August 2025.
The Windsor Hotel is considered to be Canada’s first “grand hotel,” a series of hotels built by Canadian railways along their routes. Indeed, the Windsor Hotel’s original site was located west of Windsor Station, Canadian Pacific’s Montreal terminus. I had intended for this one to be part of the Dorchester Square “dump post,” as I only have six mediocre photos, but this hotel has just too much history to justify paring it down for length purposes.
The Windsor Hotel’s existing portion is located at 1170 Rue Peel in downtown Montreal, Quebec. It is bordered by Rue Peel and Dorchester Square to the north, Rue Stanley to the south, CIBC Tower to the east, and Rue Cypress to the west.
History
The Windsor Hotel in 1890. This entire area has since been demolished. (Wikimedia)
The Windsor Hotel was designed by either Chicago architect William W. Boyington or G. H. Worthing (my sources conflict) in the Second Empire style and was located at the southwestern corner of Dorchester Square, at the intersection of Rue Peel and Boulevard Rene-Levesque. It was completed in 1878.
1878 view of the lobby. (Wikimedia)
The Windsor Hotel was a very elaborate example of Second Empire design. Its exterior was granite and sandstone, and the interior featured a fanciful lobby with gold-leaf detailing, six restaurants, two ballrooms, and 382 rooms. An opening ceremony in 1878 saw many distinguished guests, such as John Macdonald (Canada’s prime minister at the time), and it was held by Lady Dufferin, the wife of Canada’s Governor General. A November 30 ball known as the St. Andrew’s Society Ball was held for the first time that year, which became an annual tradition.
A concert hall known as Windsor Hall was built next to the Windsor Hotel in 1890, which was the original home of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. It was demolished in 1906, and one of the hotel’s ballrooms was renamed Windsor Hall and served the same function.
A view of the Windsor Annex after completion. (Le Windsor website)
The Windsor Annex is the only existing portion of the building today. It was being planned in 1906, when a fire that January destroyed 100 rooms in the original hotel. It was designed by Janeway Hardenburg of New York firm Hardenberg & Gilbert in the Beaux-Arts style, though it retained the mansard roof of the original Second Empire design. The annex was completed in 1908 and expanded the number of rooms to 750, more than double the earlier capacity, and the hotel took up an entire city block. Two more ballrooms and two elevators were part of the design, as well as “Peacock Alley,” a grand hallway featuring stained-glass windows with peacocks.
The dining room in 1916. (Le Windsor website)
In 1917, four hockey team owners met in a restaurant inside the Windsor Hotel and founded what is now known as the National Hockey League. These founding teams were the Montreal Canadiens, Quebec Bulldogs, Ottawa Senators, and Montreal Wanderers. The Canadiens are the only team of these four that currently exist. (The existing Ottawa Senators franchise is an expansion team founded in 1992.)
Notable guests of the hotel during this period included King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1939 during their “royal tour” of Canada, Winston Churchill, Charles de Gaulle, John F. Kennedy, and Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1951.
The 1878 portion during its fire. (Le Windsor website)
On December 10, 1957, the original Windsor Hotel building caught fire and was severely damaged. It was demolished in 1959 and later replaced by the CIBC Tower, leaving only the 1908 Windsor Annex standing. Even though 200 rooms, two ballrooms, and Peacock Alley still stood, the hotel struggled after reopening due to competition from more modern hotels. The Windsor Hotel closed in 1981, 103 years after its grand opening.
In 1985, the building was purchased by a developer and remodeled into an office building by architect Ken London. The newly christened “Le Windsor” reopened on October 1, 1987, with its ballrooms and Peacock Alley intact. The old hotel is still used for this purpose today.
Photos
Approaching from Boulevard Rene-Levesque:
The gray stone portion in the middle is an addition, which likely dates to the 1987 renovation. I think the skylight also is from that same time, as the space was probably a light court originally.
Northwest corner:
Much of the Rue Peel facade is stone, but otherwise a light brick is used with stone accents. There is subtle classical ornamentation such as cornices across it.
I took these next couple from atop the Dorchester Square bridge:
The arched windows yield to rectangular ones at the base level in between the corner modules. Note how the Rue Peel facade is mirrored to face Rue Stanley.
Zoomed in on the mansard roof:
The dormers were originally painted in more vibrant colors. However, they have recently been changed to be entirely black, a more contemporary look, which also has the effect of flattening this area that is rich in texture.
Sources:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Windsor_Hotel_(Montreal)
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