Colloque

The Industrial Geography of Montreal, 1890-1929

Robert D. Lewis

Membre a labase

Robert D. Lewis

Résumé du colloque

There is general agreement among geographers that until World War II industry was located primarily in or near to the city core. Since the late 1950's, as the argument goes, industry rapidly succumbed as firms grew in scale, agglomeration economies weakened, the use of the automobile become generalized, and land values soared. In the case study of Montreal it will be shown that the decentralization of production, far from being a recent phenomenon, can be traced back to the mid-nineteenth century. Beginning with a short historical context, the location of industries in Montreal around 1890, the paper will proceed to examine in more detail the city's industrial geography in 1890 and 1929. Montreal, more so than any other North American city, was forced to provide both the address and the assessment of each manufacturing firm in the city. Rent has used this as a surrogate for the market and provided a unique perspective on the scale of Montreal's industry. The rest of the paper is divided into two parts. The first section is a description of industrial and commercial characteristics of businesses in the two years. It will be suggested that there are three different sectors or districts in Montreal, each characterized by different types of businesses. Among these are the downtown area, peripheral zones associated with the port, and smaller zones associated with the railways. The second part of the paper will focus on the central firms, the size and structure of small and large firms, and the pattern of industrial location. Finally, the paper will examine the emergence and development of peripheral industrial districts before World War II. The paper will conclude with a discussion of the impact of the Great Depression on Montreal's industries, developments in transportation, and the growth of locations more advantageous to industry.