Memorial Institute, where patients seeking help became victims of Cold War experiments.

History Lesson

How a Railway Porter Built Montreal's Most Storied Jazz Club

The story of Rufus Rockhead, the Jamaican-born railway porter who built Montreal's most legendary jazz club—and spent decades defending it.

History Lesson

Ruby Foo's was an absolute legend of a Chinese restaurant

From its 1945 opening to a 1984 closure and its present-day hotel, the Décarie Boulevard institution was where Montreal went to see and be seen.

History Lesson

The hidden politics of Montreal's 19th-century ice palaces

Built from 500-pound blocks of ice pulled from the St. Lawrence, the Neo-Gothic castles dazzled international crowds while reinforcing who really held power.

History Lesson

Montreal Pool Room: Serving a city's hot dogs for over a century

How a Bulgarian immigrant's billiard hall became one of Montreal's most enduring institutions, from pimp steaks to late night eats infamy.

History Lesson

When Montreal had a steam-powered shortcut to the top of Mount Royal

From 1884 to 1918, a steam-powered cable railway hauled Montrealers to the summit in minutes, despite a park designer's vision of leisurely mountain strolls.

History Lesson

The Gothic mansion where the CIA broke minds with LSD and electroshock

The Ravenscrag manor housed the Allan Memorial Institute, where patients seeking help became victims of Cold War experiments.

History Lesson

How a Railway Porter Built Montreal's Most Storied Jazz Club

The story of Rufus Rockhead, the Jamaican-born railway porter who built Montreal's most legendary jazz club—and spent decades defending it.

History Lesson

Ruby Foo's was an absolute legend of a Chinese restaurant

From its 1945 opening to a 1984 closure and its present-day hotel, the Décarie Boulevard institution was where Montreal went to see and be seen.

History Lesson

The hidden politics of Montreal's 19th-century ice palaces

Built from 500-pound blocks of ice pulled from the St. Lawrence, the Neo-Gothic castles dazzled international crowds while reinforcing who really held power.