Notman House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Notman House |
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Maison Notman
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Notman House in 1893
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| General information | |
| Type | Private house |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| Location | East of the Golden Square Mile |
| Address | 51 Sherbrooke Street W. Montreal, Quebec |
| Construction started | 1843 |
| Completed | 1845 |
| Landlord | Sir William Meredith Alexander Molson William Notman Sir George Drummond Government of Quebec OSMO Foundation |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | John Wells |
Notman House (French: Maison Notman) is a historic building in Montreal, Quebec. You can find it at 51 Sherbrooke Street West. This beautiful old house was finished in 1845. It was first built for William Collis Meredith, a very important judge.
The house is named after William Notman, a famous photographer. He lived there with his family from 1876 until he passed away in 1891. Notman House is special because it's the only home from its time left on Sherbrooke Street. It's also one of the few examples of Greek Revival architecture in Quebec. In 1979, it was officially recognized as a historical monument.
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Discovering Notman House History
Who Built Notman House?
The Notman House was built for William Collis Meredith. He later became the Chief Justice of the Superior Court for Quebec. In 1843, Meredith was 31 years old and asked John Wells to design his new home. Wells was a well-known English architect in Montreal.
John Wells also designed other important buildings. These included the Head Office of the Bank of Montreal. He also designed the Sainte Anne Market. This market was where the Canadian Parliament met in Montreal. It was sadly burned down in riots in 1849.
Early Days on Sherbrooke Street
Meredith's new home was finished in 1845. Back then, Sherbrooke Street was a quiet country lane. The house had a special horseshoe-shaped driveway. This driveway was later moved back as Sherbrooke Street became a busy road.
Next to Meredith's house was Belmont Hall. This was the home of the Molson family. Today, a gas station stands where Belmont Hall used to be.
Famous Owners of Notman House
In 1849, Meredith moved to Quebec City for his job. He rented out the house to important people. One renter was Thomas Evans Blackwell, who was the President of the Grand Trunk Railway. Later, Meredith sold the house to Alexander Molson. Alexander was a grandson of John Molson and had grown up next door.
In 1876, Alexander Molson sold the house to William Notman. Notman was a famous Scottish photographer. His collection of over 450,000 photos is now at the McCord Museum. The house is named after him because he lived there with his family until 1891.
After Notman passed away, Sir George Alexander Drummond bought the house. He was a rich person who gave a lot to charity. He also became the President of the Bank of Montreal.
Notman House as a Hospital
In 1894, Sir George Drummond gave the house to the Sisters of St. Margaret. They were an Anglican religious group. They used plans from architect Sir Andrew Thomas Taylor to make the house bigger. They built a hospital called St. Margaret's Home for Incurables. This hospital could care for 50 patients.
The Sisters of St. Margaret ran the hospital for almost 100 years, until 1991. After that, the Quebec Government took over the financial responsibility. A new Centre d'Accueil St. Margaret was opened in Westmount.
Notman House Today: Home of the Web
In 2011, the OSMO Foundation rented Notman House. They made it a place for internet entrepreneurs and tech companies. On December 19, 2012, the OSMO Foundation bought the house. They got help from government grants and private sponsors.
Notman House Architecture Style
The architect, John Wells, wanted the house to be built mostly with local materials. This included the stone and the mortar. The mortar was made with sand from the Saint Lawrence River.
The house has a portico decorated with palmettes and rosettes. Notman House is a great example of Greek Revival architecture. It shows the style of the grand homes that used to be on Sherbrooke Street in the Golden Square Mile in the 1840s.
The OSMO Foundation and Tech Community
What is the OSMO Foundation?
The OSMO Foundation is a non-profit group. Their goal is to help people in Montreal's tech community share knowledge and ideas. It was started by people from Montreal's web community. These included investors and tech leaders. The OSMO Foundation has led the effort to make Notman House a hub for tech. They got money from grants, sponsors, and loans.
Notman House: A Hub for Startups
Since opening in 2011, Notman House has become a key place for collaboration. It's a landmark in Montreal's startup scene. The City of Montreal supports it as one of its five main innovation projects. The Quebec Government also sees it as important for entrepreneurship. In 2015, they even started a project called Develop Cuba. This project aims to help the tech startup industry in Cuba.
Events and Workspaces at Notman House
Notman House is also a place for events. Non-profit events about web and mobile technology are hosted there for free. Examples include "hackathons" (where people work on coding projects) and meetup groups. Since 2011, the house has hosted over 150 events.
Besides event spaces, Notman House offers paid co-working spaces. It also has a cafe area. Anyone working on web and mobile projects can use the cafe for free. These ideas are meant to bring people in the tech world together. This is why the OSMO Foundation chose the tagline "Home of the web."
