News and Activities

Mile End Memories is proud to be one of the partners in Viaduc 375, a new experience offered to Montrealers and visitors as part of Montreal’s 375th anniversary celebrations. Each day from 3 to 8 October, we will be offering free walking tours to discover the rich history and heritage […]

Viaduc 375 – pedestrian promenade on the Van Horne overpass, ...

2017-07-25 in News and Activities / Walking Tours by Yves Desjardins

A book launch was held on Thursday 18 May 2017 at the Mordecai-Richler Mile End Library for Histoire du Mile End by Yves Desjardins, published by Septentrion. Here are a few pictures of the event, with our thanks to the photographers, Nano Ruz and Harold Rosenberg. […]

Book Launch: Histoire du Mile End

2017-05-21 in News and Activities by Yves Desjardins

25 walking tours to discover the history of the Plateau-Mont-Royal, 14 May–29 October 2017 The Société d’histoire du Plateau-Mont-Royal and Mile End Memories invite Plateau residents, Montrealers and tourists to discover the history and heritage of the Plateau. A program of 25 walking tours will allow you to discover the places, events and communities that built and that […]

Promenades sur le Plateau : histoires et cultures

2017-04-22 in Partners’ activities / News and Activities / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Park Avenue has undergone many transformations over time: a prestigious residential address reserved for large bourgeois residences, the main street of the Montreal Jewish and Greek communities, a high-traffic artery… It has been repeatedly condemned – some have predicted that it would become an urban desert – but has shown […]

Jane’s Walk: Park Avenue’s Many Faces

2017-04-21 in News and Activities / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Historically, Mile End was the heart of the Montreal Jewish community. Just think of the famous bagel bakeries, Wilensky’s, or the works of Mordecai Richler. But what about its contemporary Jewish identity? Many people think immediately of the Hasidic community, highly visible in the streets of the neighbourhood and adjacent […]

Panel: Contemporary Jewish Identites in Mile End

2017-04-21 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

During the night of 8 April 1973, a huge fire gutted a run-down rooming house on Park Avenue causing the death of eight people. The inquiry revealed that the tragedy was far from accidental: the building had been allowed to turn into a firetrap and the actual owners were hiding […]

Talk: A Forgotten Tragedy – the arson fire of 1973 ...

2017-03-17 in News and Activities / Talks by Yves Desjardins

From Mile-Ex to Marconi-Alexandra Back to the future Marconi-Alexandra is a district with a unique character: a mixture of various land uses, surrounded by railway infrastructure, its history little known. Comprised of history buffs and residents active in the neighbourhood, our panel will explore issues related to this changing area located north […]

Discussion: From Mile-Ex to Marconi-Alexandra

2017-01-26 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

by Melanie Leavitt Pioneers of the Picket Line: The role of women in the labour movement From sweat-shop floors to picket lines, discover the stories of women – union organizers, community activists, and factory workers – who paved the way for the modern labour movement and workers’ rights in Montreal. A special […]

Talk: Pioneers of the Picket Line

2017-01-26 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

talk given by Justin Bur For the past 140 years, the Canadian Pacific railway tracks have formed a boundary in the midst of the city. A major project driven forward by Louis Beaubien and supported by Curé Antoine Labelle (P’tit train du nord), this line was later purchased by CP to form part […]

Talk: The Canadian Pacific Railway and Mile End

2016-12-09 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

We’ve added a new feature to our web site: a map linking to histories of about 30 important sites in the neighbourhood. Click on a pin on the map to discover the backstory of these places that have contributed to the identity of Mile End. The launch will take place […]

Unveiling of the interactive historical map of Mile End

2016-11-21 in News and Activities / Talks by Yves Desjardins

by Sara Ferdman Tauben Sara Tauben will be speaking on the History, Symbolism and Identity of synagogues in Mile End and Outremont. Sara Ferdman Tauben is the author of Traces of the Past: Montreal’s Early Synagogues (Véhicule Press, 2011). She has a BA in History and Art History from Haifa University, […]

Talk: History, Symbolism and Identity of Mile End synagogues

2016-10-20 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

The symbols of Mile End churches Kevin Cohalan, of the Société d’histoire du Plateau Mont-Royal, will give a lavishly illustrated presentation on the symbols used in Mile End churches, with a focus on the Church of the Ascension. Sleeping soldiers, Greek letters, knights in shining armour, lambs—he will unlock the […]

Tour and talk: Religious Heritage of Mile End

2016-09-10 in News and Activities / Talks / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Saturday, August 13, 2pm.The Crossroads of Three Cultures. The west of Mile End is the fruit of the unlikely encounter between a French-Canadian artisans’ village, a new suburb at the turn of the 20th century marketed mainly to the English-speaking middle class, and the heart of Montreal’s Jewish life between the […]

Our Walking Tours in August

2016-08-05 in News and Activities / Walking Tours by Yves Desjardins

The Marché des Possibles, Mile End’s summer gathering place, is back for a third year! The market is produced by POP Montréal in collaboration with the Arrondissement du Plateau Mont-Royal. Mile End Memories will be there with an information table, a history presentation, and of course walking tours of the neighborhood. The market takes place each Friday, […]

History at the Marché des Possibles, 2016 edition

2016-07-02 in News and Activities / Talks / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Walking tour led by Michèle Pontbriand and Nathalie Tremblay This short walking tour will pass along a few of the most important streets of Mile End. We’ll stop at buildings that demonstrate the evolution of the neighborhood and that have stories to tell. This tour is offered as part of […]

Walking Tour: Mile End Buildings Tell Their Stories

2016-05-15 in News and Activities / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Walk led by Justin Bur and Christine Richard All of our Jane’s Walks have reached capacity! Thank you for signing up in such large numbers. If you were not able to reserve a spot, don’t worry: we’ll be offering many other tours this summer, most likely including a repeat of this one. This walk […]

Jane’s Walk: Houses of Mile End

2016-04-03 in News and Activities / Walking Tours by Justin Bur

Talk by Yves Desjardins Spring 1934. The Great Depression of the 1930s is at its worst. Camillien Houde is about to take back the mayoralty of Montreal. His supporters and opponents combat fiercely in the city’s districts. One of them is exceptional: Laurier Ward, i.e., the southern part of today’s Mile […]

Talk: A forgotten page of Mile End Jewish history: the ...

2016-04-03 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

This talk will illustrate how a group of women were inspired to celebrate International Women’s Day through exhibitions, films, workshops and performances of women artists in the neighbourhood of Mile End. They will share their visions of the empowerment of local women artists through the story of the exhibitions and […]

Talk: The first 20 years of Images de Femmes: Women ...

2016-02-28 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

Talk by Alexia Bhéreur-Lagounaris and Alice Miquet On Saturday 27 February, during the Montréal joue Festival, an urban scavenger hunt will begin at the library. It was designed by Ablblalab, founded by two friends of Mile End Memories. Inspired by the neighbourhood and its stories, they have invented a new way of exploring which […]

Talk: Urban scavenger hunt – the organizers tell their secrets!

2016-02-18 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

Église de l'Ascension — Talk by Kevin Cohalan, Nathalie Tremblay and Joshua Wolfe Finding new uses for heritage buildings is often a challenge. The transformation of the Church of the Ascension into a neighbourhood library is considered to have been a great succes. What lessons can be learned from it? The three speakers will present the history […]

Talk: The Church of the Ascension, from Anglican church to ...

2016-01-26 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur

Talk by Yves Desjardins During the 19th century, vast swathes of Mile End and Outremont belonged to a few principal landowning families. One of them, the Beaubiens, played a determining role over several generations in the municipal politics and urban development of these districts. If the association of the Beaubiens with […]

Talk: The Beaubien Family, Outremont and Mile End

2015-11-30 in News and Activities / Talks by Justin Bur