History and Biographical Gazetteer of Montreal to the Year 1892.

Borthwick, J. Douglas

Published by John Lovell, Montreal, 1892

About this Item

When Montreal was the business CAPITAL of all of Canada, this 531 page who's who would have been a much sought after volume. Montreal was the headquarters for the paper and lumbering companies, banking firms and steamship lines. The Cochrane Cattle Ranche was financed from there. The Rebellion of 1885 was very FRESH in people's minds. The heroes of the border wars with the States were often Quebec residents. Molsons were making money in banking that would lead to a brewing empire. RESEARCH names like: Elkanah Billings, Sir Hugh Allan, William Workman, Euclide Roy, Jacques O. Bureau, Colonel Lovelace, John Sleep Honey, Gershom Joseph, Randolph J. Routh, Sir Alexander Galt and Ernest Idler. Photo portraits of well-to-do lawyers, and politicians (local, provincial and national) such as: Frederick T. Judah, C.S. Cherrier Q.C., and Mayor James McShane. Doctors, publicists and clergymen also get their fair mention. Names of English speakers outbalance those of French. Women are given place as the wives of important men - e.g. Lady Mount Stephen - with a handful of exceptions which include singer Albani-Emma Lajeunesse and Sister Marie Fisson. Some buildings &/or institutions also get mention - among these Bazar Generale. Explorers McKenzie and Cartier get bio's, as does geologist George Mercer Dawson. I found one poet and two writers. The first 97 pages are a history of Hochelaga (Montreal) from the time of De Maisonneuve to the building of the Jubilee Victoria Hospital. Much of this section is composed of court records wherein (Nagre) was `again a prisoner for stealing two pieces of silk ribbon, apparently little deterred by the 50 lashes he had received 3 months earlier'. Cond : Boards are blue-grey with horizontal debossed bars as the only decoration. Gilt lettering on spine. End-papers are plain grey. Light wear at forepoints, also spine top and tail. Hinge split at front, also splitting started at 177. Remainder of binding is decent. Spine soiled. also front board tho' less. No names. Minor pencil marks on three entries. No tears. Pages very little soiled, no stains. Great Canadian reference item of 113 years ago. Quote (p. 16) : " Among the first regulations is that of the bakers, in which the white loaf is called `a brick', and sold at 8 coppers of 4 lbs. weight and the brown of 6 lbs. at 10 coppers. Another, and this shows there were slaves in Montreal in those days, who were bought and sold like . . " Size: Octavo.

Seller Inventory # 003515

Bibliographic Details

• Title: History and Biographical Gazetteer of Montreal to the Year 1892.
• Publisher: John Lovell, Montreal
• Publication Date: 1892
• Binding: Cloth
• Illustrator: B/W Photographs
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: VG+
• Dust Jacket Condition: None -as Issued
• Seller catalogs:
  • Biography
  • Canadiana