Westmount, Quebec
Westmount is a city in the southwest of the Canadian province of Quebec. It is located on the Île de Montréal and forms an enclave in the city of Montreal. The municipality has an area of 4.02 km ² and has 19,931 inhabitants ( 2011).
Geography
Westmount is situated in the central part of the Ile de Montréal, slightly raised around the 201 -meter-high Mount Summit West, the southernmost of the three surveys of Mont Royal. The community is completely surrounded by the territory of the city of Montreal, from the districts of Ville- Marie in the northeast, Le Sud -Ouest in the southeast and Côte -des- Neiges -Notre- Dame-de- Grâce in the West. The downtown Montreal is about three kilometers away.
History
1898 came during excavations on the southern slope of West Mount Summit, a burial ground of the Algonquian, which dates from before the 15th century, to the fore. 1684 established the Séminaire de Saint- Sulpice a mission to shield the natives in its care from the influence of extravagant dealer in Montreal. The colonization of the hill ( the then bore the names Petit Montagne and Côte Saint -Antoine ) by farmers began in the mid -17th century.
After the British conquest of Quebec in 1760 changed at first little of its agricultural character of the area. In the 19th century Montreal businessmen began buying up farms and rebuild it in mansions. 1874 saw the establishment of the municipality of Côte -Saint -Antoine. The opening of a tram line in 1894 had a marked growth spurt result and the church became the favorite residence of the wealthy Anglophones. 1895 renamed the church in Westmount, 1908, she received the city status.
In the early 20th century by the architect Robert Findlay built many public buildings that now dominate the skyline. The opened in 1898 and 1918 demolished Montreal Arena was the second purpose-built for hockey hall of Canada; in it played the Montreal Wanderers and the Montreal Canadiens. Westmount has long been regarded as an enclave of wealthy British elite (mainly Scottish origin ) that stood out from the majority francophone city of Montreal. For this reason the city was prime target of bombings of the Front de libération du Québec (1970 during the October crisis battered ) in the 1960s.
On 1 January 2002 27 municipalities were merged on the island of Montreal. Especially in communities with a high proportion of English speakers was stirring resistance, since this measure was ordered by the provincial government of the separatist Parti Québécois. As of 2003, the Parti libéral du Québec, the government and promised to make the municipal mergers reversed. On 20 July 2004 referendums were held in 22 former municipalities. In Westmount to 92.1 % of eligible participants were in favor of the separation. The community was re-established on 1 January 2006, but was forced to cede to the Association of Municipalities numerous competencies.
Attractions
Westmount has two National Historic Sites; one hand, the historical city center with many buildings dating back to the turn of the century, on the other hand Established in 1901, Saint- Léon de Westmount. Oldest surviving building is the Maison Hurtubise, a farmhouse from 1739. Cityscape formative are also the castle-like city hall in the style of Tudor revival, the Victoria Hall, Dawson College (largest CEGEP the province ) and the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe designed high- rise district of Westmount Square in the international style. The hilltop of Westmount Summit is located in a park.
Population
According to the 2011 census counted 19,931 inhabitants Westmount, which corresponds to a population density of 4958 inhab. / Km ². 54.9 % of the population reported English as the main language, the proportion of French was 20.0 %. As a bilingual ( French and English) is designated 2.0%, to other languages and multiple responses accounted for 21.1%. Among the most important non-official main languages were Arabic ( 2.8%) and Spanish ( 2.7%). Only 20.1% spoke English, only French 2.4%. In 2001, 31.0 % of the population were Roman Catholic, 23.2% Jewish, 21.5 % Protestant, 3.7 % Orthodox, 2.7 % Muslim and 14.9 % no religious affiliation.
Traffic
Because of the slope, the main arteries run in the northeast-southwest direction. These are The Boulevard, Rue Sherbrooke, the boulevard De Maisonneuve and Rue Sainte -Catherine. Since 1966 Westmount is ( located on the northeastern outskirts ) connected to the Montreal Metro Atwater to the station. In addition, several bus lines of the Société de transport de Montréal tap into the urban area.
Personalities
- Eugenie Bouchard (* 1994), tennis player
- Leonard Cohen ( born 1934 ), singer-songwriter and writer
- Charles Drury (1912-1991), general and politician
- Don Getty ( born 1933), politician
- Kenneth Farmer (1912-2005), ice hockey player
- Edgar William Richard Steacie (1900-1962), Chemist
Pictures
Hall of Westmount
Church of Saint- Léon
Maison Hurtubise
Victoria Hall
Westmount Square