Saint Helen's Island (french: Île Sainte-Hélène) is an

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An isla ...

in the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

, in the territory of the city of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. It forms part of the

Hochelaga Archipelago The Hochelaga Archipelago (), also known as the Montreal Islands, is a group of islands at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa rivers in the southwestern part of the province of Quebec, Canada. Population On 1 July 2021, the Ho ...

. It is situated immediately offshore from

Old Montreal Old Montreal (French: ''Vieux-Montréal'') is a historic neighbourhood within the municipality of Montreal in the province of Quebec, Canada. Home to the Old Port of Montreal, the neighbourhood is bordered on the west by McGill Street, on th ...

on the southeastern side of the

Island of Montreal The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...

in southwestern Quebec, and is part of the central borough of Ville-Marie. The Le Moyne Channel separates it from

Notre Dame Island Notre Dame Island (french: Île Notre-Dame) is an artificial island in the Saint Lawrence River in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is immediately to the east of Saint Helen's Island and west of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the city of Saint-Lambert ...

. Saint Helen's Island and Notre Dame Island together make up Jean-Drapeau Park (formerly Parc des Îles). It was named in 1611 by

Samuel de Champlain Samuel de Champlain (; Fichier OrigineFor a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December 1635) was a Fr ...

in honour of his wife, Hélène de Champlain, née Boullé. The island belonged to the Le Moyne family of

Longueuil Longueuil () is a city in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is the seat of the Montérégie administrative region and the central city of the urban agglomeration of Longueuil. It sits on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River directly ac ...

from 1665 until 1818, when it was purchased by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

government. A fort ( Saint Helen Island Fort), powderhouse and blockhouse were built on the island as defences for the city, in consequence of the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It be ...

History

In 1838 plans were in place by the

Ordnance Department The United States Army Ordnance Corps, formerly the United States Army Ordnance Department, is a sustainment branch of the United States Army, headquartered at Fort Lee, Virginia. The broad mission of the Ordnance Corps is to supply Army comb ...

to establish an observatory, but it was moved to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

instead. The newly formed Canadian government acquired the island in 1870; it was converted into a public park in 1874. The public used it as a beach and swam in the river. In the 1940s, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Saint Helen's Island, along with various other regions within Canada, such as the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean and

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

, Quebec had

prisoner-of-war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military prisons. ...

s. St. Helen's prison was number forty seven and remained unnamed just like most of Canada's other war prisons. The

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

(POWs) were sorted and classified into categories including their nationality and

civilian Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not " combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant ...

or military status. In this camp, POWs were mostly of Italian and German nationality. Also, prisoners were forced into hard labour which included farming and lumbering the land. By 1944 the camp would be closed and shortly afterwards destroyed because of an internal report on the treatment of prisoners. The archipelago of which Saint Helen's Island is a part was chosen as the site of

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

, a

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

on the theme of ''Man and His World'', or in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, ''Terre des Hommes''. In preparation for Expo 67, the island was greatly enlarged and consolidated with several nearby islands, using earth excavated during the construction of the

Montreal metro The Montreal Metro (french: Métro de Montréal) is a rubber-tired underground rapid transit system serving Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, ...

. The nearby island,

, was built from scratch. After Expo 67, the site continued to be used as a fairground, now under the name

Man and His World The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

or ''Terre des Hommes''. Most of the expo installations were dismantled and the island was returned to parkland.

Visitor attractions

Several important attractions are found on the island, including the Saint Helen Island Fort, the La Ronde amusement park, the

Biosphere The biosphere (from Greek βίος ''bíos'' "life" and σφαῖρα ''sphaira'' "sphere"), also known as the ecosphere (from Greek οἶκος ''oîkos'' "environment" and σφαῖρα), is the worldwide sum of all ecosystems. It can also ...

(an interpretative museum about the Saint Lawrence River installed in the former American Pavilion from Expo), and an Aquatic Complex (French: ''Complexe aquatique de l'île Sainte-Hélène'') that includes three exterior pools. The park is a primary recreational site for Montrealers and hosts frequent concerts and shows, including the

L'International des Feux Loto-Québec L'International des Feux Loto-Québec, also known as the Montreal Fireworks Festival, is the largest and most prestigious fireworks competition in the world. It has been held yearly in La Ronde over the Dolphins lake, since 1985, and is named after ...

international

fireworks Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large number of devices ...

competition and the annual Osheaga music festival. As of 2022, it will be the home of Lasso Montreal, a brand new

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

themed festival that was originally intended to debut in 2020 but was postponed to 2022 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec The COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec is part of an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Until 2021, Quebec had reported t ...

. During the summer season, on Sundays, electronic music fans can enjoy live DJs during the Piknic Elektronic event.

Transportation

The island can be accessed by public transit, by car, by bicycle or by foot. The Concordia Bridge links St. Helen's Island to Montreal's

Cité du Havre Cité du Havre is a neighbourhood in the borough of Ville-Marie of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located on a narrow man-made peninsula, the Mackay Pier (''Jetée Mackay''), which was largely built to protect the Old Port of Montreal ...

neighbourhood on the

as well as Notre Dame Island (which itself is connected to Saint-Lambert on the south shore by bicycle paths). The island is also accessible via the

Jacques Cartier Bridge The Jacques Cartier Bridge (french: pont Jacques-Cartier) is a steel truss cantilever bridge crossing the Saint Lawrence River from Montreal Island, Montreal, Quebec, to the south shore at Longueuil, Quebec, Canada. The bridge crosses Saint He ...

from both the Island of Montreal and

on the south shore. The Yellow Line of the Montreal Metro has a stop on St. Helen's Island: Jean-Drapeau station.

Gallery

File:Picnics. St. Helen's Island BAnQ P48S1P03043.jpg, Picnic on Saint Helen's Island, 1938 File:Beach Scenes. At St.Helen's Island BAnQ P48S1P02107.jpg, Beach scene, 1938 File:Oeuvre de Calder.jpg, ''Man'', a sculpture by

Alexander Calder Alexander Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, his static "stabiles", and hi ...

, on Saint Helen's Island File:Phare du Cosmos hiver 2014.jpg, "Le Phare du Cosmos" (1967) by Yves Trudeau (created for

) in Saint Helen's Island File:Fort Ile Sainte-Helene 25.jpg, The Saint Helen Island Fort File:Biosphère Montréal.jpg, The

Montreal Biosphere The Biosphere (french: La Biosphère), also known as the Montreal Biosphere (french: La Biosphère de Montréal), is a museum dedicated to the environment in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is housed in the former United States pavilion constructed ...

File:Tour Lévis.JPG, The Tour de Lévis

Notes

Sources

External links

Parc Jean-Drapeau

Saint Helen's Island Collection
McGill University Library & Archives.
Site de l'exile de Napoléon à Sainte Hélène - Napoleon at St Helena
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sainte-Helene Hochelaga Archipelago Expo 67 Landforms of Montreal Parc Jean-Drapeau Heritage sites in Quebec (Cultural Heritage Act) River islands of Quebec Islands of the Saint Lawrence River 1874 establishments in Canada