Mercier-Ouest

Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve · 70 photographs · 1947–1976

On Haig and Lyall streets, small single-family houses were built for veterans after the war. They followed the model of homes for wartime factory workers, but were built larger to accommodate bigger families. Housing groups of this kind appeared around 1950, drawing on Wartime Housing Limited designs. In Notre-Dame-des-Victoires, the parish founded in 1907 accompanied the industrialization of Longue-Pointe. E. A. Doucet’s church, its eclectic presbytery, a park and a brick school formed a parish centre.

Other large properties include the Longue-Pointe military base, the university mental health institute and Repos Saint-François-d’Assise cemetery. Port land and the L’Assomption and Louis-Hippolyte-Lafontaine industrial districts add to these extensive sites, separating pockets of housing across Mercier-Ouest. Parc Louis-Riel provides sports grounds and children’s play equipment. Parc Pierre-Bédard offers outdoor recreation and a wading pool on Rue Lacordaire. Near the river, the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine bridge-tunnel opened on March 11, 1967, providing a road crossing of the St. Lawrence.