This article was updated on August 31, 2022.
Often regarded as Canada’s cultural capital, Montréal doesn’t lack in the museum department. From Old Montréal’s mysterious streets to bustling downtown, the city boasts fantastic history museums, each focusing on different stretches of Montréal’s rich history.
From its exact point of birth to today, Pointe-à-Callière unearths Montréal’s entire history. A renowned archaeological site, Pointe-à-Callière was built over Montréal’s birthplace, which is beautifully showcased in the museum’s permanent exhibition.
Québec’s first historical monument and oldest museum gives a look inside Montréal’s earliest days. Château Ramezay, the prestigious 18th century residence originally built for Claude de Ramezay, then Governor of Montréal, was the first building to be recognized as a historical monument, and is the province’s oldest private history museum. Fun fact: Benjamin Franklin was a guest there in 1776.
The McCord Stewart Museum presents Montréal’s unique history as told by Montréal’s unforgettable people. Dedicated to the preservation, study and appreciation of Montréal’s history as recounted by its people, artists and communities living in the city’s past and present, the McCord Stewart Museum was founded in 1921 with David Ross McCord’s family collection; it now houses over 1,450,000 artefacts including more than 1 million photographs.
This public pool turned neighborhood museum dives deep into Montréal’s working class history. Housed inside a former public bath built in the 1920s, the Écomusée du fier monde history and community museum focuses on the Industrial Revolution and working-class citizens who once populated the neighbourhood.
Take a rare glimpse into the life – and private rooms – of one of Canada’s founding fathers. The Sir George-Étienne Cartier National Historic Site commemorates the accomplishments of Cartier, an important Father of Confederation. It is the only Victorian-style interior open to the public in Montréal.
The pioneer settlers of New France commemorated and remembered in a bucolic home setting. Located in the lesser-known Pointe-Saint-Charles neighbourhood, the Maison Saint-Gabriel Museum and Historic Site is one of the finest remaining examples of New France architecture; it is dedicated to preserving the history and artefacts of the settlers who put down roots there in the mid-1600s.
Trace the history of Jeanne Mance, co-founder, evangelist, and healer to New France. The Musée des Hospitalières de l’Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal traces the history of nurse (and co-founder of Montréal) Jeanne Mance, and her mission to evangelize the Natives of New France and establish a hospital on the island of Montréal.
A museum dedicated to the commemoration and acknowledgment of the darkest days of the 20th century. Entirely dedicated to Holocaust education and awareness, the Montréal Holocaust Museum provides tools to fight racism and promote respect for diversity through several commemorative programs.
If these walls could talk, they’d give up the history of Montréal’s Rebellions of the 1830s. Located within the walls of Montréal’s old prison, the Centre d’exposition La Prison-des-Patriotes’ guided visits recall the Rebellions of 1837-1838 through insightful and informative exhibitions. (Temporarily closed for renovation.)
Overlooking the St. Lawrence River, this 300+-year-old chapel, nicknamed the “Sailor’s Church,” sits atop a former First Nations encampment, and was built on the foundations of the first stone chapel erected in 1675. Religious heritage enthusiasts will love its beautiful interior as well as the one-of-a-kind artifacts in its 18th-century crypt, including the tomb of Marguerite Bourgeoys, Montréal’s first teacher.
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