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

What Montreal's 1976 Olympics left behind, 50 years later

Were the Summer Games a triumph, a total failure, or somewhere in between?

History Lesson

When McGill med students went grave-robbing for science

The law demanded they learn anatomy but made dissection illegal, so for nearly a century, stolen corpses were tobogganed down Mount Royal to a folk hero janitor who paid cash, no questions asked.

History Lesson

What Happened to Montreal's Red Light District?

Jazz legends, burlesque queens, and organized crime made it one of the most alive corners in North America. Then Montreal decided it had a reputation to protect.

History Lesson

Montreal's decades-long Polynesian fantasy and volcano cocktail experiment

When Kon Tiki brought post-war escapism and Hollywood's idea of the South Pacific to Peel Street, it created an exotic escape unlike any other.

History Lesson

The Strange Architectural Afterlife of Joseph-Arthur Godin

You may not recognize the name, but the Montreal architect’s curved facades, vanished theatres, churches, and landmark apartment buildings remain woven into the city’s everyday landscape.

History Lesson

How Montreal got its Little Italy

A century-long story of how a neighbourhood grew from railroad workers to family legacies everywhere you look today.

History Lesson

What Montreal's 1976 Olympics left behind, 50 years later

Were the Summer Games a triumph, a total failure, or somewhere in between?

History Lesson

When McGill med students went grave-robbing for science

The law demanded they learn anatomy but made dissection illegal, so for nearly a century, stolen corpses were tobogganed down Mount Royal to a folk hero janitor who paid cash, no questions asked.

History Lesson

What Happened to Montreal's Red Light District?

Jazz legends, burlesque queens, and organized crime made it one of the most alive corners in North America. Then Montreal decided it had a reputation to protect.

History Lesson

Montreal's decades-long Polynesian fantasy and volcano cocktail experiment

When Kon Tiki brought post-war escapism and Hollywood's idea of the South Pacific to Peel Street, it created an exotic escape unlike any other.

History Lesson

The Strange Architectural Afterlife of Joseph-Arthur Godin

You may not recognize the name, but the Montreal architect’s curved facades, vanished theatres, churches, and landmark apartment buildings remain woven into the city’s everyday landscape.

History Lesson

How Montreal got its Little Italy

A century-long story of how a neighbourhood grew from railroad workers to family legacies everywhere you look today.