Griffintown – Timeline

The history of the neighbourhood now known as Griffintown goes back more than 360 years, almost as far back as the founding of Montreal.

1650 to 1799

1654 – Paul Chomedy de Maisonneuve granted Jeanne Mance, founder of Hôtel-Dieu, 112 arpents of land, known then as Nazareth Fief. It was also called Le Grange des Pauvres, and its proceeds were to be used to benefit the poor of Hôtel-Dieu hospital. The original borders extended from rue Soeurs Grises in the east, to rue de la Montagne on the west; and from rue William in the north, and south to the St. Lawrence River. Until the British arrived in 1760, it was primarily used as farmland.

1698 – Pierre Leber built a chapel dedicated to St. Ann near the south end of Murray Street. The area then became known also as Le Quartier Ste-Anne. The area became such a popular place for drunkenness and revelry that the clergy were forced to restrict the sale of liquor around the chapel.

1760 – The British under General Amherst marched from Lachine through Nazareth Fief, through the Recollet Gate, and into the walled city of Montreal.

1791 – Thomas McCord leased Nazareth Fief from the nuns of Hôtel-Dieu for 99 years.

1796 – While McCord was attending to business interests in England and Ireland, his lease was illegally sold, by his associate Patrick Langan, to Mrs. Mary Griffin, the wife of an area soap factory owner.

1800 to 1899

1804 – Griffintown was a coveted area, due to its strategic location beside the long-planned Lachine Canal. Mary Griffin commissioned the drawing of a plan that divided the area into streets and building lots and then constructed low cost housing. Proceeds from the rents were to be divided between her and the nuns.

1805 – Thomas McCord returned to Montreal and took legal action to try to get his land back from Mary Griffin. The courts eventually ruled in McCord’s favour (1814) and assigned the land back to him, but the Griffintown label stuck.

1820 – By 1820, Montreal’s fortifications were removed and Griffintown became connected to the rest of the city.

1821 – Construction of the Lachine Canal was begun to bypass the Lachine Rapids in the St. Lawrence River. It ushered in a new era of heavy industrialization.

1824 – First St. Patrick’s Parade on March 17th and the Recollet Convent opened as a school for Irish children.

1825 – Recollet Church opened for services for Irish Catholics.

1840s – The potato famine struck Ireland causing tens of thousands of Irish to immigrate to Montreal, the vast majority of whom settled in Griffintown.

1840-1848 and 1873 to 1884 – The Lachine Canal was enlarged twice, the large part done by Irish immigrants. Many factories were built along its shores.

1843 – Canal workers staged one of the first labour strikes in Canada. St. Ann’s Boys’ School was built; corner of St. Paul & St. Henry Streets.

1847-1848 – Tragic deaths of up to 6,000 Irish immigrants from typhus in the fever sheds at Windmill Point across the canal from Griffintown (Goose Village).

1849 – On April 25th, rioters burned down the Parliament of Canada (Upper and Lower Canada) which was located in the St. Ann’s Market building on the eastern boundary of Griffintown.

1852 – Land rents were higher in Griffintown than elsewhere in Montreal. A fire that started in a carpentry shop destroyed half of the structures in Griffintown.

1853 – Ten (10) people died of pistol wounds as the result of a riot at Haymarket Square at the corner of Inspector and William streets.

1854 – On December 8, St. Ann’s Church (Catholic) was consecrated. Located at the corner of rue de la Montagne (then McCord St.) and rue Wellington, it became the centre of Griffintown life for the following 100 years.

1857 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee was elected to represent St. Ann’s Ward of Griffintown in the Parliament of Canada.

1859 – A large black rock was erected by workers to honour the victims of typhus, whose remains were uncovered during the construction of the Victoria Bridge.

1861 – By the 1860s more than 50 factories were operating in Griffintown.

1864 – St. Ann’s Girls’ School was built and St. Ann’s Boys’ School moved to Young and Ottawa Streets.

1868 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee, a Father of Confederation elected by Griffintown voters, was assassinated in Ottawa.

1879 – Mary Gallagher was beheaded on June 27 by rival Susan Kennedy. Legend has it that Gallagher returns every seven (7) years in search of her head.

1885 – St. Ann’s Young Men’s Society was founded leading to the founding of the Shamrock Lacrosse Club and various other sporting clubs.

1886 – The worst springtime flooding ever recorded occurred; stopping rail traffic, submerging homes, and further impoverishing the residents of Griffintown.

1887 – A genuine Irish jaunting car was built by James Kenehan at Young & William Streets.

1880–1915 – The Grand Trunk Railway was built, making Griffintown and the surrounding area Canada’s major industrial centre.

1895 – By the turn of the century the Griffintown population was a mix of Irish, French Canadian, Anglo-Protestant, Jewish, Italian, Syrian, Ukrainian, and East Asian. The neighbourhood’s population reached an estimated 30,000.

1900 to 1999

1914 – To respond to social needs of the area, the Sisters of Charity of Providence were asked to run the newly established St. Ann’s Kindergarten and Day Nursery.

1911 – The first building for the Griffintown Boys Club was opened on Shannon St.

1930 – The Griffintown Boys and Girls Club opened its new four-storey building at the corner of Ottawa and Shannon.

1935 – The elevated north-south CNR Viaduct was built, slicing the neighbourhood in two at rue Nazareth.

1944 – On April 26, an RAF Liberator Bomber airplane (with a Polish crew) crashed at Shannon and Ottawa Streets, killing 15 people; including aircraft crew and Griffintown residents. Still the worst aviation disaster in Montreal history.

1946 – After WWII ended, Griffintown began a rapid decline during the post-war economic boom as many businesses and residents moved to newer and more desirable areas of Montreal.

1952 – The Griffintown Boys and Girls Club closed down due to the general exodus of the population to other neighbourhoods.

1959 – The St. Lawrence Seaway was opened making the Lachine Canal redundant for large ship traffic.

1963 – Griffintown was re-zoned for industrial use and the construction of the Bonaventure Expressway eliminated more of the remaining housing.

1964 – Goose Village (Victoriatown) was completely demolished to accommodate Expo 67.

1970 – The Lachine canal was finally closed to shipping. St. Ann’s Church was deconsecrated and demolished.

1971 – Griffintown’s population was recorded as 800 residents and continued to diminish during the following two decades.

1971-1999 – Griffintown is reduced to a couple of hundred residents and most of the remaining factory and commercial buildings become occupied by low-rent transient business tenants.

2000 to 2020

2002 – The Lachine Canal is refurbished as a pleasure craft waterway and re-opened with a bike path along its entire length, from Old Montreal to Lachine.

2004 – Montreal’s Master Plan sets three goals for the ongoing development of Griffintown: 1.) to preserve the character and scale of the area’s industrial past; 2.) to foster and develop economic and residential activities; and 3.) to reinforce recreational and touristic activities in the Peel Basin area.

2005 – The real estate developer, Prevel, restores the historic Lowney Chocolate Company buildings (1 and 2) and converts them into loft-style condominiums.

2008 – Prevel opens the new build 10-storey Lowney Phase 3-4 project with loft style condos.

2009 – The Sud-Ouest borough held public consultations into proposed Griffintown development.

2010 – Various developers, including Devimco and Prevel commit to developing the Canada Post lands in accordance with the City’s plan.

2012 – The office de consultation publique de Montreal holds additional public hearings into the future development of Griffintown.

2013 – The Sud-Ouest borough adopts the “Programme particulier d’urbanisme Griffintown” to govern the development of all of Griffintown.

2020 – By 2020 more than 20 new condo projects had been built, and thousands of new residents had already moved in. The population was approaching 10,000 residents.

Sources

1. Barlow, Matthew. Griffintown – Identity and Memory In An Irish Diaspora Neighbourhood. UBC Press, 2017.
2. Burman, Richard. 20th Century Griffintown in Pictures – 3rd Edition, 2010.
3. Dreidger Doyle, Sharon. An Irish Heart – How A Small Immigrant Community Shaped Canada. Harper-Collins, 2010.
4. MacLeod, G. Scott. Griffintown Tour – A Self-Guided Urban History Walk. MacLeod Nine Productions, 2015.
5. Griffintown historical maps (compiled by Jeff Dungen): http://dungen.ca/jeff/griffintown/history/history01.htm

(Note: The above timeline was researched, compiled, revised and edited by Shaun Fawcett – www.griffinworks.ca/our-story)