Nestled at the base of Mount Royal is the historic Montreal neighbourhood of the Golden Square Mile. It was largely developed between 1850 and 1930 with grand mansions for wealthy business owners, many of which were abandoned during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
The Golden Square Mile officially stretched from Boulevard René-Lévesque in the south to Pine Avenue at the foot of Mount Royal in the north, and from University Street in the east to Guy Street in the west. Its architecture reflected an eclectic mix of Neoclassical, Romanesque, Neo-Gothic, Queen Anne and Art Nouveau styles, with Scottish sandstone and local granite the favoured materials. Today many of the historic buildings which survived demolition have had their edifices and character preserved while being incorporated into modern uses. The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is one example, located on Sherbrooke Street and showcasing Quebec and Canadian artists within the formerly abandoned Holton House. To the north is the McCord Museum which is dedicated to a diverse range of Canadian subjects, together with the Musee Grevin waxwork exhibits and the Redpath Museum which covers natural history and world cultures within its gallery space. The opulent Ritz-Carlton Montreal is also found nearby, together with the large shopping mall at Eaton Centre. Dorchester Square is a leafy public park in the Golden Square Mile with monuments to Sir Wilfrid Laurier and Robert Burns, as well as a memorial for those who fought in the Boer War. It lies across Boulevard René-Lévesque from the 19th century Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde which was modelled on St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
The Golden Square Mile is easily accessed from the metro stations at Peel and McGill along Boulevard de Maisonneuve, as well as the Gare Centrale train station which lies just to the east. Public buses also serve many of the neighbourhood’s streets, and it’s a pleasant area to explore on foot.
It was during the late 18th century that anglophone business leaders developed the farmland on the slopes of Mount Royal, building grand mansions which reflected the city’s prosperity as Canada’s cultural and financial capital. Following the Great Depression of the 1930s, many businesses left Montreal for Toronto, and the younger generations moved to more modern dwellings in Westmount, resulting in the abandonment and eventual demolition of many buildings.