The development of the Lachine sector is fundamentally tied to the Lachine Rapids, a stretch of water that prevented ships from travelling from Montreal to the Great Lakes. In the 17th century, when Lachine was a fur trading post and refuge, two roads were built: Lower Lachine Road, the first portage road that linked Lachine to Ville-Marie, and Upper Lachine Road (present-day Saint-Joseph Boulevard), which served as the main thoroughfare toward the west. To bypass the rapids, Dollier de Casson, Sulpician superior and seigneur of the Island of Montreal, initiated the first canal project in North America, in 1689. This project was never completed, but a few vestiges remain on the present territory of East Lachine.

The Lachine Canal was built in 1821, inaugurated in 1824, and expanded in 1843-1848. It facilitated the transportation of goods and provided the hydroelectricity needed to power industrial production. In 1847, railway services were introduced to Lachine. With this, the territory along the canal became the Canadian leader in industrial activity between 1873 and 1885.

At the end of the 19th century, several companies set up in the East Lachine sector: Dominion Bridge, which made a name for itself in bridge and metal structure construction, opened its doors north of Saint-Joseph Boulevard in 1885; Dominion Wire and Dominion Wire Rope and Cable arrived shortly thereafter. In the early 20th century, the equipment manufacturers Allis-Chalmers and Jenkins Brother completed the industrial landscape of East Lachine.

The territory is still home to several structures of heritage interest. There are structural components of historical significance: the vestiges of the Sulpicians’ canal, the Lachine Canal, the railway tracks and Saint-Joseph Boulevard.

• Designated in the Montréal Master Plan as one of the founding roads of Montreal, Saint-Joseph Boulevard (Upper Lachine Road) was instrumental to the industrial development of East Lachine and identified by the City of Montreal as a sector with strong archaeological potential.
• The vestiges of the Sulpicians’ canal, traces of which exist throughout East Lachine, is considered a significant element of the sector’s archaeological heritage. According to a 2008 heritage study, it is the only place where this canal could be developed in situ (City of Montreal, 2008).
• The Lachine Canal, a 14.5-km navigable route that borders East Lachine, is considered the cradle of Montreal’s development as a manufacturing centre. It has been recognized for its historical value by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (1929) and was designated a sector of exceptional heritage value by the Montréal Master Plan.

While several buildings have been destroyed, the sector still features some remarkable industrial complexes whose establishment and construction methods testify to the sector’s industrial past.

• The Dominion Bridge plant is a complex of 15 to 20 buildings erected between 1883 and 1947, and divided into two sectors by Saint-Joseph Boulevard.
• The arrival of Dominion Bridge prompted the creation of related industrial enterprises: Dominion Wire (1883) and Dominion Wire Rope (steel cables, 1886), which later became Stelfil.
• The buildings of the Allis-Chalmers Bullock Ltd complex have been recognized for their heritage value, and constitute a homogenous ensemble that has been completely conserved.
• The railway tracks in the sector also mark the landscape. Built starting in 1847, they crisscross the territory, connecting the various industrial complexes and the buildings within these complexes. The spur lines (interior and exterior) and retractable bridges that facilitated the transportation of merchandise testify to the site’s functional organization.

In October 2018, the executive committee of the City of Montreal mandated the Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) to hold public consultations on the future of the East Lachine sector. An information session was held on February 24, 2019. The City and the Lachine borough presented a proposal for an ecodistrict.

On March 18, 2018, the City launched a Bureau de projet partagé in which the Table de développement social de Lachine (Concert’Action Lachine) and the CAL coordinated consultations on the redevelopment of the East Lachine sector. Various players and experts in the area were also invited to participate.

More information will be added soon.