In racket with the Hotel Lumkin

the documentation Centre of Pointe-à-Callière museum, a Collection of postcards, Christian Paquin, William Notman, The Montreal Snow Shoe Club to the Hotel Lumkin on Côte-des-Neiges, 1872, 2013_30_03_510r ; Photo Pierre-Paul Poulin

Centre d’histoire de Montréal, in collaboration

Saturday, 30 December, 2017 18:16

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Saturday, 30 December, 2017 18:16

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Hiking on mount Royal

This winter scene at the glow of the moon transports us to the end of the 19th century, the Hotel Lumkin on the chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges, not far from the intersection of Queen Mary. Meeting at the entrance of McGill University on Saturday afternoon snowshoeing through mount Royal singing, their torch illuminating the way. Arrived at the destination, the bivouac is followed by a dinner at the hotel, where conversations mixed with laughter and music to generate an atmosphere of the most warm. The costume of the snowshoers of the Montreal Snow Shoe Club incorporates several elements of the terroir : the snowshoes, leggings and moccasins of the native americans, the tuque and the arrow sash of the French Canadians, and the famous coat of wool of the travellers of the North West company. Such appropriations of clothing allow these british immigrants to form a new identity… typically canadian. Around 1880, nearly 25 associations of snowshoers in English and French, exist in Montreal, most of them concentrating on a distinctive uniform.

To the hotel in the village

In the background, the Hotel Lumkin reveals the aspect once the picturesque village of la Côte-des-Neiges. In addition to agricultural and forestry activities, the leather industry account 70 tanners in Côte-des-Neiges in the 19th century. But it’s the pace of bucolic village that first draws the interest of the city. Large villas and educational institutions are rising, as well as several hostels. The hotel Lumkin, also known as the “Half-Way House” before 1877, is one of the most popular. The winter sports enthusiasts come here to restore : the men order a ” Tom and Jerry “, a mixture of beaten eggs, hot milk, rum and nutmeg, while women prefer wine, hot spices, or beer or rail peppery. The dances showcase the waltz, the polka, the cotillon, from warsaw, and the quadrilles. This place of rendezvous, where there is music and dancing until the small hours, was lost in a fire in April 1936.

On your mark, jump !

Photo courtesy of the documentation Centre of Pointe-à-Callière museum, a Collection of postcards, Christian Paquin , The Hurdle Race on Snowshoe, cp_neige_2013_30_20_012

Recognizable by his emblem of the winged wheel, raquetteur of the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association (M. A. A. A.) crosses this hurdle with surprising ease during a race organized in the winter of 1892. Up to four feet (120 cm), these barriers make it stumble more. The first competitions rackets are organized by the Montreal Snow Shoe Club on a former race track in Ville St-Pierre, as early as the 1840s. Different races take place in front of an enthusiastic crowd, some real marathons over several kilometres, while others are shorter, like the one on obstacles. In addition to prize money, the winner was entitled to the famous rocker, a ritual very popular in the clubs rackets. However, the performance noticed of the native americans brings their phasing out of competitions of fans as early as 1868, a situation that will also be experienced in the butt a decade later. The practice of the racket declines gradually thereafter, for the benefit of the skiing, a winter sport imported in 1872 by an immigrant Norwegian, referred to as Birch.

♦ In February of each year, les Amis de la Montagne are organizing a race of snowshoeing on mount Royal.

♦ The funds collected are used for the implementation of programs of conservation of the natural environment of the parc du Mont-Royal. Register now !