Windsor Hotel (Montreal)
Encyclopedia
The Windsor Hotel (opened 1878, closed 1981) in Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
, is often considered to be the first grand hotel in Canada
, and for decades billed itself as "the best in all the Dominion".
The hotel was constructed between 1875 and 1878 by the Windsor Hotel Company consortium of six Montreal businessmen, including William Notman
. It was capitalized at C$500,000. At the time Montreal was Canada's largest city, and the centre of commerce in the young country. The consortium was formed to construct an opulent new hotel to symbolize the city's growing prominence and wealth, and to serve visitors arriving at the nearby train station (which itself was replaced soon thereafter by Windsor Station
).
The hotel opened without fanfare on January 28, 1878. Soon after, an opening gala was held that was the largest social gathering Montreal had ever seen. It was attended by Lady Dufferin (the wife of the Governor General
), the Right Honourable Sir John A. Macdonald
, Princess Louise
and the Marquis of Lorne.
The hotel was not an immediate success. It was leased by the consortium to James Worthington and losses led to the operation being returned to the consortium to run. Instead of retrenching, the hotel expanded to include the 'Stanley Street Wing'. The hotel was buoyed by the successes of the Montreal Winter Carnivals of the 1880s, which were held in the square outside the hotel.
The Windsor Hotel was soon at the centre of Montreal's social and business worlds, attracting not only railway visitors, but also business leaders, politicians, socialites, artists, and even royalty. The hotel was home to both the annual St. Andrew's Society Ball and the Winter Carnival Ball, the former being a mainstay of the hotel and of Montreal's social calendar for nearly a century. Sarah Bernhardt
, Mark Twain
, Dolores Costello
, Rudyard Kipling
, Fanny Davenport
and Lillie Langtry
were among the Windsor's famous guests in its early years.
In 1906, a fire destroyed almost 100 guest rooms. The fire did not adversely impact the hotel's success or reputation, but simply prompted significant renovations and the addition of a new wing, known as the Windsor Annex, to the north of the original building. The number of rooms more than doubled, going from 368 to 750, and the hotel now occupied an entire city block. The north annex contained the famous "Peacock Alley" (named after the peacock designs in its stained glass windows), and two additional ballrooms. Unlike the rest of the hotel, the north annex was designed in the Second Empire style. The new annex cost C$1 million to construct and opened in 1908.
The success of the hotel helped draw large commercial enterprises to this part of Montreal, including Morgan's
and Ogilvy's
, and contributed to the slow decline of Montreal's other grand railway hotel, the Hotel Place Viger
.
In 1917, the owners of the Montreal Canadiens
, the Quebec Bulldogs
, the Ottawa Senators
and Montreal Wanderers
met in one of the Windsor Hotel's restaurants to form the National Hockey League
. Executives of both the Canadian Pacific Railway
and Grand Trunk Railway
kept permanent residences in the hotel, making the Windsor home to men who controlled most of Canada's transportation infrastructure and much of its economy. In his later years, Stephen Leacock
spent his winters living in the Windsor Hotel. Some of Leacock's writing, and much of his correspondence, was written on hotel stationery.
During the first ever royal tour of Canada by a reigning monarch, King George VI
and Queen Elizabeth
stayed at the Windsor Hotel, and their arrival on May 18, 1939 attracted throngs of well-wishers to the hotel. The crowds were so large that one man died of a heart attack, many others collapsed due to heat and exhaustion, and the police found 64 children that had been separated from their parents. At a state banquet in the hotel, Montreal's francophone
mayor, Camillien Houde
, famously remarked in his address to the monarchs: "I thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming. And my wife thanks you from her bottom, too."
office tower was constructed on the site of the original hotel.
The North Annex was all that remained of the Windsor Hotel, but it did contain 200 guest rooms, two ballrooms and Peacock Alley. The Windsor Hotel continued to operate out of the North Annex for almost another 25 years, but competition from newer hotels lead to the Windsor's slow decline. In 1975, Dolores Costello returned to the hotel for her seventieth birthday party, in honour of the hotel that had been her second home decades earlier. This party was perhaps the last true glimpse of the hotel's former grandeur before the Windsor's closure in 1981.
In 1987, the Windsor Hotel reopened as an office building called "Le Windsor". Peacock Alley and a number of marble staircases have been preserved, and the two ballrooms are still used for banquets, wedding receptions and conferences. In 2006, the building was once again renovated with a total project cost of $15 million. The office building currently houses the headquarters for Valeurs Mobilieres Desjardins, the securities and investment banking division of Desjardins Group, and Claridge, the trust management offices for the Bronfman family
. Le Piment Rouge, a Chinese restaurant and bar-lounge, occupies the front façade of Le Windsor's ground floor. During Le Piment Rouge's 1988 and 1999 renovations, the restaurant restored and preserved a number of the North Annex's original architectural and design features, included ornate plaster ceilings, arched stained glass windows, and Austrian crystal chandeliers.
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, is often considered to be the first grand hotel in Canada
Canada's grand railway hotels
Canada’s railway hotels are a series of grand hotels across the country, each a local and national landmark, and most of which are icons of Canadian history and architecture. Each hotel was originally built by the Canadian railway companies, or the railways acted as a catalyst for the hotel’s...
, and for decades billed itself as "the best in all the Dominion".
Early years
William Notman
William Notman was a Canadian photographer and businessman.Notman was born in Paisley, Scotland in 1826, the same year in which photography was born in France. William Notman moved to Montreal in 1856. An amateur photographer, he quickly established a flourishing professional photography studio on...
. It was capitalized at C$500,000. At the time Montreal was Canada's largest city, and the centre of commerce in the young country. The consortium was formed to construct an opulent new hotel to symbolize the city's growing prominence and wealth, and to serve visitors arriving at the nearby train station (which itself was replaced soon thereafter by Windsor Station
Windsor Station (Montreal)
Windsor Station is a former train station in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, formerly serving as the city's Canadian Pacific Railway Station.Windsor Station was the Canadian Pacific Railway's headquarters built between 1887 and 1889. The Romanesque Revival building was designed by New York architect...
).
The hotel opened without fanfare on January 28, 1878. Soon after, an opening gala was held that was the largest social gathering Montreal had ever seen. It was attended by Lady Dufferin (the wife of the Governor General
Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava
Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava, KP, GCB, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, PC was a British public servant and prominent member of Victorian society...
), the Right Honourable Sir John A. Macdonald
John A. Macdonald
Sir John Alexander Macdonald, GCB, KCMG, PC, PC , QC was the first Prime Minister of Canada. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, his political career spanned almost half a century...
, Princess Louise
Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll
The Princess Louise was a member of the British Royal Family, the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and her husband, Albert, Prince Consort.Louise's early life was spent moving between the various royal residences in the...
and the Marquis of Lorne.
The hotel was not an immediate success. It was leased by the consortium to James Worthington and losses led to the operation being returned to the consortium to run. Instead of retrenching, the hotel expanded to include the 'Stanley Street Wing'. The hotel was buoyed by the successes of the Montreal Winter Carnivals of the 1880s, which were held in the square outside the hotel.
The Windsor Hotel was soon at the centre of Montreal's social and business worlds, attracting not only railway visitors, but also business leaders, politicians, socialites, artists, and even royalty. The hotel was home to both the annual St. Andrew's Society Ball and the Winter Carnival Ball, the former being a mainstay of the hotel and of Montreal's social calendar for nearly a century. Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt
Sarah Bernhardt was a French stage and early film actress, and has been referred to as "the most famous actress the world has ever known". Bernhardt made her fame on the stages of France in the 1870s, and was soon in demand in Europe and the Americas...
, Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
, Dolores Costello
Dolores Costello
Dolores Costello was an American film actress who achieved her greatest success during the era of silent movies. She was nicknamed "The Goddess of the Silent Screen"...
, Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
, Fanny Davenport
Fanny Davenport
Fanny Lily Gipsy Davenport was an English-American stage actress. The daughter of Edward Loomis Davenport and Fanny Vining, she was born in London, England, but was brought to America when a child and educated in the Boston public schools...
and Lillie Langtry
Lillie Langtry
Lillie Langtry , usually spelled Lily Langtry when she was in the U.S., born Emilie Charlotte Le Breton, was a British actress born on the island of Jersey...
were among the Windsor's famous guests in its early years.
Expansion
The success of the hotel helped draw large commercial enterprises to this part of Montreal, including Morgan's
Morgan's
Morgan's was a Montreal-based Canadian department store chain. At its peak, the company had stores in Quebec and Ontario...
and Ogilvy's
Ogilvy (Montreal)
La Maison Ogilvy, commonly known as Ogilvy's , is a prominent department store in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where its store at 1307 Saint Catherine Street West is a retail landmark...
, and contributed to the slow decline of Montreal's other grand railway hotel, the Hotel Place Viger
Place Viger
Place Viger was both a grand hotel and railway station in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, constructed in 1898 and named after Jacques Viger, Montreal's first mayor...
.
Montreal's preeminent hotel
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
, the Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...
, the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...
and Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...
met in one of the Windsor Hotel's restaurants to form the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
. Executives of both the Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
and Grand Trunk Railway
Grand Trunk Railway
The Grand Trunk Railway was a railway system which operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, as well as the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec; however, corporate...
kept permanent residences in the hotel, making the Windsor home to men who controlled most of Canada's transportation infrastructure and much of its economy. In his later years, Stephen Leacock
Stephen Leacock
Stephen Butler Leacock, FRSC was an English-born Canadian teacher, political scientist, writer, and humorist...
spent his winters living in the Windsor Hotel. Some of Leacock's writing, and much of his correspondence, was written on hotel stationery.
During the first ever royal tour of Canada by a reigning monarch, King George VI
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
and Queen Elizabeth
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
stayed at the Windsor Hotel, and their arrival on May 18, 1939 attracted throngs of well-wishers to the hotel. The crowds were so large that one man died of a heart attack, many others collapsed due to heat and exhaustion, and the police found 64 children that had been separated from their parents. At a state banquet in the hotel, Montreal's francophone
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
mayor, Camillien Houde
Camillien Houde
Camillien Houde was a Quebec politician, a Member of Parliament, and a four-time mayor of Montreal.-Political career:...
, famously remarked in his address to the monarchs: "I thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming. And my wife thanks you from her bottom, too."
Decline
In 1957, another fire destroyed a third of the hotel. This time the damage was extensive, and the original hotel structure had to be demolished. The cupola, weighing some 15 tons, came down on August 12, 1959. Within the next five years, the Tour CIBCTour CIBC
La Tour CIBC is a forty-five-storey skyscraper in Montreal, Quebec. With the communications antenna on the roof, the total height is . The International Style office tower was built by Peter Dickinson, Ross, Fish, Duschenes and Barrett and was the city's tallest building from 1962 to 1963...
office tower was constructed on the site of the original hotel.
The North Annex was all that remained of the Windsor Hotel, but it did contain 200 guest rooms, two ballrooms and Peacock Alley. The Windsor Hotel continued to operate out of the North Annex for almost another 25 years, but competition from newer hotels lead to the Windsor's slow decline. In 1975, Dolores Costello returned to the hotel for her seventieth birthday party, in honour of the hotel that had been her second home decades earlier. This party was perhaps the last true glimpse of the hotel's former grandeur before the Windsor's closure in 1981.
Conversion of North Annex to office building
Bronfman family
The Bronfman family is a Canadian Jewish family. It owes its initial fame to Samuel Bronfman , who made a fortune in the alcoholic distilled beverage business during the 20th century through the family's Seagram Company. The family is of Russian Jewish and Romanian Jewish ancestry...
. Le Piment Rouge, a Chinese restaurant and bar-lounge, occupies the front façade of Le Windsor's ground floor. During Le Piment Rouge's 1988 and 1999 renovations, the restaurant restored and preserved a number of the North Annex's original architectural and design features, included ornate plaster ceilings, arched stained glass windows, and Austrian crystal chandeliers.