The first pier in Lachine was built at the site of John Grant’s businesses, at the entrance to the Old Canal (21st Avenue). This was the end of the line when the first train left from Bonaventure Station in Montréal in 1847. In 1850, a new pier was built near 32nd Avenue.
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Around the same time, a railroad was built between Caughnawaga (Kahnawake) and New York State. Until 1853, travellers bound for New York had to take the passenger ferry from Lachine to Caughnawaga. The train ferry launched in 1853 was the first of its kind in Canada and probably in North America.
The Iroquois was a 200-foot train ferry that could carry a locomotive and three loaded coaches. As of 1877, train ferry service and passenger train service to the pier were gradually reduced, except during summer months.
