Photo by Steve Drolet

Decades ago, there was something unseemly about living in Mile End. Montreal's original immigrant neighbourhood carried with it the stigma of poverty and foreignness; most of its inhabitants were fleeing or desperate to leave. Of course, times change. What was strange yesterday is exotic today; what was old-fashioned is now all the rage. The pallid, undernourished youths that traipse the streets are considered chic; the émigrés are sexy, cosmopolitan. Most Mile Enders get defensive in the face of that most insufferable of accusations: the district is trendy. Fortunately, the invasion of young hipsters hasn't obscured the neighbourhood's cultural heritage - the very roots of its charm.

What's In a Name?
Most sources agree Mile End was named for its position almost exactly one mile from downtown. In 18th-century Montreal, the area that would later be known as St-Louis du Mile End was still vastly forested. The town's population grew drastically from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th, and was the third-largest city in the province by the time it merged with Montreal in 1910.

Mark Twain might have been referring to Mile End when he said, after visiting the city, that "you couldn't throw a brick without breaking a church window." Many of the places of worship have, over the years, served more than one denomination. What was originally the Presbyterian St-Giles Church on St-Joseph West, was transformed into the Beth David Synagogue in the 1920s, and it's now home to the St-Nicholas Russian Orthodox (in exile) congregation. The bulbous mushroom dome of St-Michael's and St-Anthony's on St-Urbain often gets mistaken for a mosque. After being home to several congregations over the years, mass is now hosted in five languages throughout the year.From 1910 to 1930, scads of Jewish immigrants made the area their home. Although Mile End retains some of its Jewish heritage in the form of ornate synagogues and notorious bagel shops, many left the neighbourhood in the '40s and '50s, when Greek, Portuguese, Spanish and Polish immigrants first landed.

By the 1980s, Mile End was adopted anew. Today, the sector, which is part of the Plateau Mont-Royal arrondissement, stretches from Hutchison to Drolet and from Mont-Royal to de Castelnau. Most shops and attractions are clustered between St-Joseph and St-Viateur, on the west side of the quarter. The intersection of St-Laurent and Mont-Royal was decreed a historical passage by Heritage Canada in 1998.

No mention of Mile End is complete without the ongoing bagel rivalry between Fairmount and St-Viateur.

© Anthony Kinik

Architect Susan Bronson heads up Mile End Memories, an organization that coordinates architectural walking tours of the neighbourhood. According to Bronson, it isn't only Mile Enders who enjoy the summer tours. Many former residents, as well as history and architecture buffs sign up for them, too.

In an effort to reconnect with his roots, filmmaker Eric Scott moved back to his father's old neighbourhood in the '80s. Like a lot of Mile Enders, he loves his neighbourhood. Despite soaring real-estate prices and stylised, upscale new shops, Scott feels the gentrification of Mile End is still slower than in other major cities. "The stores are changing," explains Scott, "but if anything should be kept sacred, it's St-Viateur Bagel Bakery." It moves him to quote Chinese philosopher Lin Yutang: "What is patriotism but the love of the good things we ate in our childhood?"

Most Mile Enders get defensive in the face of that most insufferable of accusations: the district is trendy.

Neighbourhood Rivalry
Mile End and its inhabitants enjoy a true intermingling of cultures. St-Viateur alone features African, Caribbean, Greek and Spanish cuisine. Just around the corner, on St-Laurent, is a stellar Peruvian eatery. Also on St-Laurent, between Laurier and Fairmount, are a handful of Indian restaurants.

And of course, no mention of Mile End is complete without the ongoing bagel rivalry of Fairmount vs. St-Viateur. Fairmount, run by the third generation of Shlafmans, is the city's original bagel bakery. Isadore Shlafman opened the first bagel bakery on Fairmount in 1949. St-Viateur Bagel Bakery is only a little younger, founded in 1957. Now run by Joe Morena, who landed his first job at the shop in 1962, the bakery's a small franchise with several locations around the island. Locals have been known to make the trek at all hours of the day or night for a taste of their favourite bagel. Both shops are open around the clock, seven days a week.

© Copyright Ville de Montréal

Arts and Crafts Haven
Vintage clothing boutiques are scattered around the southwest part of the quarter, and craft and antique stores make Mile End a DIY-decorator's dream. One of the most popular shops in the area is l'Arterie Chez Elle Corazon, a craft co-op on Bernard West that has developed a cult following for its whimsical inventory. Works from some of the city's most inventive and gifted artisans keep locals and shoppers from in and around the city coming back.

A number of the neighbourhood's craftspeople have converted their shops into economuseums, small commercial spaces that also act as educational societies. The bookbinding, vitrified glass and embroidery economuseums -- all located on St-Laurent -- charge a nominal fee for a guided tour or can be browsed for free. At the recently renovated Musée des pompiers, a 19th-century chateau-like structure on the corner of St-Laurent and Laurier, visitors can get a glimpse into the world of fire-fighting. The building still houses a working squad of firemen.

Mile End has countless examples of successful architectural conversions. La Sala Rossa, based in a former church, houses an Iberian restaurant downstairs and hires out its top floor for parties, concerts and cabaret shows. A string of former textile factories in the area have been converted into lofts. The cooperative housing project at the corner of Coloniale and St-Joseph used to be l'École St-Enfant-Jésus.

First-time visitors to Mile End might find the various contrasts somewhat astounding. But those who live there are fiercely proud of their neighbourhood. Most will agree it's the atmosphere, as Eric Scott puts it, which makes Mile End so unique. A little nostalgic, a little offbeat, a little bit of everything, really.