Place D’Armes in Old Montréal (1960-70)

April 4, 2024 Dalia Nardolillo History

Ever since I started going to school in Montréal, I’ve fallen in love with the city time and time again. Especially Old Montréal or the Vieux-Port as Montrealers know it. I’ve always loved the cobblestone roads that are still present in Old Montréal, I feel like it instantly transports you into the past.

The inspiration for the next gallery, was just my curiosity on what city life looked like back in the 60s and 70s. Did they have as much traffic as we do? Was there as many roadblocks and construction, as we experience in our day-to-day lives? With so many questions looming over my head, I found these gorgeous photographs from that time period and hope you enjoy!

1968 – Montréal city life.

I absolutely loved seeing the photographs of the Montrealers in the 60s. I loved the fashion during that time period. I feel like with the women’s fashion, everyone looked so timeless and chic.

1968 – Intersection in near the Basilica.
1968 – Alternate view of the buildings.
1968 – Building in Old Montréal.
1968 – Maisonneuve Monument arial view.
1968 – People walking in Old Montréal.
1968 – View from the Basilica Church’s steps.
1968 - View of the Aldred building in Old Montreal.
1968 – View of the Aldred building.
1968 – View of the Bank of Montréal from the Notre-Dame Basilica steps.
1968 – Montrealers crossing on Saint-Francois Xavier street.

What stands out to me in this photo, is again, the fashion. I loved the different hairstyles that women wore. Personally, my everyday hairstyle is pretty boring. I keep it up in a ponytail. However, seeing the woman on the right of the photo with her hair in an updo makes me want to experiment with hairdos.

1968 – View of a jewelry store.
1969 – View of a Montréal barber shop.
1970 – Bus in Old Montréal.
1970 – Detail of an English no-stopping sign.

I found this photo interesting just for the simple fact that the sign was in English. Quebec, nowadays, would never let that fly, especially in Old Montréal.

1970 – View of Montrealers getting on a bus far left in the photo.
1970 – View of Saint-Jacques street.
1970 – View of the now-known Hotel Place D’Armes, up for rent in.
1970 – Yield sign with the Notre-Dame Basilica in the background.
1971 – View of a restaurant.
1971 – View of the Canadian National Bank with the Basilica in the background.

 

Find more photos from the Montréal archives on their website.

About Dalia Nardolillo 4 Articles
Dalia, a photojournalist hailing from Montreal, is deeply passionate about documenting events and sharing stories about people's lives. She is on track to graduate from Concordia University with a degree in journalism and a minor in art history. Currently, Dalia holds the position of Editor-in-Chief at her school's newspaper, The Concordian. Following graduation, she aims to secure a full-time reporting job at a major news outlet.

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