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| History | |
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Further information: History of Montreal and Timeline of Montreal history
Archaeological evidence demonstrates that various nomadic First Nations native people occupied the island of Montreal for at least 2,000 years before the arrival of Europeans. By the year AD 1000, they had started to cultivate maize. Within a few hundred years, they had built fortified villages.[26] The St. Lawrence Iroquoians, a people distinct from the Iroquois nations of the Haudenosaunee then based in present-day New York, established the village of Hochelaga at the foot of Mount Royal centuries before the French arrived. Archeologists have found evidence of their habitation there and at other locations in the valley since at least the 14th century.[27] The French explorer Jacques Cartier visited Hochelaga on October 2, 1535, and estimated the population of the native people at Hochelaga to be "over a thousand people".[27]
Seventy years later, the French explorer Samuel de Champlain reported that the St. Lawrence Iroquoians and their settlements had disappeared altogether from the St. Lawrence valley, possibly due to outmigration, epidemic of European diseases, or intertribal wars.[27][28] In 1611 Champlain established a fur trading post on the Island of Montreal, on a site initially named La Place Royale. At the confluence of Petite Rivière and St. Lawrence River, it is where present-day Pointe-à -Callière stands.[29] In 1639, Jérôme Le Royer de La Dauversière obtained the Seigneurial title to the Island of Montreal in the name of the Société de Notre-Dame de Montréal to establish a Roman Catholic mission for evangelizing natives. Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve was the governor of the colony, which was established on 17 May 1642.[30]
Ville-Marie became a centre for the fur trade and a base for further French exploration in North America.[30] By the early 18th century, the Sulpician Order was established there. To encourage French settlement, they wanted the Mohawk to move away from the fur trading post at Ville-Marie. They persuaded them to make a new settlement at their former hunting grounds north of the Ottawa River. This became Kanesatake.[31] The Canadian territory remained a French colony until 1760, when it was surrendered to Great Britain after their victory in the Seven Years War.[32]
Montreal was incorporated as a city in 1832.[33] The opening of the Lachine Canal permitted ships to bypass the unnavigable Lachine Rapids,[34] while the construction of the Victoria Bridge established Montreal as a major railway hub. By 1860, it was the largest city in British North America and the undisputed economic and cultural centre of Canada.[35][36]
The Montreal Harbour in 1889.
View from Mount Royal (Photochrom print, 1902)
Montreal was the capital of the Province of Canada from 1844 to 1849, but lost its status when a Tory mob burnt down the Parliament building to protest the passage of the Rebellion Losses Bill.[37] For strategic reasons, the government established Ottawa as the capital, as it was located more in the interior of the nation.
Saint Jacques Street (formerly Saint James Street), in 1910
After World War I, the Prohibition movement in the United States led to Montreal becoming a destination for Americans looking for alcohol.[38] Unemployment remained high in the city, and was exacerbated by the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression.[39]
During World War II, Mayor Camillien Houde protested against conscription and urged Montrealers to disobey the federal government's registry of all men and women.[40] The government at Ottawa was furious over Houde's stand and held him at a prison camp until 1944.[41] That year the government decided to institute conscription to be able to expand the armed forces. (see Conscription Crisis of 1944).[40]
By 1951, Montreal's population had surpassed one million people.[42] The Saint Lawrence Seaway opened in 1959, allowing vessels to bypass Montreal. In time this development led to the end of the city's economic dominance as businesses moved to other areas.[43] During the 1960s there was continued growth, including the World's Fair known as Expo 67, and the construction of Canada's tallest skyscrapers, new expressways and the Montreal Metro system.
The 1970s ushered in a period of wide-ranging social and political changes, stemming in large part from the concerns of the French-speaking majority about the conservation of their culture and language, given the traditional predominance of the English-Canadian minority in the business arena.[44] The October Crisis and the 1976 election of the Parti Québécois, supporting sovereign status for Quebec, resulted in the departure of many businesses and people from the city.[45] In 1976, Montreal was the host of the Olympics.[46] During the 1980s and early 1990s, Montreal experienced a slower rate of economic growth than many other major Canadian cities. By the late 1990s, however, Montreal's economic climate had improved, as new firms and institutions began to fill the traditional business and financial niches.[citation needed]
Montreal was merged with the 27 surrounding municipalities on the Island of Montreal on January 1, 2002. The merger created a unified city of Montreal which covered the entire island. There was great resistance from the suburbs to be merged, with the perception that the merger was being forced on the mostly English suburbs by the Parti Québécois. As expected, this move proved unpopular and several mergers were later undone. Several former municipalities, totalling 13% of the population of the island, voted to leave the newly unified city in separate referendums in June 2004. The demerger took place on January 1, 2006, leaving 15 municipalities on the island, including Montreal. De-merged municipalities remain, however, affiliated with the city through an agglomeration council that collects taxes from them to pay for numerous shared services.[47]
The 21st century has brought with it a revival of the city's economic and cultural landscape. The construction of new residential skyscrapers, two super-hospitals (both of which are the largest in Canada), the creation of the Quartier des Spectacles, re-construction of the Turcot Interchange, reconfiguration of the Decarie and Dorval interchanges, gentrification of Griffintown, metro line extensions and the purchase of new metro-cars, the complete revitalization and expansion of Montreal-Trudeau International Airport, the completion of Quebec Autoroute 30, the construction of a new toll-bridge to Laval are helping bring Montreal into the 21st century.
[edit] Tags:Canada,Quebec,Metro,Est,H,French,Province,City In,North America,Ville-marie,Mount Royal,Island,Culture,Archaeological,Nomadic,Maize,Fortified,St. Lawrence Iroquoians,Iroquois,Haudenosaunee,New York,Hochelaga,Jacques Cartier,Samuel De Champlain,Fur,Trading Post,Pointe-à -callière,Jérôme Le Royer De La Dauversière,Société De Notre-dame De Montréal,Roman Catholic,Mission,Evangelizing,Paul Chomedey De Maisonneuve,Fur Trade,French Exploration In North America,Sulpician Order,Kanesatake,Seven Years War,Lachine Canal,Lachine Rapids,British North America, | |
| Geography | |
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Main article: Geography of Montreal
Montreal is located in the southwest of the province of Quebec. The city proper covers most of the Island of Montreal at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. The port of Montreal lies at one end of the Saint Lawrence Seaway, which is the river gateway that stretches from the Great Lakes into the Atlantic Ocean.[48] Montreal is defined by its location in between the St. Lawrence river on its south, and by the Rivière des Prairies on its north. The city is named after the most prominent geographical feature on the island, a three-head hill called Mount Royal, topped at 232 m above sea level.[49]
Montreal is at the centre of the Montreal Metropolitan Community, and is bordered by the city of Laval to the north, Longueuil, Saint-Lambert, Brossard, and other municipalities to the south, Repentigny to the east and the West Island municipalities to the west. The anglophone enclaves of Westmount, Montreal West, Hampstead, Côte Saint-Luc, the Town of Mount Royal and the francophone enclave Montreal East are all entirely surrounded by the city of Montreal.[50]
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| Climate | |
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Montreal lies at the confluence of several climatic regions and enjoys four distinct seasons. Usually, the climate is classified as humid continental or hemiboreal (Köppen climate classification Dfb).[51]
Bonsecours Market in autumn.
Montreal's summers are warm, at times hot and humid, with average high temperatures of 26 °C (79 °F) and low of 16 °C (61 °F); temperatures frequently exceed 30 °C (86 °F). Temperatures are much more variable before early July and after mid-August, when cold fronts can bring crisp, windy weather: in midsummer, it is practically always warm and humid.
September is one of the nicest months in the city, with highs of 20 °C (68 °F) and lows 9 °C (48 °F); and frost usually does not arrive before the first week of October, when the flamboyant colours of fall settle.
October is very variable: Indian summers can bring stretches of many days around 22 °C (72 °F) or even more, while some isolated snowflakes and some nights around −3 °C (27 °F) or colder are common towards the end of the month.
November's temperatures are similar to those of Northern Europe in midwinter: maximum temperatures average 5 °C (41 °F), while minimum temperatures average −2 °C (28 °F). Some years see little snow in November; usually a few smaller storms hit the city, and there should be several days with highs below 0 °C (32 °F). Night temperatures usually reach −10 °C (14 °F) a few times.
Winter in Montreal usually brings very cold, snowy, windy, and, at times, icy weather, with an average high temperature of −6 °C (21 °F) and low of −15 °C (5 °F) in January. However, some winter days rise above freezing, even allowing for rain at times. During a normal year, there should be 18 nights below −20 °C (−4 °F), and about one day where the daily maximum is below −20 °C (−4 °F). Temperatures under −30 °C (−22 °F) only happen every 5 years or so, but wind chills can reach −40 °C (−40 °F)
Usually, snow cover lasts from the first or second week of December until the last week of March. [52]
Spring and fall are pleasantly mild but are prone to drastic temperature changes. [53] April tends to be mild and sunny whereas May can be rather warm and also quite wet. Late season heat waves as well as "Indian summers" are a common occurrence as well as snow storms in November, March and April.
It is not uncommon for a day or two of 20 °C (68 °F) in April followed by a snowstorm; nevertheless, by mid-May there should be no more frost, and temperatures should regularly reach 20 °C (68 °F) for the next four months or so.
The lowest temperature ever recorded was −37.8 °C (−36 °F) on January 15, 1957, and the highest temperature was 37.6 °C (100 °F) on August 1, 1975.[54]
Annual precipitation is around 98 cm (39 in), including an average 218 cm (86 in) of snowfall, which occurs from November through March. Thunderstorms are common beginning in the late spring through summer to the early fall period; additionally, tropical storm remnants can cause heavy rains. The city gets on average 2,026.8 hours of sunshine annually, with summer being the sunniest season, though slightly wetter than the others.[55]
Climate data for Montréal (Montréal-Trudeau Airport)
Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year
Record high °C (°F)
13.9
(57.0)
15.0
(59.0)
25.6
(78.1)
30.0
(86.0)
33.9
(93.0)
35.0
(95.0)
35.6
(96.1)
37.6
(99.7)
33.5
(92.3)
28.3
(82.9)
21.7
(71.1)
18.0
(64.4)
37.6
(99.7)
Average high °C (°F)
−5.7
(21.7)
−3.9
(25.0)
2.2
(36.0)
10.7
(51.3)
19.0
(66.2)
23.6
(74.5)
26.2
(79.2)
24.8
(76.6)
19.7
(67.5)
12.7
(54.9)
5.3
(41.5)
−2.2
(28.0)
11.1
(52.0)
Average low °C (°F)
−14.7
(5.5)
−12.9
(8.8)
−6.7
(19.9)
0.6
(33.1)
7.7
(45.9)
12.7
(54.9)
15.6
(60.1)
14.3
(57.7)
9.4
(48.9)
3.4
(38.1)
−2.1
(28.2)
−10.4
(13.3)
1.4
(34.5)
Record low °C (°F)
−37.8
(−36.0)
−33.9
(−29.0)
−29.4
(−20.9)
−15
(5)
−4.4
(24.1)
0.0
(32.0)
6.1
(43.0)
3.3
(37.9)
−2.2
(28.0)
−7.2
(19.0)
−19.4
(−2.9)
−32.4
(−26.3)
−37.8
(−36.0)
Precipitation mm (inches)
78.3
(3.083)
61.5
(2.421)
73.6
(2.898)
78.0
(3.071)
76.3
(3.004)
83.1
(3.272)
91.3
(3.594)
92.7
(3.65)
92.6
(3.646)
77.8
(3.063)
92.6
(3.646)
81.3
(3.201)
978.9
(38.539)
Rainfall mm (inches)
27.2
(1.071)
19.8
(0.78)
35.8
(1.409)
63.9
(2.516)
76.1
(2.996)
83.1
(3.272)
91.3
(3.594)
92.7
(3.65)
92.6
(3.646)
75.4
(2.969)
71.2
(2.803)
35.1
(1.382)
763.8
(30.071)
Snowfall cm (inches)
52.5
(20.67)
43.3
(17.05)
36
(14.2)
13.1
(5.16)
0.2
(0.08)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
2.2
(0.87)
21.9
(8.62)
48.3
(19.02)
217.5
(85.63)
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm)
16.9
13.2
13.7
12.8
13.0
13.1
12.1
12.3
12.0
13.2
15.0
16.0
163.3
Avg. rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm)
4.3
4.2
7.2
11.3
12.9
13.1
12.1
12.3
12.0
12.7
11.2
6.1
119.4
Avg. snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm)
15.7
11.6
9.3
3.5
0.1
0
0
0
0
1.0
6.0
13.1
60.3
Sunshine hours
101.6
123.9
158.9
173.3
229.7
245.5
274.3
240.5
174.6
140.0
86.1
80.2
2,028.6
Source: Environment Canada [54]
Climate data for Montréal (McGill)
Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year
Record high °C (°F)
12.8
(55.0)
15.0
(59.0)
25.0
(77.0)
30.0
(86.0)
32.8
(91.0)
34.8
(94.6)
36.1
(97.0)
35.6
(96.1)
32.8
(91.0)
28.9
(84.0)
22.2
(72.0)
15.0
(59.0)
36.1
(97.0)
Average high °C (°F)
−5.4
(22.3)
−3.7
(25.3)
2.4
(36.3)
11.0
(51.8)
19.0
(66.2)
23.7
(74.7)
26.6
(79.9)
24.8
(76.6)
19.4
(66.9)
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