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3. Life in Pointe-Saint-Charles

Toward the end of the 19th century, Point-Saint-Charles was the largest industrial sector in Montréal and Canada. New jobs were constantly being created, attracting a large number of workers.

 

Specialized workers from England and Scotland, mostly Protestants, were hired by the Grand Trunk Railway to build and operate locomotives; they settled in the southern part of the neighbourhood. In 1875, the population was 75% anglophones, mostly Irish, and 25% French-Canadians. The Roman Catholic French-Canadians and Irish lived in the northern area of the neighbourhood; these local workers were less educated.