Half a century ago no one in his wildest imaginings could have prophesied the amazing growth of the Canadian Metropolis. In 1861, Montreal had a population of but 91,000 and with its suburbs 101,439. It was practically the ancient Montreal, which had scarcely outgrown the days when it was a fortified city crowded within walls to resist the incursions of hostile Iroquois. The city was bounded on the north by the old creek at Craig Street, and did not extend west of Victoria Square.
Today Montreal with its suburbs has a population of approximately 600,000, while the streets which marked its limits fifty years ago are the centre of the downtown business district. Thus within a scant half century the population of Montreal has much more than multiplied five times over, its street mileage has increased in even greater proportion, while practically the whole city has been remodeled and modernized.
They were men of courage and far-sighted ideas who in 1861 decided that the time had come when Montreal needed a street railway. The population was small, business was a mere fraction of that transacted today, and as forbidding as could be found in any city in the world.
But these difficulties did not discourage the founders of the Montreal Street Railway, who had ample belief in the future development of the city, and its consequent opportunities for street railway work. They builded more wisely than they knew however, and could William Molson, John Ostell, William Dow, Johnston Thompson and William Macdonald, the original directors of the company, return to Montreal, attend a meeting of directors at the board room in the Company’s handsome building on Craig Street, and then make a tour of the city in one of their magnificent modern electric cars, they would probably be lost in wonder and admiration. The company they founded used horses. Stables were its power stations, and in winter the service was kept up by sleighs, and in the late fall and early spring by omnibuses. They started with six miles of track, eight cars, a few horses and one stable. To-day they would return to an electric system with hundreds of miles of track extending all over the city and suburbs, huge power stations, an army of uniformed, well paid and cared for employes, and many hundreds of cars which are not merely modern, but so far in advance of the times that the greatest cities of the United States and the world are paying tribute by the adoption of the same style of cars for their service.[2]
The Montreal Street Railway was born with little ceremony, or anything else to mark the beginning of a new epoch for Montreal when, on May 18th, 1861, the Provincial Legislature adopted a law incorporating the Montreal City Passenger Railway Company “for the purpose of constructing and operating street railways in the City and Parish of Montreal.” The provisional directors named in the act of incorporation were William Molson, John Ostell, William Dow, Johnston Thompson, William Macdonald, John Carter, Hon. Thos. Ryan and William E. Phillips. All these have long since passed away, although they lived to see the riper fruition of the works they planned.
On August 9th of the same year a meeting of the subscribers was held at the “Mechanics’ Hall,” at which the following were present:—
William Molson, Thomas Molson, Hon. Judge Gale, Hon. L.H. Molson, William Macdonald, E.M. Hopkins, William McLaren, Charles Garth, J.H. Springle, G. Weaver, William Dow and John Ostell. At this meeting J.H. Springle was appointed the first secretary of the Company.
On August 17th, another meeting was held, at which Alex. Easton was awarded the contract for building the first section of road, comprising six miles of single track, and an equipment of eight passenger cars, a stable and car shed. This may be called the first attempt at modernizing Montreal.
Work was started in September, ground being broken on the 18th, for the line from St. Mary Street, near the Quebec toll gate, and considerable progress made. The arrangement was that Mr. Easton should build the line and operate it for a time under lease. By November 27th, 1861, part of the line was sufficiently advanced to be opened. The road met with immediate success, and was well patronized, although the service, naturally, was slow and the cars infrequent.