Jean Drapeau Park (officially in French: ''Parc Jean-Drapeau'') (formerly called ''Parc des Îles'') is the third-largest park in

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 thirtee ...

, Canada. It comprises two islands,

Saint Helen's Island Saint Helen's Island (french: Île Sainte-Hélène) is an island in the Saint Lawrence River, in the territory of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It forms part of the Hochelaga Archipelago. It is situated immediately offshore from Old Mont ...

and the

artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...

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 ...

, situated off the shore of

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 ...

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, connectin ...

. The islands were the site of the

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 ...

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 ...

. Notre Dame Island was constructed for the exposition, and Saint Helen's Island artificially extended at its north and south ends. The park was renamed in honour of Jean Drapeau, the late mayor of Montreal and initiator of Expo 67.

History

was discovered by French explorer Samuel de Champlain in 1611, who named it in honour of his wife, Hélène de Champlain, née Boullé. It also bears the name of Helena, mother of Roman emperor

Constantine the Great Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

. The island belonged to the family of Le Moyne de Longueuil from 1665 until 1818, when it was sold to the British government. The British built a

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, a magazine and a bunker after the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

. The new Canadian government acquired it in 1870, and it was converted into a park in 1874. The islands of the archipelago were chosen as the site of Man and His World (

). To prepare for this role, Mayor Jean Drapeau expanded Saint Helen's Island and consolidated it with several neighboring islands (including Round Island) and created

using the fill excavated during the construction of the Montreal Metro in the early 1960s. 28 million tons of fill were needed for this massive undertaking. When the work was completed, Notre-Dame Island and St. Helen's Island hosted

, which featured pavilions from over sixty countries. After the closing of Expo in late 1967, the site continued its fair vocation under the name Man and His World until 1984, and finally, most facilities were dismantled and the island was converted into a park. In 1999, the Parc des Îles de Montreal was renamed Parc Jean-Drapeau in honour of former Mayor of Montreal, Jean Drapeau, who had re-shaped the islands, built the Montreal Metro and brought Expo 67 to the city.

Attractions

Summer is the high season for the park, as the majority of attractions are open to the public. These include: *An amusement park,

La Ronde La Ronde may refer to: Geography * La Ronde, Charente-Maritime, a commune in the Charente-Maritime ''département'', France * La Ronde River, on the Caribbean island of Dominica *La Ronde (amusement park), Montreal, Quebec, Canada * A La Ronde, an ...

operated by

Six Flags Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is an American amusement park corporation, headquartered in Arlington, Texas. It has properties in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Six Flags owns the most theme parks and waterparks combined of any a ...

under an

emphyteutic lease An emphyteutic lease is a type of real estate contract specifying that the lessee must improve the property with construction. The term is commonly used in Quebec and France. These sorts of leases are usually associated with government properties. ...

*The

Montreal Casino The Montreal Casino (french: Casino de Montréal) is a casino on the Notre Dame Island in the borough of Ville-Marie in Montreal, Quebec, and is the largest casino in Canada. It is located in Jean-Drapeau Park, across from Montreal’s Old Po ...

*An environmental museum at 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 ...

(

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

pavilion during

) *The early Victorian Era fortifications at Saint Helen Island Fort *A

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

race track, the

Circuit Gilles Villeneuve The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, also spelled ''Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve'' (), is a motor racing circuit in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the venue for the FIA Formula One Canadian Grand Prix. It has previously hosted the FIA World Sportscar ...

, which hosts the

Canadian Grand Prix The Canadian Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix du Canada) is an annual motor racing event held since 1961. It has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 1967. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, as a spor ...

*The city's largest outdoor concert venue, regularly hosting the

Vans Warped Tour The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running tourin ...

, Osheaga Festival and Heavy MTL, and as of 2014, an

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

festival known as île Soniq *An Olympic rowing basin *An aquatics centre, which hosted the 2005 World Aquatics Championships *A beach, Plage Jean-Doré During winter for several weekends, the park throws the winter carniva
Fête des neiges de Montréal
which is a free event that offers a variety of winter activities. The islands also boast numerous hiking and skiing trails, bike paths, large athletic grounds and diverse other services and conveniences. During the more temperate months, a diverse array of free and pay activities are offered on a weekly basis in addition to the aforementioned attractions. There's also a weekly electronic dance festival located under

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 ...

's sculpture Man, commissioned for

. The islands are also notable for the remnants of

, most of which are still in use, though few are still standing. The American and French pavilions are the best preserved, functioning today as the Biosphere and Casino respectively. The Canadian pavilion contains administrative offices, rental halls, and is the site of the studio of Radio-Classique Montréal. The former Tunisian and Jamaican pavilions are also in use, the former for bike rentals while the latter is used principally for receptions. A considerable portion of Île Notre-Dame was redeveloped into an intricate and elaborate flower garden in the early 1980s, which remains today. The only other significant remnant of the former World's Fair is the Place des Nations at the western end of Île Sainte-Hélène, though this is abandoned and officially off-limits. As such, it's become a popular spot for fishing. A snowboarding park was added in winter 2009. Image:Parc Jean-Drapeau, Montreal, Quebec 2.jpg, Parc Jean-Drapeau File:Le Phare du Cosmos.JPG, "Le Phare du Cosmos" (1967) by Yves Trudeau (created for

) in St. Helen's Island in Parc Jean-Drapeau,

Montréal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Image:Lavilleimaginaire.JPG, Monument

References

{{Authority control Jean-Drapeau Music venues in Montreal Expo 67 1874 establishments in Canada 1874 establishments in Quebec Festival venues in Canada

History

Attractions

See also

References