DOCSLIB.ORG

Renaissance Art in Montreal: the City's Early Collectors and Their Gifts to the Art Association of Montreal and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Renaissance Art in Montreal: the City's Early Collectors and Their Gifts to the Art Association of Montreal and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Renaissance Art in Montreal: The City's Early Collectors and Their Gifts to the Art Association of Montreal and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Silvia Sorbelli A Thesis In The Department Of Art History Presented in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at Concordia University Montreal, Quebec, Canada September 2010 ©Silvia Sorbelli, 2010 Library and Archives Bibliothèque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de l'édition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington OttawaONK1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Yourfíle Votre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-70958-0 Our file Notre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-70958-0 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant à la Bibliothèque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par télécommunication ou par l'Internet, prêter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des thèses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, à des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non- support microforme, papier, électronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriété du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protège cette thèse. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la thèse ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent être imprimés ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformément à la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privée, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont été enlevés de thesis. cette thèse. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1*1 Canada Ill ABSTRACT Scholarly research on Montreal collectors of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries has, for the most part, focused on their interest in 17th century Dutch portraiture and rural scenes, landscapes of The Hague and Barbizon schools and modern British pictures. While this is an entirely acceptable emphasis, given the composition of most collections of the time, there were some Montrealers who stepped outside these interests, collecting and encouraging familiarity with the arts of the European Renaissance. This thesis sets out to examine the presence of Renaissance art within the Montreal cultural milieu by following the activities of collectors such as Sir William Van Home, Richard B. Angus, Robert Wilson Reford, Lord Strathcona, Charles and Elwood Hosmer, and F. Cleveland Morgan. Some were wealthy Scottish-Protestants who set in motion a paradigm for contributing to society through donating their collections to the city's leading art institution, the Art Association of Montreal (later the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts). By situating their activities within this framework of collecting and donating, it is possible to provide a picture ofhow the Renaissance collection of the Museum came to be. Sadly - though hardly surprisingly - looking at this same trajectory reveals that there were significant works of European art that escaped transmission from collectors' hands to Museum walls, making the collection less envious than it might have otherwise been. IV ACKNOWLEDGMENTS There are a number of people who have assisted me greatly in researching and completing this thesis. First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Catherine MacKenzie for having been exceedingly patient and encouraging; her humour, insight and constant vitality throughout this project has ensured that the final product would be something of quality and merit. I am infinitely grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her. I would also like to thank Dr. Loren Lerner for having graciously accepted to serve as my reader and for having provided valuable insight into sources for the exploration of Canadian heritage. I am also profoundly grateful for the insight provided by Professor Sandra Paikowsky during the earliest stages of my research; her expertise was critical to the development of my topic. Mme Danielle Blanchette, Document Technician at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Archives, assisted me infinitely in conducting my research. I am also grateful to Claudine Nicol, secretary of the Archives department for her incessant cooperation. I would also like to thank my friend, Sheena Ellison, and my academic colleagues who have gone through the same experience and whose support was highly cherished, as well as my boyfriend Andrew, whose love and encouragement throughout these two years has been indispensable. And lastly, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my mother, Patrizia, for her unwavering support and motivation and for having provided me with the many opportunities I have had in life. Table of Contents List of Figures ? Introduction 1 Chapter I Collecting the Renaissance 18 Sir William Van Home 21 Richard Bladworth Angus 31 Donald Smith Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal 37 Robert Wilson Reford 41 Charles R. and Elwood Hosmer 45 Frederick Cleveland Morgan 51 Chapter II Gifting the Renaissance 56 Conclusion Expanding the Renaissance 72 Bibliography 77 APPENDIX I: List of Gifts ofRenaissance ArtworL· and Art Objects Made to the AAM or MMFAfrom 1913 to 2008 89 APPENDIX II: List ofPurchases ofRenaissance Artworks and Art Objects Made by the AAM or MMFA from 1919 to 2009 93 APPENDIX III: Van Home Schedule A & Valuations, 1945 ....97 APPENDIX IV: Bequest ofMiss Adaline Van Home, 1945 99 APPENDIX V: Inventory ofIndefinite Loan to MMFA from the Estate ofthe Late Elwood B. Hosmer and the Estate ofthe Late Lucile E. Pillow, 19 71 .... 1 0 1 APPENDIX VI: Copy ofResolution, Bequest ofLord Strathcona 112 APPENDIX VII: List ofRejected Picturesfrom the Collection ofLord Strathcona 114 APPENDIX VIII: Press Release, Bequest ofthe Late Miss Olive Hosmer 117 APPENDIX IX: John W. Tempest Last Will and Testament 119 Figures 121 V LIST OF FIGURES Fig. 1 Hugh Montague Allan s House "Ravenscrag, " Pine Avenue, Montreal, QC, 1903 Fig. 2 George Stephen House, now the Mount Stephen Club, Drummond Street, Montreal, QC, 1934-35 Fig. 3 James Ross house, Peel Street, Montreal, QC, ca. 1910 Fig. 4 Chateau d'Amboise, Loire Valley, France, ca. 1495 Fig. 5 Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur Catholic Cathedral, now Mary Queen ofthe World Basilica, Montreal, QC, ca.1934, Anonymous Fig. 6 Art Association building, Phillips ' Square, Montreal, QC, ca. 1 893 Fig. 7 Palazzo Medici, Florence, Italy, Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, ca. 1445- 1460 Fig. 8 Marinus Van Raymerswaele (attributed to), Saint Jerome in his Study, ca. 1530 Fig. 9 Lucas Cranach the Elder, Portrait ofa Preacher Fig. 1 0 Dominico Theotocopuli, known as El Greco, El Señor de la Casa de Leiva, Councillor ofState and War, Governor ofthe States of Vanos and Riotoria, ca. 1580-86 Fig. 11 Libraiy, Van Home house, Montreal, QC, 1920 Fig. 12 Flemish Painter active in Antwerp, Portrait ofa Young Man Fig. 13 Sandro Botticelli, Madonna and Child Fig. 14 Lord Strathcona's residence, Montreal, QC, 1916 Fig. 1 5 Giorgio Vasari (Giulio Romano?), The Circumcision Fig. 16 Leonardo da Vinci (attributed to), Madonna ofthe Yarnwinder VI 1 7 Agnolo Bronzino, Portrait ofa Young Man, Ferdinand de ' Medici 1 8 Charles R. Hosmer, Library andfireplace ofhome on Drummond Street, Montreal, QC 1 9 Bartolomeo Passarotti, A Young Man, sixteenth century 20 Paolo Veronese, Cephalus and Procris, ca. 1560 21 Bartholomäus Bruyn the Elder, The Virgin and Child with Sainte Anne, ca. 1530 22 Bartolomäus Bruyn the Elder, St.. Elizabeth ofHungary Giving Alms, ca.1530 23 Brussels Tapestry, Holy Kinship: Virgin and Child with St. Anne, early sixteenth century 24 Bernardo Martorell, Annunciation ofthe Virgin, 1427 25 Antonio Pisano (Pisanello), Marriage Medal ofLeonello d'Esté, ca. 1444 26 Credenza, 2nd half 1 6th century, Italy 27 Andrea Mantegna, Judith and Dido, ca. 1480 28 Paolo Caliari, called Veronese, Christ Crowned with Thorns, ca. 1584-85 1 INTRODUCTION Montreal from the 1860s onward evokes images of a burgeoning industrial and financial center, one gaining a strong foot in North America through its participation in industry and business.1 Evidence of the economic boom was reflected in the city's cultural life and built environment, both of which were being promoted by an emerging class of 'aristocracy', many members of which were Scottish and British immigrants of Protestant background.2 The majority acquired parts of their fortunes through their involvement in the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), and many used some of their wealth to build opulent mansions in what came to be known as Montreal's Golden Square Mile.3 At least three of Montreal's new aristocracy - Sir Hugh Allan (1810-1882), George Stephen (1829-1921), and James Ross (1848-1913) - elected to build lavish residences - and thereby mark the city with indications of their wealth and power - in the style of the Renaissance Revival. The Allan House, also called 'Ravenscrag' (fig. 1) was commissioned by Sir Hugh Allan in 1 863, by which time he was already a well- established shipping magnate, financier and capitalist. Designed by architects John William Hopkins and Victor Roy, the house has several balconies and verandas and is surmounted by a square tower, all of which were very clearly modelled on the Tuscan 1 For a recent study of this epoch, see Robert Lewis, Manufacturing Montreal: The Making ofan Industrial Landscape, 1850-1930 (Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 2000).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 11-Ti: MONTREAL VLLA; 1830 Ta 1910 by Johan K. Jooste, AA Dipl. a Thesis Submitted Ta the F Aculty of Graduate , Studie
    11-ti: MONTREAL VLLA; 1830 ta 1910 by Johan K. Jooste, A.A. Dipl. A thesis submitted ta the F aculty of Graduate , Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture. ( " School of Architecture McGill University Montreal, Qu'bec November, 1984 \ @ Johan K. Jooste, 1984 - ,~ '" " '11: .' 1 " l' ", ,'. ~ ... 1: _ {- .., '~".-~ '.d.r--' , . ; ~ <, TABLE Of' CONTENTS \ ) ABSTRACT Iv ' \ .-( ... RESUME" " v ACKNOWLE~tvENTS vi { LIST OF" ILLUSTRATIONS vii li LO INTRODUCTION '1 Illustrations 6 Notes 7 D . ~~~O) HISTORICAL OEVELOPtJENT CF Tt-E TYPE 8 " , 2.1 The Term IV illa" 8 2.2 \ The Villa as Retteat 9 . 2.3 The Villa as Power House 14 2.4 The Plan Form 18 ~' Illustrations 24 Notes 35 3.0 1l-E OWl'ERS AND ~n-E VILLAS 37 3.1 Victorien Montreal 37 3.2 Ravenscrag 41 3.3 Lord Mount Stephenls Residence 42 3.4 Hugh Graham Residence 43 3.5 Hosmer- House 43 3.6 Ross Residence 44 ,. 1 \ \ 1 / / .~-------- , " ," " " Q' , ,1 , r /, / -, ii '-) , ' , 3.7 Molson Residence 44 - 3.8 purvÎs Ha~ 4S l.9 The Typical Plan " 46 Illustrations , " 41 Notes 56 , ' 1\.0 LIVING IN ll-E VR..LA 59' •• 4.1 Introduction . .. " 60 4.2 Principles of Planning , 61 4.3 The Householçj 63 4.4 The Family Apartment~ .' 66 The Drawing Room ~. 66 T~p Dining Room ' 67 Other Day Rooms 68 Evbning Rooms 69 4.5 The Servants' Apartments 71 ~ Kitchen Offices 71 Sleeping Quarters t ., 72 Other Zones 73 - 4.6 Site Development 73 4.7 The ~ervant Problem 75 Illustrations "' r 7,6 II, ' , Notes .; 83 l ~- ) ~ \ ~ " 1 , ~ 'P \ , < , , .
    [Show full text]
  • Notes and Communications the Canadian Architecture
    Notes and Communications The Canadian Architecture Collection, McGill University by SUSAN WAGG In the spring of 1904, Percy Nobbs, the director of McGill University's Department of Architecture, took the unprecedented step of sending his students out to make measured drawings of some of the older buildings in Montreal. In this way, he noted, the department was "seeking to preserve an authentic record of some of the ancient landmarks of Montreal and at the same time to wean its students from drawing paper, photographs and plaster casts and to introduce them to things as they are in solid fact."' After Nobbs resigned as director at the end of 1909 in order to carry on an active architectural practice, his long-time friend and successor as Macdonald Professor of Architecture at McGill, Ramsay Traquair, became increas- ingly involved in the task of amassing a permanent record comprising measured drawings, sketches, and photographs of the old architecture of Quebec. Scottish- born and trained, both men, when they came to Canada in the early twentieth century, were infused with the current British concern for that land's historic buildings, which were being decimated by industrialization. In their adopted country, Nobbs and Traquair became pioneers in the appreciation of eastern Canada's threatened architectural heritage, their legacy to future generations forming a significant part of what is today known as the Canadian Architecture Collection in the Blackader- Lauterman Library of Architecture and Art at McGill University. The first official record of this collection appears to be a brief statement in the 1917 University Annual Report announcing that the "staff of the [Architecture] Department is collecting a number of drawings and photographs of historic buildings in Canada, with the object eventually of forming a record of the older architecture of the Dominion, particularly of the Province of Quebec."2 The following year, the photographs of the late Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • Searching for May Maxwell: Bahá’Í Millennial Feminism, Transformative Identity & Globalism in the New World Order
    Searching for May Maxwell: Bahá’í Millennial Feminism, Transformative Identity & Globalism in the new World Order Shaping Women’s Role in Early Bahá’i Culture 1898-1940 A Thesis Submitted to the College of Graduate Studies and Research in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, SK, Canada By Selena M. Crosson © Copyright Selena M. Crosson, June 2013. All rights reserved. PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this thesis/dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree from the University of Saskatchewan, I agree that the Libraries of this University may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this thesis/dissertation in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my thesis/dissertation work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis/dissertation or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my thesis/dissertation. DISCLAIMER Reference in this thesis/dissertation to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the University of Saskatchewan.
    [Show full text]
  • Ritz-Carlton Montreal – a History Few Hotels in the World Are Inexorably
    Ritz-Carlton Montreal – A History Few hotels in the world are inexorably linked to the history of the cities where they are located. Ritz-Carlton Montreal is one of those hotels. For more than a century, the “Grand Dame of Sherbrooke Street” has been at the social heart of Montreal. Not only has the hotel welcomed illustrious guests for a century, it has been the place where eminent local Montrealers from the worlds of politics, literature, fashion, high society and the arts have come to meet over a glass of champagne or lunch in the garden. Important events in the history of Quebec have been discussed here, royalty have slept here, and weddings have been celebrated here. The hotel has proven itself able to adapt to changing times, always remaining a source of pride for the city. Perhaps it is because, from the very beginning, the hotel was built to the exacting standards of the legendary hotelier, César Ritz. The idea of a luxury hotel on Sherbrooke Street was the dream of four wealthy Montreal investors who felt the city needed a property fit to welcome the “carriage trade”. The hotel was to have been named The Carlton, until one of the investors, Charles Hosmer, suggested that the property would benefit from the input from his friend César Ritz. Ritz agreed to give the rights of his name to the hotel provided it included luxuries that were very rare at the time, including washrooms in every room. Other amenities that Ritz insisted upon were around-the-clock dining, an excellent concierge desk and most importantly – a grand staircase so that the ladies could make dramatic entrances in their gowns during formal functions.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 CHAPTER TWO the New Mckim, Mead and White Building 1904
    1 CHAPTER TWO The New McKim, Mead and White Building 1904-1906 After the destruction of the John Abbot house, a meeting of the Directors of the Mount Royal Club was convened at the Canadian Pacific Board Room in Windsor Station on 5 March, 1904. It was agreed that a clubhouse fully equipped in all respects inclusive of furnishings was to be built at a cost of approximately $125,000.1 A subsequent committee meeting was held about three weeks later to discuss the advisability of employing a New York architect, “but nothing definite was agreed upon.”2 However, the architectural community in Montreal soon learned the Mount Royal Club was in the process of hiring for its new building and considering employing an American. On 8 April, 1904 Club president, Richard B. Angus, received a letter from the city of Montreal Treasurer, William Robb which stated: “our own architects should be considered, as unlike the renovation of the Bank of Montreal under way at the time, which entailed features which were new [in the city]…, the restoration of the clubhouse is quite within the compass of our home talent.” He then offered to introduce his own son-in-law, the architect, David Robertson Brown (1869-1946) who was also a friend and associate of Edward Maxwell, the earlier architect of some of the Abbott House renovations. 3 On 11 April a new building committee was formed, comprised of Alfred Baumgarten, head of the St. Lawrence Sugar Refining Company, Charles Meredith, a 1 Mount Royal Club Archive: Minute Book, 5 March, 1904, 188-189.
    [Show full text]
  • Going National
    CHAPTER TWO Going National "Our Progressive Ideas" o A MARITIMER, STEPPING OFF THE TRAIN, MONTREAL IN 1887 WAS A CITY T of expanding wealth and possibilities. It was Canada's largest city: its population, just cresting 200,000 in 1887, dwarfed Halifax's, which had not even reached 40,000. From Montreal's stations, one could board the newly completed Canadian Pacific Railway and be in Vancouver in five days or - as Edson Pease and Tom Kenny would so often do - ride the Grand Trunk to Riviere-du-Loup and there connect with the Intercolonial for all points east. To varying degrees, Ottawa, Toronto, and the emerging cities of the West all seemed caught in Montreal's web. The iron tube of the Victoria Bridge, a marvel of Victorian engineering, had conquered the St. Lawrence and given the city access to its bustling American rivals to the south, Philadelphia, Boston, and New York. In their nineteenth-century passion for anatomical metaphors, economic commentators portrayed the St. Lawrence as the pulsing commercial aorta of Canadian commerce, with Montreal as its throbbing heart. If Halifax was struggling to maintain its frail hinterland, Montreal tapped its hinterland with rela­ tive ease and profit. Nowhere was the power of Montreal more tangibly displayed than on St. James Street, the bastion of the Anglo-Scottish entrepreneurship that had for over a century propelled the city forward. The narrowness of the street as it ran through the area just to the north of the port accentuated the seeming omnipotence of its looming commercial bUildings. The grandeur and solidity of the Merchants Bank of Canada, Molsons Bank, or the Montreal City and District Savings Bank were clearly evident.
    [Show full text]
  • 300 Princess Street Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company
    300 PRINCESS STREET CANADIAN FAIRBANKS-MORSE COMPANY WAREHOUSE City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings & Resources Committee Researcher: M. Peterson June 2015 300 PRINCESS STREET – CANADIAN FAIRBANKS-MORSE COMPANY WAREHOUSE Winnipeg in the early 1890s was on the verge of a spectacular era of growth, development and maturity that would almost completely change the City by World War I. But this comprehensive growth followed patterns established a decade earlier and resulted in specific districts within city boundaries even after this frenzied period of growth. The real estate and construction boom of the early 1880s was intimately connected to the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) around Winnipeg and onto the western prairies. Land prices in the small capital city skyrocketed, the population soared and solid brick structures began replacing the small wooden shacks that dotted the mud streets and avenues. Perhaps more important, however, was the beginning of the segregation of the various sectors of the city – residential, commercial and industrial – and their specific buildings.1 The huge advance in land prices along Main Street north of Portage Avenue necessitated the replacement of the earlier residential development (Plate 1) with large commercial structures. Investors chose to locate near one of the most important buildings, City Hall, from which would come assistance in advancing both singular business interests and those of the community at large. Commercial interests, both local and from Eastern Canada, were quick to locate in this area. The city rapidly assumed the role of wholesale hub for all of Western Canada. Companies like R.J. Whitla, Stobart, Eden and Company, George D.
    [Show full text]
  • Note to Users
    NOTE TO USERS This reproduction is the best 'copyavailable The Dominion Express Building: a Cultural Investigation. Andrej Peter Kopac A Thesis in The Department of Art History Presented in Partial Fuifiliment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts at Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada March 1998. O Andrej Peter Kopac, 1998. National Library Bibliothèque nationale I*m of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395. rue Wellington Ottawa ON KIA ON4 OttawaON K1AON4 canada Canada The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant à la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or seil reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microfom, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la fome de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts fiom it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. AB STRACT: The Dominion Express Building: a Cultural Investigation. Andrej Peter Kopac The Dominion Express Building, situated in the heart of Old Montreal's business district, was commissioned by the Dominion Express Company and designed by the architects Edward and William Sutherland Maxwell in 1912.
    [Show full text]
  • Searching for May Maxwell: Bahá’Í Millennial Feminism, Transformative Identity & Globalism in the New World Order
    Searching for May Maxwell: Bahá’í Millennial Feminism, Transformative Identity & Globalism in the new World Order Shaping Women’s Role in Early Bahá’i Culture 1898-1940 A Thesis Submitted to the College of Graduate Studies and Research in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of History University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, SK, Canada By Selena M. Crosson © Copyright Selena M. Crosson, June 2013. All rights reserved. PERMISSION TO USE In presenting this thesis/dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree from the University of Saskatchewan, I agree that the Libraries of this University may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this thesis/dissertation in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my thesis/dissertation work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis/dissertation or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my thesis/dissertation. DISCLAIMER Reference in this thesis/dissertation to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the University of Saskatchewan.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 CHAPTER ONE the Founding of the Mount Royal Club in 1899 and Its
    1 CHAPTER ONE The Founding of the Mount Royal Club in 1899 and its Position within Montreal’s Cultural and Social Milieu In 1899, the year the Mount Royal Club was founded, Montreal was at the apex of its power and influence. It was a time of unparalleled prosperity and exponential growth resulting from the city’s privileged geographical location and the spread of industry, railroads and emerging steamship transportation.1 By 1905 the city was referred to as “the chief city – principal seaport and the financial, social and commercial capital of the Dominion of Canada.” 2 The English and Scottish minority of Montreal dominated the economic life of the city and it was they who profited most from this “unbridled capitalism.”3 In particular, the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway at the west coast of Canada in 1885 and its positioning of the company’s eastern terminus in Montreal, brought wealth and prosperity to the city.4 This powerful corporation worked in tandem with the Bank of Montreal: “symbolically, in 1885, it was the bank’s principal shareholder, vice-president and soon-to-be president, Donald Smith (later to become Lord Strathcona), who hammered in the last spike on the rails of Canada’s first 1 Paul-André Linteau. “Factors in the Development of Montreal” in Montreal Metropolis 1880-1930, Isabelle Gournay and France Vanlaethem eds. (Montreal: Canadian Centre for Architecture, 1998), 28. 2 Frederick George, Montreal: The Grand Union Hotel (Montreal: The Benallack Lithographing Printing Co., 1905), 2. 3 Francois Rémillard, Mansions of the Golden Square Mile: Montreal 1850-1930 (Montreal: Meridian Press, 1987), 20.
    [Show full text]
  • Hosmer Genealogy
    HOSMER GENEALOGY DESCENDANTS OF JAMES HOSl\,IER WHO El\HGRATED TO AMERICA IN 1035 AND SETTLED IN CONCORD, J\'.lASS. BY GEORGE LEONARD HOSMER (2058) TECHNICAL CO!\IPOSITION COMP ANY CAl\-IBTIIDGE, JHASS. 1928 PREFACE The purpose of this book is lo present to the Hosmer family certain information about the ancestors and descendants of Jame,:; Hosmer which is now to be found only in scnttered records. It is not the work of an expert genealogist. It does not lay claim to literary merit or to any large amount of original work. Begun originally as a record of one srnall branch of the family, it has grown to include the entire "Concord Family." The work of collecting and arranging the data has been done amid the rush of other business and cannot tl1crefore be as accurate as though the author had devoted his entire time to it for a long period, as is quite necessary for a ·thorough piece of genealogical work. It cannot pretend to be complete, but it is hoped that it is i·eason­ ably accurate as far as it goes. There are t~o reasons for publishing the book in the present incomplete form instead of waiting until it is more fully developed. First, postponement is always risky; many manuscripts have been prepared but not printed, and later these valuable collections have been lost or have been placed where they are of use to but few. A book that is published, even if decidedly imperfect, is of greater use than a pile of manuscript. Second, information is in some instances difficult to obtain, especially where those who are in o, position to furnish it do not reu.Iize just what is uee<lcll and how importn.nt it is to send it promptly.
    [Show full text]