It was far better then than now. The food at the Donut King was miles ahead in taste and quality and price than the generic grease served up at La Belle Province, and they actually had a better parking situation then than now too. I would rather have motels like the Laval and the West End, where I can nap with former teen models as they imbibe their Oxycontin than another who-cares Subway franchie, or Marathon Construction who should have put their yard in an industrial park somewhere.
Y'know the city has all this subsidized housing for the poor but there's no subsidized motels for poor people who want a quickie.
Of course they should subsidize the former teen models as well, but that would raise their rates and then we'd have a hooker bubble that would take down the economy of the entire western world leading to the rise of communism.
We used to get drunk as lords in the old Bon Voyage Taverne which was opposite Piccassos forty five-odd years ago.
The latter was constructed c. 1970as I recall?
Before the mess called Decarie Expressway and the Turcot Interchange, Upper Lachine was a VERY busy truck route from downtown
For that matter OLD Decarie was a very busy route North to Cote de Liesse and, thence, Cartierville and the Laurentians.
The trucks were still gasoline and they would backfire all the way down the slope past Rafael Ruffo Motel at Brock going West, and down the slope from Decarie to St Remi going East.
Hot, gassy and noisy.
A veritable slum of junky Motels and car dealerships.
Visual diarrhea.
To the West could be found International Trucks at the Junction towards Elhurst Dairy, SKF Bearings and a Coca Cola bottling plant.
Peg's Motel was one of the sleazier sleep emporiums just East of Elmhurst.
Having said the above, there were still several plant nurseries and gardens between Upper Lachine and the Escarpment down to Turcot into the Seventies.
From the late 1960's: The A&W Drive-in just outside of Rose Bowl at Cavendish. Waitresses would bring your order to your car on a tray which hooked onto your window.
Nittolo's (where Loblaws is now) - we got all our plants, seeds, etc. there.
The street became St.James/St.Jacques in 1965 or 1966 according to the Lovell's directories of the time.
Yes, Montreal's lack of support for former teen models meant that we lost out to Michigan in the quest to attract relocators from Georgia by way of Indiana...but we should be hyping up our provincial drug plan...cheap prices on Xanax/Vicodin/Percocet/Oxycontin...that is sure to attract them!
My dad worked at Dominion Bridge in Lachine until '81. After leaving there, he once used the DB parking lot to park for free so he could go to a nearby store. The guy at the gate said "Are you sure you work here?" Father replied "Yes," and that's how I learned to lie to get free things, and how I learned to write boring stories.
Back in the early Sixties after the streetcars were gone for good, there was a 106 Upper Lachine autobus which terminated at it's West end at the corner of Harley and Elmhurst, which, at that time, was still a vacant lot.
Also terminating at that location was the 90 Lachine autobus.
The sleazy Asslay Market on that corner came later, which suited he neighbourhood, even then.
Passenger from these two routes could then use commuter trains at the adjacent CPR Montreal West Station, or walk North across the tracks to MTC's Elmhurst Terminus and use autobusses 102 Somerled, 105 Sherbrooke and 162 Westminster which terminated at the onetime streetcar loop facing Trenholme Ave on Sherbrooke.
In streetcar days there was a foot path South of the Shell service station at Elmhurst and Sherbrooke.
As I recall route 162 was an extra fare where it went out of Montreal entering Montreal West.
The 162 route crossed 101 Cote St Luc at Westminster, which was also extra fare.
Other west end bus routes included 103 Monkland which then terminated at Grand and Somerled, the cobblestones of the turning loop still partly being used at the entrance of the church just North of Somerled on the West side of Grand.
If one goes to the corner of Grand and Somerled you can see the rails of the streetcar route last used in 1956, curving West onto Somerled.
The 104 NDG autobus travelled North on Walkley turning at Cote St Luc?
When created, routes 102 thru 105 commenced at Atwater Terminus South of the Forum.
In the streetcar days, the cars Wyed at Somerled and Walkley, turning North on Walkley by the-then Steinberg's store, and backing South across Somerled, boarding passengers just South of Somerled, then turning East on Somerled to go back downtown.
One of the first traffic lights in the area was installed at Somerled and Walkley to aid the streetcars in turning.
Once the streetcars were removed in 1956 and the autobusses put on, the traffic light was removed for several years, then reinstalled.
Until 1956, there was a shuttle bus from the front of fire station on Somerled at Cumberland which travelled West along Somerled to Patricia then South to Elmhurst Terminus where it connected with streetcar service on Sherbrooke.
The streets in NDG were all two-way until 1956 or so, when there became more auto traffic and more problems with cars and, especially the new busses, passing each other on two-way streets, most often in winter.
What is now called Upper Lachine once used to be named Western.
After WW II, Raphael Ruffo was a Westend contractor who built many homes in the NDG area in the early Fifties.
He once had a salvage yard on the North side of Cote St Luc road just West of the private Tramways right of way North/South between CSL and Queen Mary where the Gym/carwash is facing Girouard.
There was a ratty dark red abandoned house in the yard surrounded by old doors and lumber from demolished houses.
Both the 101 and 102 autobusses travelling West stopped there to connect with the streetcars North and South, and, just before the streetcars were removed in 1959, the private tracks were paved, and busses use the private route until the Eighties.
On a dark night in the rain this was a spooky place to stand with the old house looming behind a rickety old fence.
Love to get comments! Please, please, please speak your mind ! Links welcome - please google "how to embed a link" it'll make your comment much more fun and clickable.
It was far better then than now. The food at the Donut King was miles ahead in taste and quality and price than the generic grease served up at La Belle Province, and they actually had a better parking situation then than now too. I would rather have motels like the Laval and the West End, where I can nap with former teen models as they imbibe their Oxycontin than another who-cares Subway franchie, or Marathon Construction who should have put their yard in an industrial park somewhere.
ReplyDeleteY'know the city has all this subsidized housing for the poor but there's no subsidized motels for poor people who want a quickie.
ReplyDeleteOf course they should subsidize the former teen models as well, but that would raise their rates and then we'd have a hooker bubble that would take down the economy of the entire western world leading to the rise of communism.
We used to get drunk as lords in the old Bon Voyage Taverne which was opposite Piccassos forty five-odd years ago.
ReplyDeleteThe latter was constructed c. 1970as I recall?
Before the mess called Decarie Expressway and the Turcot Interchange, Upper Lachine was a VERY busy truck route from downtown
For that matter OLD Decarie was a very busy route North to Cote de Liesse and, thence, Cartierville and the Laurentians.
The trucks were still gasoline and they would backfire all the way down the slope past Rafael Ruffo Motel at Brock going West, and down the slope from Decarie to St Remi going East.
Hot, gassy and noisy.
A veritable slum of junky Motels and car dealerships.
Visual diarrhea.
To the West could be found International Trucks at the Junction towards Elhurst Dairy, SKF Bearings and a Coca Cola bottling plant.
Peg's Motel was one of the sleazier sleep emporiums just East of Elmhurst.
Having said the above, there were still several plant nurseries and gardens between Upper Lachine and the Escarpment down to Turcot into the Seventies.
Kristian, you sure this isn't earlier than 1980? Because I remember Sergakis saying he opened Picasso's in 1979 on the site of that Texaco.
ReplyDeleteBTW, anyone know what's happening with said eatery? I drove by it this evening and all the lights were on inside. It's looking quite raunchy now.
Yes it's from the Gazoogle, 1980, but I lost the link, it's theoretically possible they ran a photo from the year before but I doubt it.
ReplyDeleteIf you look at streetview Picassos is one click west of where that gas station was.
Remind me of how to add a clickable link to these comments and I'll show youze.
From the late 1960's: The A&W Drive-in just outside of Rose Bowl at Cavendish. Waitresses would bring your order to your car on a tray which hooked onto your window.
ReplyDeleteNittolo's (where Loblaws is now) - we got all our plants, seeds, etc. there.
The street became St.James/St.Jacques in 1965 or 1966 according to the Lovell's directories of the time.
[a href=url_here]clickable_text_here[/a]
ReplyDeletePlug in the two italicized items, replace the square brackets with angled ones, and you're good to go habs go!
Yes, Montreal's lack of support for former teen models meant that we lost out to Michigan in the quest to attract relocators from Georgia by way of Indiana...but we should be hyping up our provincial drug plan...cheap prices on Xanax/Vicodin/Percocet/Oxycontin...that is sure to attract them!
ReplyDeleteDidn't you (or your brother) live nt he back of one of these buildings? Shavers?
ReplyDeleteLike this: Wooly Bully
ReplyDeleteIt's the thing to do.
My dad worked at Dominion Bridge in Lachine until '81. After leaving there, he once used the DB parking lot to park for free so he could go to a nearby store. The guy at the gate said "Are you sure you work here?" Father replied "Yes," and that's how I learned to lie to get free things, and how I learned to write boring stories.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of motels, I went by the Motel Raphaël this week, and they are digging the “street” between the two rows of rooms.
ReplyDeleteIt seems the foundations that are uncovered are twice as high as the rooms themselves…
I guess that there is more than meets the eye.
Back in the early Sixties after the streetcars were gone for good, there was a 106 Upper Lachine autobus which terminated at it's West end at the corner of Harley and Elmhurst, which, at that time, was still a vacant lot.
ReplyDeleteAlso terminating at that location was the 90 Lachine autobus.
The sleazy Asslay Market on that corner came later, which suited he neighbourhood, even then.
Passenger from these two routes could then use commuter trains at the adjacent CPR Montreal West Station, or walk North across the tracks to MTC's Elmhurst Terminus and use autobusses 102 Somerled, 105 Sherbrooke and 162 Westminster which terminated at the onetime streetcar loop facing Trenholme Ave on Sherbrooke.
In streetcar days there was a foot path South of the Shell service station at Elmhurst and Sherbrooke.
As I recall route 162 was an extra fare where it went out of Montreal entering Montreal West.
The 162 route crossed 101 Cote St Luc at Westminster, which was also extra fare.
Other west end bus routes included 103 Monkland which then terminated at Grand and Somerled, the cobblestones of the turning loop still partly being used at the entrance of the church just North of Somerled on the West side of Grand.
If one goes to the corner of Grand and Somerled you can see the rails of the streetcar route last used in 1956, curving West onto Somerled.
The 104 NDG autobus travelled North on Walkley turning at Cote St Luc?
When created, routes 102 thru 105 commenced at Atwater Terminus South of the Forum.
In the streetcar days, the cars Wyed at Somerled and Walkley, turning North on Walkley by the-then Steinberg's store, and backing South across Somerled, boarding passengers just South of Somerled, then turning East on Somerled to go back downtown.
One of the first traffic lights in the area was installed at Somerled and Walkley to aid the streetcars in turning.
Once the streetcars were removed in 1956 and the autobusses put on, the traffic light was removed for several years, then reinstalled.
Until 1956, there was a shuttle bus from the front of fire station on Somerled at Cumberland which travelled West along Somerled to Patricia then South to Elmhurst Terminus where it connected with streetcar service on Sherbrooke.
The streets in NDG were all two-way until 1956 or so, when there became more auto traffic and more problems with cars and, especially the new busses, passing each other on two-way streets, most often in winter.
What is now called Upper Lachine once used to be named Western.
Thank You!
After WW II, Raphael Ruffo was a Westend contractor who built many homes in the NDG area in the early Fifties.
ReplyDeleteHe once had a salvage yard on the North side of Cote St Luc road just West of the private Tramways right of way North/South between CSL and Queen Mary where the Gym/carwash is facing Girouard.
There was a ratty dark red abandoned house in the yard surrounded by old doors and lumber from demolished houses.
Both the 101 and 102 autobusses travelling West stopped there to connect with the streetcars North and South, and, just before the streetcars were removed in 1959, the private tracks were paved, and busses use the private route until the Eighties.
On a dark night in the rain this was a spooky place to stand with the old house looming behind a rickety old fence.
Thinking rats, and ghosts.
Thank You.