A Canadian Family

Encore! | Allan Line Wharf In The Early 20th century

In this article from 1930, a reporter shares Sir Hugh Allan’s impressions of the Port of Montreal in the early 18^th century.

It was in 1826 that sir Hugh Allan landed in Montreal as a boy from the brig Favorite, from Scotland. The Hercules, he said in his lecture, was the only steam tug on the St.Lawrence at the time, and it was not strong enough to pull the Favorite up the St.Mary’s current, the work being done with the help of oxen and men. The vessel had to anchor in the stream, for fear of stranding on the beach, and the unloading was done onto a platform extending out over the water.

The few wharves were wooden and wood was the material used until thirty or so years ago. Sir Hugh Allan saw the port develop until in 1880 the Allan Line alone had 23 steamships of 60,000 tons burden, and 12 sailing ships.

Sailing vessels were common in the harbour until a quarter of a century ago, and even later than that timber rafts coming down the river from the Ottawa and under the Victoria Bridge were ordinary sights.

The old wooden dyke on the waterfront, which was a favourite promenade on Sundays, made way for the stone revetment walls, which were shortly followed by cement whatves and permanent freight sheds of more than one storey.

 Middle-aged men well remember the tin-roofed sheds that were down every fall and erected each spring in the days before the guard pier was created, which put an end to the floods that covered the wharves and flooded the waterfront. The change in even a quarter of a century has been extraordinary. As for fifty years ago, the 1,000 and 2,000 ton steamships have been replaced by vessels of more than 15,000 tons and there are miles of wharves, with elevators, cranes and all modern equipment. The greatest advance has been in the last 25 years, but in any celebrations that may be held this year the worthies who did the pioneer work should not be forgotten.

Source: The Montreal Gazette, 1930

Sir Hugh Allan,  the Allan Line and Montreal’s St.Andrew’s Society (1936)

April 26, 2011 - Posted by Evelyn Yvonne Theriault | . | history of Montreal, Montreal, shipping