Westmount places:
Holton Avenue

The history behind the familiar: the former residents who called Holton Avenue their home

By Michael Walsh

March 7, 2024

One of my many favourite walks is along “out of the way” streets – away from other people and traffic. That is how I discovered Holton Avenue, lined with stunning single-family homes. Situated north of Queen Elizabeth Gardens, it enjoys unique beauty and tranquillity.

In fact, if one polled Westmount residents as to Holton’s location, many would no doubt point in the direction of Atwater Avenue. A more interesting question would be about the forgotten history of this street. Hopefully, we can at least begin to answer that question. I am certain it is waiting to be told.

One of my many favourite walks is along “out of the way” streets – away from other people and traffic. That is how I discovered Holton Avenue, lined with stunning single-family homes.

Imagine the year 1939, marking the beginning of World War II. Back then, one could have purchased (at auction) eight large lots, comprising a major portion of today’s Holton Avenue. These properties were seized by the Sheriff of Montreal from the Westmount Development Corporation for (one can assume) unpaid taxes.

A fair question is how the City of Montreal had jurisdiction outside their city’s limits – particularly within the City of Westmount. These powers date from 1879 when, within the Statues of the Province of Quebec, the Sheriff of Montreal had powers to seize immovables situated outside the limits of the City of Montreal but within the late Parish of Montreal.

L H Holton • Image: Library and Archives Canada

I am certain these auctioned properties, along with others situated on de Casson and Wood Avenues, were purchased by developers at a fraction of their valuation. Not surprisingly, by the end of the war, in 1945 and into the 1960s, those property values increased exponentially, attracting a variety of senior-level professional residents.

In fact, one could compile a booklet entitled “Who’s Who in Westmount” based solely on the variety of residential professions represented. These included corporate presidents, manufacturers, architects, a physician responsible for anesthesia becoming an academic discipline, and the first female lawyer in Quebec admitted to the Bar.

At this point, let us turn our attention to the name of the street. Depending on the reference source, one can obtain different conclusions.

According to Council proceedings, the road was originally named High Street and changed to Holton Avenue in 1903. Like many of Westmount’s street-name changes, proprietors presented a written request to Council requesting a new designation and, in most cases, their petition was granted. Unfortunately, their rationale for the change was never recorded.

“Submitted and read letter…from John James Browne and Son, real estate agents, enclosing a petition from seven proprietors of land on High Street asking that the name of said street be changed ‘Holton Avenue’.”
– Council minutes, February 16, 1903

‘According to Council proceedings, the road was originally named High Street and changed to Holton Avenue in 1903.’

Officially, according to Québec’s Commission de toponymie, the street honours Luther Hamilton Holton and makes no mention of the change of name, in 1903, from High Street to Holton Avenue. In addition, their records state it was formerly named Souart Crescent.

“Nom donné en premier lieu dans Westmount en l’honneur de L. H. Holton, propriétaire des terrains à travers lesquels cette voie de communication fut ouverte. Date de désignation : 10 juillet 1928. Anciennement : Souart Crescent.”

The name Souart Crescent honours Gabriel Souart (1610-1691), a superior of the Sulpician seminary and the first parish priest of Montreal. This designation aligns with the Sulpician Brothers’ land encompassing Holton and Wood avenues and a portion of de Casson, collectively known as Priest’s Farm.

Charles E. Goad map of Priests’ Farm shows the now Western portion of Holton Avenue

In themselves, the Sulpicians, originally from France, are an interesting order with many processing large private fortunes. In addition, their property assets included the seigneuries of Montreal (including all the parishes), Two Mountains, and Saint Sulpice.

In addition, Québec’s Commission de toponymie states that the street name was changed from Souart Crescent to Holton Avenue in 1928 to honour Luther Hamilton Holton (1817-1880).

Luther H. Holton, residing at 1043 Sherbrooke Street, was also involved in railroad building and while engaged with the firm Gzowski & Company was responsible for a section of the Grand Trunk Railway between Toronto and Guelph. He also represented Chateauguay in the House of Commons from Confederation until his death in 1880.

‘After spending some time on the taxonomy of the street’s name, my only conclusion is that it honours the Holton family – father and son.’

There is, however, a Westmount connection through his son Edward Holton K.C. (1844-1907), who resided at 421 Metcalfe Street. Upon the death of his father, he was elected to the House of Commons from Chateauguay. Following his political career, he became President of the Herald Publishing Company.

After spending some time on the taxonomy of the street’s name, my only conclusion is that it honours the Holton family – father and son. Why the name “High Street” is not mentioned in Québec’s Commission de toponymie, nor in their primary resource (Les rues de Montréal : répertoire historique, Ville de Montréal, 1995), is a mystery waiting to be solved.

Let us enjoy the arrival of Spring and take a walk along Holton Avenue and unfold the stories behind its beautiful homes.

3 Holton
Simon Crevier, optician (1920)
Office at 629 St. Catherine Street East

5 Holton
W. J. Annable, Pass Department, Canadian Pacific Railway, Windsor Station (1907)
W. C. Gates, conductor, Canadian Pacific Railway (1920)

7 Holton
B. W. N. Grigg, accountant, James Coristine & Company Ltd. Fur hats and caps manufacturers (1907)
Andrew H. Ewing, S. H. Ewing and Sons (1920)

James Coristine & Company Ltd. Fur hats and caps manufacturers

15 Holton
Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Minden Cole, Minden & Cole Company, Insurance and Real Estate Brokers (1920)

20 Holton

“Frederick Minden Cole was born and educated in Montreal and entered his father’s insurance business as a broker. In 1878, he joined the 51st Battalion as a private but was made 2nd Lieutenant after a short course. Frederick Cole served in the Northwest Rebellion Force in 1885 and was promoted to Major in 1888. In 1894 F Minden Cole was a Lieutenant-Colonel of the Montreal Garrison Battalion of Artillery. In 1896, he commanded the Canadian team of the Dominion Artillery Association at Shoeburyness England. LCOL Cole was President of the Dominion Artillery Association in 1897-98.”
– Canadian Great War Project

17 Holton
Reverend J. A. MacLennan (1920)

21 Holton

18 Holton
Edward Pope, Assistant General Manager, Bank of Montreal (1950)
Chairman of the British Overseas Bank Association, President of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in England

20 Holton
Fred M. Dickson, Manager, Standard Coal Company (1907)

21 Holton
V. G. Bartram (1950)
President, Shawinigan Water and Power Company of Montreal. (Today, a part of Hydro-Québec.)

27 Holton
Neil Feeney M.D., President, Montreal Medical Chirurgical Association (1950)

28 Holton

28 Holton
Harold E. Shorey, Shorey & S. Douglass Richie, architects (1940)
The company’s portfolio includes the designs for seventeen Westmount residential homes as well as the Police and Fire Station No. 10 on De Maisonneuve Boulevard.

29 Holton
Captain Barclay Shaw (1920)
Awarded the Royal Air Force, Distinguished Flying Cross

J. W. Shaw, G. Durnford and Company Limited (1920)
George F. Benson, Director, Canada Starch Company (1950)

Police and Fire Station No. 10 – Image: Jeangagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

“…Before his spacious memory would arise scenes on the St. Lawrence on whose shores his father had established his business…And his memory was stored also with recollections of England, where he had studied at Oxford and had stayed with Peter Redpath in the Manor House at Chislehurst, where Napoleon III and the Empress Eugene had fled after the defeat of France by Prussia in 1870…”
– Montreal Gazette, April 14, 1953

31 Holton
George H. Tomlinson, Technical Director, Howard Smith Paper Mills Ltd. (1940)

29 Holton

“Tomlinson’s invention of the chemical recovery furnace in 1932 was critical in advancing the Kraft pulping process to the dominant wood pulping method that it is today. His revolutionary invention recovered the heat value of waste organic material in black liquor while reducing sulfur to sulfide and collecting the sulfide and sodium in a molten sodium carbonate smelt.”

“Within 10 years, the superior economic advantages of the Tomlinson furnace (particularly the recovery of heat as steam needed to heat digesters, paper dryers, etc.) and the fact that it efficiently recycled pulping chemicals enabled the Kraft process to overtake the sulfite process in production tonnage. Many improvements have been made to Tomlinson’s initial design, but many of its basic features remain unchanged.”

31 Holton

“In 1948, Tomlinson was awarded the Canada Medal of the Society of Chemical Industry of England for his outstanding contributions to the Chemical Industry in Canada. In 1951, he received the nineteenth TAPPI Medal.”
– Paper Discovery Center, 425 West Water Street Appleton WI, 5491

J. H. Mennie, Professor of Chemistry, McGill University (1950)

32 Holton
Wesley Bourne M.D. (1940)

“Bourne was appointed lecturer in Pharmacology at McGill University in 1921 and thus began his scholarly work for which he would become world-renowned. He recognized the importance of basic science as the foundation of clinical anesthesia and worked to elucidate the actions of anesthetic medications and their effects on the body.”

Portrait of Wesley Bourne by A. Sherriff Scott

“His first paper, The Anesthetic Properties of Pure Ether opened the floodgates for numerous scientific writings. With over 130 publications from 1921–1950, Bourne brought forth intellectual cutting-edge developments in anesthesia during these formative years. Included in these works is his review of gaseous anesthetics, barbiturate use in obstetrical medicine, and writings on anesthesia in war circumstances. As a prolific investigator, he pushed the limits of clinical practice. To say his pantheon of research achievements is impressive would be a gross understatement, but perhaps even more astounding are his contributions to the creation of academic anesthesia as a discipline across Canada.”

32 Holton

“In his retirement year (1951), there were 490 whole or part-time anesthetists in Canada. Within three decades Wesley Bourne had seen the specialty develop from only eight Canadian anaesthetists. The Canadian Anaesthetists’ Society was active and within three years would have its own journal. The Fellowship in Anesthesia was introduced in 1951, and the Certification for specialist anesthetists of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in 1971; recognition for his specialty of which Wesley Bourne would have approved.”
– McGill Journal of Medicine

G. S. McDougall, Manager, British Overseas Airways, Canada (1950)
During his war service, as a group captain with the RCAF, he was awarded the O.B.E. and the King’s Commendation for Good Service in the Air.

34 Holton
Willaim J. McNally M.D. (1940)
Dr. William J. McNally began his association with the Faculty of Medicine of McGill as Assistant Demonstrator in Otolaryngology in 1926. He was Chairman of this department, 1950-1960, and Director of the Otolaryngology Institute, 1961-1963.

36 Holton

36 Holton
A. B. Rutherford, President, Rutherford Company Ltd. (1950)
Established in 1856, the company operated lumber and building material outlets in Montreal and Pointe-Claire.

37 Holton
Edward Blythe Maxwell, President, E. J. Maxwell Ltd. Lumber (1944)
W. F. Daw, physician (1920)

48 Holton
J. V. R. Porteous, President, Greenshields (1950)

53 Holton
George H. Kohl, Chief Engineer of the St. Lawrence River Joint Board of Engineers (1950)

61 Holton
Leslie Gordon Bell (1930)
As a member of the Conservative Party, in 1925 he was elected to the House of Commons representing the riding of St. Antoine.

Mrs. Leslie Gordon Bell (Florence E. Seymour) (1930)
Mrs. Leslie Gordon Bell was the first woman in Quebec to become a member of the Bar. She graduated from McGill, in 1920, with a Bachelor of Civil Law. One year later, she was called to the Nova Scotia Bar. She focused her time and energy on the admission of women to the practice of law in Quebec. Leslie Bell was appointed Honourary President of the Women’s Conservative Association and a member of the Legislation Committee of the League of Women’s Rights.

Scholar’s Choice book cover

67 Holton
Charles McKenzie Thompson, Vice-President, Canadian Tube and Steel Products Limited (1939)

71 Holton
Chief Justice Calixte Le Beuf (1930)
Mr. Justice Le Beuf practiced law in partnership with Edmond Lareau. In 1898 he created a Queen’s Counsel and was later appointed by Sir Lomer Gouin to represent the province before the Royal Commission on life insurance matters. A trusted friend of Sir Wilfred Laurier, he was elected alderman and achieved success as political director of La Patrie.

87 Holton
Professor Clarence Victor Christie, electrical engineering professor, McGill University (1940)
His son, George Patterson Christie, received the Distinguished Flying Cross from the Air Ministry in London.

Images: Michael Walsh, unless indicated otherwise

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