The whole is necessarily greater than the part, and in considering the size of Montreal, in the matter of population, it is the whole which should be discussed. To take the naked figures of the census would be utterly misleading, for they do not include even the whole of the area within the city’s limits. That is to say, between the taking of the census and the publication of the results, Montreal had annexed a number of large towns contiguous to it. But this is not the only respect in which the relation of Montreal to the census is unique. It contains, within the city’s limits, or bounded by the city on more than one side, but under distinct municipal government, three other cities—Westmount, Maisonneuve and Outremont It also possesses suburbs, such as Lachine, which are merely manufacturing outposts of the city proper, and others, such as Longueuil, St. Lambert and Montreal West, which are in effect the city’s dormitories.
In figures given below, therefore, are included the population of these and other suburbs which are to all intents and purposes part of Montreal. They are part of the communal life, and the only respect in which their people differ from those of Montreal is that they have distinct municipal administrations.
If we were to take the figures of the 1911 census, Montreal’s population would stand at 466,197, whereas the population of the metropolitan community, as given by the census, is 590,919. Here are the figures in substantiation of this claim:
No one who knows the relation of these towns to Montreal will deny the justice of grouping them as integral parts of this community.
It must be remembered that these figures, first published a year ago, are the result of a census taken in June, 1911. During the decennial period 1900-1910, the city proper increased in population an average of 19,000 yearly. The increase during the latter years of the period was much greater than at its beginning, and it is a matter of common knowledge that it is the suburbs which of late years have shown the fastest growth. From these facts as a basis, it can be argued with every probability of accuracy that this community has grown since the census was taken, by at least 35,000 people, making the total population at this time not less than 625,000.
Of the seventeen cities mentioned in the foregoing table Montreal stood sixteenth in 1900, Newark only being below her. Now, assuming that the population of Greater Montreal is 625,000, she jumps to sixth place, taking rank above all except New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, St. Louis and Boston. In justice to the cities she has passed in the race, it must be acknowledged that they have doubtless also added to their population since the census was taken, but it will hardly be claimed that the leader among them, Cleveland, has jumped from 560,663, its census standing, to the 625,000 of Montreal. If it be urged that perhaps some of the cities which Montreal has passed should also be credited with the population of their suburbs, the answer is that neither Cleveland, Baltimore, Pittsburg, nor Detroit, possesses as many or as large suburbs as does Montreal. Boston is a striking exception to this rule, and if the community of which it is the nucleus was included in computation, the result would probably raise Boston to fourth place among the cities.
MONTREAL OF TO-DAY
| Royal Victoria Hospital | Windsor Hotel |
| Transportation Building, 1912 | |
| Modern Montreal from the Mountain | McGill University Grounds |