The 1960s saw an emergence of a new political movement in Quebec. Jean Lesage’s Liberal government made reforms that helped francophone Quebecers gain more influence in politics and the economy. During Montreal’s rise to prominence as a center of French culture in North America, more francophones began to own businesses. Anglophones dominated the Montreal-dominated economy of Quebec. A police strike in 1969 led to 16 hours of unrest, known as the Murray Hill riot. The police were struck because of difficult working conditions caused by disarming separatist-planted bombs, patrolling frequent protests, and wanting higher pay. Quebec’s National Assembly passed an emergency law forcing the police to return to work. When order was restored, 108 people were arrested
The Montreal Metro was built during the 1960s, and the provincial government built most of today’s highway system. This period of rapid urbanization created a situation where Montreal’s infrastructure fell behind its demands, as it did with many other North American cities during this time.
Montreal also became an international hub during this decade. Expo 67, the construction of the metro system, and the rise of the city’s first skyscrapers shaped Montreal’s modern cityscape.
Here are some stunning vintage photos that will take you back to 1960s Montreal. We’ve lost some parts of our city, from the vintage Orange Julep to the electric rue St-Hubert. Montreal has changed and evolved over the years, but one thing has never changed: it is a city filled with life, laughter, and some of the most incredible people you will ever meet.
#1 Saint Hubert Street, 1963
#2 Designing ceramics at Peel metro station, 1966
#3 Municipal golfing in Montréal, 1964
#4 De La Montagne Street, 1965
#5 Saint Catherine Street, 1964
#6 Stanley Cup Parade, 1968
#7 View of Montreal downtown – Cathedral Marie-Reine-du-Monde, Place Ville-Marie, Canadian National (CN), 1967
#8 Sir George Williams University, 1969
#9 Exhibition Grounds, Epxo 1967
#10 Residential complex, Expo 1967
#11 Montreal during Expo 1967
#12 Cheese stand in the Swiss Pavilion at Expo 1967
#13 Residential complex Habitat 1967
#14 Metro under construction, 1963
#15 Building the metro at Parc Viger, 1964
#16 Saint Laurent metro station, 1966
#17 Sainte Catherine Street at night, 1964
#18 Boulevard Dorchester and Place Ville-Marie, 1962
#19 Sainte Catherine, 1963
#20 Winter on Mount Royal, 1963
#21 Orange Julep, Decarie, 1964
#22 Port of Montréal, 1966
#23 Lac aux Castors, 1965
#24 Saint Hubert Restraurant near Dominion Square, 1965
#25 Sainte Catherine Street at Saint Christophe, 1961
#26 La Ronde, 1967
#27 Mount Royal views, 1963
#28 James Brown concert at Place des Nations, 1969
#29 Construction of Place Bonaventure, 1966
#30 The Montréal Expos, 1969
#31 Debut game at Jarry Park Stadium, 1969
#32 And one more of the beautiful Saint Catherine Street, 1969
#33 Arrival in front of the town hall, 1960
#34 Lac du Parc Lafontaine (sic) and luminous fountain, 1960
#35 Parc Lafontaine Theater (sic). 1960
#36 Hotel Dieu Hospital, 1961
#37 Dominion Square Terrace, 1962
#38 Aerial view of the Place des Arts site, 1962
#39 Corner Saint-Paul and Place Jacques-Cartier, 1963
#40 Construction of the Crémazie metro station, 1963
#41 Nativity scene at the Botanical Garden, 1963
#42 Town hall seen from the old quarters, 1965
#43 Square Dominion, 1965
#44 Square Dominion, 1965
#45 Montreal university, 1965
#46 View of Montreal, 1965
#47 View of Montreal, 1965
#48 Centre sportif Maisonneuve, 1966
#49 Sun Life Building, Place Ville Marie, IBM Building and Queen Elizabeth Hotel, 1966
#50 Charron Hospital (Marguerite d’Youville), 1966
#51 Haute couture house Marie-Paule Nolin, at 420 rue Bonsecours, 1966
#52 Courthouse (construction), 1966
#53 Perspective rue Saint-Paul, looking east, 1966
#54 Place d’Armes, 1966
#55 Place du Canada and Chateau Champlain Hotel, 1966
#56 Rue de la Montagne, from the corner of rue Sherbrooke, 1966
#57 Old courthouse, located on rue Notre-Dame east, 1966
#58 View of Montreal from Mount Royal, 1966
#59 View of Montreal, from the Jacques-Cartier bridge looking west, 1966
#60 Laurier metro station, 1967
#61 Domaine shopping center, Sherbrooke Street East, 1968
#62 Mont Saint-Antoine School, 1968
#63 Church of Our Lady (place d’Armes), 1968
#64 Restaurant Sambo, 1968
#65 Sun Life Building, 1969
#66 Hotel Mount Royal, 1969
#67 University Street Restaurant, 1969
#68 Rue Drummond, 1969
#69 Street Scene – Ste-Catherine Street West, 1969
#70 University of Montreal seen from Saint Joseph’s Oratory, 1969
#71 St. Louis Blues vs Montreal Canadiens, 1968 NHL Stanley Cup Finals
#72 St. Louis Blues vs Montreal Canadiens, 1968 NHL Stanley Cup Finals
#73 Cityscape and Saint Lawrence River, Montreal, 1960s
#74 Cityscape, Montreal, 1960s
#75 City theatre, Montreal, 1960s
#76 View from suburb to city center, Montreal, 1960s
#77 Saint Lawrence River, Montreal, 1960s
#78 Residential road, Montreal, 1960s
#79 Residential houses at suburb, Montreal, 1960s
#80 Queen Elizabeth Hotel, with Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral in the foreground, Montreal, 1960s
#81 Peel-Street, Montreal, 1960s
#82 Main shopping street, Montreal, 1960s
#83 Shopping street, Montreal, 1960s
#84 Jacques Cartier Bridge, Montreal, 1960s
#85 High-rise buildings in the evening, Montreal, 1960s
#86 High-rise buildings, Montreal, 1960s
#87 High-rise buildings, Montreal, 1960s
#88 High-rise buildings, Montreal, 1960s
#89 Downtown, Montreal, 1960s
#90 City Theater, Montreal, 1960s
#91 View of suburb to city center, Montreal, 1960s
#92 View over Montreal during Expo 1967
#93 Exibition site of the Expo 1967
#94 Swiss pavilion and monorail at the Expo 1967
#95 Montreal during the Expo 1967
#96 View over Montreal during the Expo 1967
#97 View over Montreal during the Expo 1967
#98 British pavilion; Exibition site of the Expo 1967
#99 The American pavilion at the 1967 World’s Fair in Montreal, Canada, in 1967.
#100 The pavilion of the USSR at the exhibition in Montreal, in 1967.
#101 The pavilion of the USSR at the exhibition in Montreal, 1967
#102 View from the Mount Royal lookout of the city of Montreal on the St Lawrence River in the province of Quebec in Canada 1965.
#103 Pedestrians cross a snow covered Dominion Square (now Dorchester Square) in front of the Sun Life Building on the corner of Rene Levesque Boulevard West in the downtown centre of the city of Montreal, 1965
#104 The first victim of the Quebec Separatist Movement was a Canadian Army bomb expert, who was critically injured while trying to dismantle a bomb in a Montreal mail box, 1960s
#105 The first victim of the Quebec Separatist Movement was a Canadian Army bomb expert, who was critically injured while trying to dismantle a bomb in a Montreal mail box, 1960s
#106 The first victim of the Quebec Separatist Movement was a Canadian Army bomb expert, who was critically injured while trying to dismantle a bomb in a Montreal mail box, 1960s
#107 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#108 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#109 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#110 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#111 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#112 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#113 Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal, 1962.
#114 Montreal Skyline, 1962.
#115 Montreal Skyline, 1962.
#116 Montreal Skyline, 1962.
#117 Montreal Skyline, 1962.
#118 Montreal Skyline, 1962.
#119 A Canadair CL-44 swing-tail turboprop freight liner ready for loading, Montreal, Canada, May 1, 1961.
#120 View on Montreal and the Saint Lawrence River, 1960
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Thjs in not Montreal, but a view from the parliement of Québec, in Quebec city .