Robillard Block facts for kids
The Robillard Block (also known as Édifice Robillard in French) was a famous building in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was located in Montreal's Chinatown area, right on the corner of Viger Street and Saint Laurent Boulevard. Sadly, this historic building was destroyed by a big fire on November 17, 2016.
A Look Back: The Robillard Block's Story
The Robillard Block was built a long time ago, in 1879. It was designed in a style called Neo-Renaissance, which means it looked a bit like buildings from the old European Renaissance period.
In 1890, the building was changed into a hotel. Just a year later, in 1891, it became home to something really cool: the Gaiety Museum and Theatorium. This was a popular place where people could see all sorts of interesting and unusual things, like a Victorian-era "curiosity showcase."
But the most exciting part of its history happened in May 1896. The building started to house the Palace Theatre. And on June 27 of that year, something amazing happened here: the very first movies in North America were shown! This made the Palace Theatre the first cinema on the entire continent.
The First Movies
The cinema used a special projector system. It was developed by two famous brothers, Auguste and Louis Lumière. Their invention was called the cinématographe. The screen for these first movies was quite small, about the size of a towel!
The very first films shown were simple but exciting for the time. They included scenes of a train, a ship, a cavalry charge (soldiers on horses), and even a wall being knocked down. These shows continued for two months. They were presented by Louis Minier and his helper, Louis Pupier.
In September 1896, the cinematographe lumiere started showing movies continuously. This meant people could come and watch films throughout the day. The Robillard Block holds a special place in history because of these early movie showings.
