Tag Archives: Heritage Montreal

Project 365 – Day 86: Silo no 5

By Montreal in Pictures | Published March 26, 2012

March 26 2012

Today I decided to head down the old port specifically to get some shots of the iconic Silo no 5 grain elevator.

Before reaching the grain elevator however, I took the following shot of a couple of ships that seem to be permanently moored alongside Quai Alexandra at the far west side of the old port.

Ships in the old port

A couple of other images I shot prior to shooting the silo no 5 was down rue Mill that runs alongside the Farine Five Roses building and beneath the Bonaventure Expressway.

Farine Five Roses grain silo arch

The Farine Five Roses building was built in 1946 for Ogilvie Flour Mill in 1946. The original neon was Ogilvie Flour Mill and was changed in 1954 to Farine Five Roses Flour. The French language Bill 101 forced the withdrawal of the word Flour from the sign and so reads Farine Five Roses .

Farine Five Roses sign

Farine Five Roses Grain silo and building

Flood gate from the Lachine Canal

Okay, onto the main subject of this post – Silo no 5.

Silo no 5 was designed and built by John S. Metcalfe between 1903 and 1906, with later additions being made in 1913, 1924 and 1958.

Despite being abandoned since 1996 and in a state of disrepair, Silo no 5 on Pointe-du-Moulin pier is a well known landmark in the old port of Montreal. The pier on which the silo stands was built in the 1840s with the excavated dirt from the widening of the Lachine Canal.

On November 1st, 2010, Canada Lands Company (CLC) acquired the site of the Pointe-du-Moulin from the Montreal Port Authority and is currently reviewing possible uses for the site. A recent idea put forward is the Siloctet Rehab Montreal project that plans to convert annexe B1 to an energy efficient data center consisting of 112,000 servers. Other suggestions include touristic attractions, while many would prefer to see it demolished entirely.

Silo no 5 in the old port

Silo no 5

Silo no 5 from rue Mill

Silo no 5

Last year Heritage Montreal ran guided tours inside the Silo. Unfortunately I missed that opportunity but hoping they will repeat again this summer – I have my name on a waiting list just in case.

To view images in gallery format, simply click on one of the images below.

Thanks for stopping by. Until next time.

- Martin

Posted in 365 Project, Location | Also tagged architecture, boats, Bonaventure Expressway, CLC, Farine Five Roses, Farine five roses neon sign, grain, Grain elevator, HDR, Lachine Canal, Montreal Port Authority, Old Port, Pointe-du-Moulin, Quai Alexandra, ships, Silo #5, Silo no 5, Siloctet, Vieux Montréal, Vieux Port de Montréal Comments Off

Project 365 – Day 55: Endangered Heritage buildings

By Montreal in Pictures | Published February 24, 2012

Feb 24 2012

I’ll be the first to admit, today’s photos are nothing to write home about, but I’ve got a new mission!

At a press conference yesterday, Heritage Montreal unveiled a list of 10 endangered heritage sites in Montreal together with a list of sites they have put on a watch list. I thought I should aim to get pictures of the buildings listed before they are probably lost forever.

I’ve listed the sites highlighted by Heritage Montreal at the end of the post, but for today I selected the Rodier Building on Notre-Dame street and the Dow Planetarium on Saint Jacques street. I plan to try and cover many others on the list in the near future.

First the Rodier Building. This triangular building is considered by some to be Montreal’s miniature version of New York’s Flatiron.

The Rodier Building – rue Notre-Dame

The Rodier Building was built in 1875 by Charles Séraphin Rodier Jr. who was the nephew of Charles-Séraphin Rodier, the mayor of Montreal from 1858-1862.

Most recently, the Rodier Building was occupied by the retailer Baron Sports which closed its doors in late 2010 and now sits vacant awaiting its fate in the Bonaventure Expressway redevelopment plan.

The Rodier Building – rue Notre-Dame

Just a few steps away to the east is the Dow Planetarium.

Dow Planetarium

The Planetarium was inaugurated on April 1, 1966 by Montreal’s mayor Jean Drapeau. The Planetarium was conceived by Dr. Pierre Gendron, professor of chemistry and founding Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Ottawa and an avid amateur astronomer. At the time, Dr. Gendron was also president of the board of directors of Dow Breweries. It was through his impetus that Dow Breweries decided to endow Montréal with a world class planetarium.

The Planetarium were developed by the architectural firm of David-Barott-Boulva. Although not visible from street level, the dome in the center of the building resembles Saturn surrounded by its rings.

Front entrance of the Dow Planetarium

Side view of the Dow Planetarium

Rear view of the Dow Planetarium

In Ocober 2011, the Planetarium closed its doors after 45 years. Star gazers though will have a new world class Planetarium which is currently under construction next to the Olympic Stadium. The Rio Tinto Alcan Planetarium is due to open in the spring, 2013.

I was hoping that the projector would still be at the Dow and that I could gain access to take some shots of it – I thought it would make a great HDR subject. Unfortunately I was informed it had been dismantled in October last year and is currently in storage. It will however be on display at the new Planetarium, so I may still manage to get my shot.

Standing guard at the front of the Dow building is a monument to Nicolaus Copernicus, inaugurated as part of Exo ’67 and installed at its present location in Chaboillez Square in 1975. The original sculpture was cast in 1822 by Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770-1844) and erected in downtown Warsaw in 1830. The Montreal replica was presented by the Polish-Canadian community in celebration of the Canadian Confederation Centennial and the Millenium of Christian Poland.

Monument to Polish astronomer Nicholas Copernicus at the Dow Planetarium

I’m not sure if the armillary sphere that Copernicus should be holding in his left hand has been removed or stolen (hopefully the former) and if plans are to relocate the monument to the new Planetarium.

Just a few meters away is an equatorial sundial by Dutch artist Herman J. van der Heide.

Equatorial sundial sculpture by Herman J. van der Heide

Although not on the list of endangered buildings, I also shot this old building next to the railway line on rue Ottawa and fairly certain it will not be a survivor of the Bonaventure Expressway redevelopment.

Derelict building on rue Ottawa

Finally for today, just across the street from the Dow is the ETS (École de technologie supérieure). Outside the main entrance is this modern sculpture – unfortunately I don’t know the name of the work or artist.

Sculpture outside the ETS

As I mentioned at the start, here is the complete list of endangered buildings and sites flagged by Montreal Heritage:

Viger Square, between Viger, Berri, St. Antoine and St. Denis Sts (see recent post)
Rodier Building, 32 Notre-Dame St. W
Cadieux Forge, 815 St. Paul St
St. Laurent/Monument National City Block, 1190-1220 St. Laurent Blvd
Griffintown Horse Palace, Ottawa St. between Eleanor and Murray Sts
Redpath House, 457 rue du Musée
Bonheur d’Occasion Workers’ Houses, corner of St. Ambroise and St. Augustin Sts
Empress Theatre, 5560 Sherbrooke St. W
Très-Saint-Nom-de-Jésus Church, 1465 Desjardins St.
Hôpital Miséricorde, 970 René-Lévesque Blvd. E