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Everyone to Parliament!

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The Present-Day Place D'Youville

3

Place Royale

4

Place d’Armes

5

Notre-Dame Street

6

Champ-de-Mars

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Montreal House

Detail from a black-and-white photograph showing a multi-storey stone building with a hipped roof. A sidewalk runs along the street, with a few pedestrians. In the foreground, an iron fence encloses a small square planted with trees.

“The Montreal House at Customs Square, Montréal”, QC, c. 1880” (detail), McCord Stewart Museum, MP-000.227.

A port draws travellers. What better way to welcome them than a luxurious hotel? The Montreal House Hotel became a symbol of the new capital.

A Luxury Hotel

Monochrome drawing depicting an urban scene with several stone buildings, including a large central building topped by a flag. In the foreground, horse-drawn carriages, pedestrians and trees suggest a major urban space.

John Henry Walker, “Montreal House”, c. 1857, McCord Stewart Museum, M930.50.7.312.

In 1847, brewer William Dow had the Montreal House built. The very next year, hotelier George Fellers took over its management, followed by Warren J. Coleman, who promoted it by emphasizing its American style—unmatched for its size, location and comfort. A notable detail: from the moment the building opened, the Champlain & St. Lawrence Railway set up its offices there, with a street-front entrance on Rue des Commissaires.

From Hotel to Sailors’ Shelter, Then to Museum

Black-and-white photograph showing a multi-storey stone building with a hipped roof. A sidewalk runs along the street, with a few pedestrians. In the foreground, an iron fence encloses a small square planted with trees.

“The Montreal House at Customs Square, Montréal, QC, ca 1880”, McCord Stewart Museum, MP-000.227.

The hotel remained a favoured stopover for travellers, especially parliamentarians during legislative sessions. But in the 1890s, it closed its doors. In 1897, the building was reborn as the Montreal Sailors’ Institute, a refuge for sailors passing through the port. In 1968, it took on a new name: the Maison des marins. Since 2013, the Maison-des-Marins Pavilion has been part of the Pointe-à-Callière museum complex.

William Dow

19th-century photographic portrait of William Dow. He is a heavyset white man in his fifties with thinning hair. Seated at a desk, he wears a black suit with an embroidered waistcoat. His right hand rests on a small lectern holding a book.

William Notman, “William Dow, brewer, Montréal, QC, 1863”, McCord Stewart Museum, I-6841.

A Scottish brewer and entrepreneur, William Dow helped reshape Montréal in the 1840s. His brewery, William Dow and Company, enjoyed rapid success and competed head-to-head with Molson’s. A champion of innovation, he invested heavily in urban infrastructure, supporting the development of the rail and maritime networks.