 |
| Photos by Hana Askren |
 |
|
It's easy to forget the gritty past of Pointe-Saint-Charles as you stroll by the colourful row houses on Knox Street or sit near the abstract sculpture under the giant trees in Parc Marguerite-Bourgeoys (corner of Wellington and Liverpool streets). This is a lively place where teenagers throw Frisbees in the summertime while their parents chat on balconies, and children push wheelbarrows down sunny alleys. But if you look toward the west side of the park, you will see a factory smokestack looming just beyond the leafy branches. The warring sceneries of green and brick form a backdrop that makes Pointe-Saint-Charles more than just a neighbourhood, reminding visitors and residents alike of its varied history.
The landscape was once all green, a collection of rural farms making up a New France colony. The 17th-century architecture of Saint Gabriel Farmhouse (2146, place Dublin, 514-935-8136), is now all that remains of the area's pastoral roots, preserved as a tourist site complete with herb garden and small arboretum. The farmland gave way to buildings in the late 19th century as portions of land were gradually sold to house the growing number of immigrant workers. They came from Scotland, Ireland and England to work at the docks and train yards, in foundries, soap factories, flour mills, brickworks, and huge steel factories. The skeletal husks of some of these buildings still exist as testaments to the enormity of the industry that flourished where once only crops grew.
The workers' row houses, however, are anything but husks. Sebastopol Row (422-444, rue Sebastopol), is the most famous group of these terraced flats that were modeled on industrial cities in England; its red-and-white houses have been renovated in keeping with their original style and decorated with murals depicting the area's history.
Indeed, much of the area's beauty and vitality lies in the residential streets of what some say is the most close-knit community in Montreal. In spite of, or perhaps because of, the area's largely working-class demographic, one urban planning scholar counted more community organizations and services in Pointe-Saint-Charles than in any other part of the city. Even so, throughout the years, the neighbourhood has struggled to maintain itself economically.
While riding your bicycle along the scenic Lachine Canal, cross Des Seigneurs Bridge for cheap poutine, a steamie and a bottle of spruce beer in "The Point."
Recently, Pointe-Saint-Charles has begun to change in step with Montreal's steadily growing economy. Many of the older houses are under construction and renovation. Some buildings have been converted to other uses: the old Northern Electric building now houses a rock climbing gym (Allez-up Climbing Gym, 1339, rue Shearer, 514-989-9656), the Redpath sugar factory has been converted into condominiums and the Saint Gabriel Fire Station (1050, rue Hibernia) is now a library. Although this conversion in particular has drawn the ire of those who fear that the area will lose its character to high-cost housing, Pointe-Saint-Charles has so far retained a healthy mixture of residence and business types. Cheap housing can still be found, and buildings of all ages accommodate a variety of businesses: restaurants, flower shops, hair salons, discount clothing stores - not to mention the tiny depanneurs squeezed onto street corners.
Daytime tourists may ride expensive bicycles along the scenic Lachine Canal bike path, but they can still cross Des Seigneurs Bridge for cheap poutine, a steamie and a bottle of spruce beer in "The Point," an underappreciated neighbourhood that has been, and still is, an important part of the vibrant life of Montreal. |
