Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours and the Old Port
Listen at the stop, then read the transcript and follow the sources behind the story.
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Transcript
Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours is closely associated with Marguerite Bourgeoys, the educator and religious founder who established the Congrégation de Notre-Dame.
Its position near the harbour made it a sailors' church, and model ships inside recall generations of maritime devotion.
The waterfront beyond explains Montréal's scale. The city became wealthy because it was a transfer point: ocean vessels, river craft, canals and later railways moved people and commodities through here.
Port labour was hard, dangerous and essential. Warehouses and quays connected Montréal to grain, timber, manufactured goods and global migration.
The Old Port today is leisure space, which can make industrial history feel distant. Historically the shoreline was noisy infrastructure rather than scenery.