Westmount Summit Sommet de Westmount | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 201 m (659 ft) [1] |
Coordinates | 45°29′31.03″N 73°36′25″W / 45.4919528°N 73.60694°W |
Geography | |
Parent range | Monteregian Hills |
Topo map | USGS Mount Katahdin |
Geology | |
Age of rock | Early Cretaceous |
Mountain type | Intrusive stock |
Climbing | |
Easiest route | Hiking or Cycling |
Westmount Summit Le sommet de Westmount | |
---|---|
Location | Westmount, Quebec, Canada |
Coordinates | 45°29′31″N 73°36′25″W / 45.491954°N 73.606943°W |
Area | 23.087 hectares (57.05 acres) [2] |
Operated by | City of Westmount |
Westmount Summit ( French: Sommet de Westmount) is the summit of one of the three peaks of Mount Royal (along with Mount Royal proper and Outremont) located in the City of Westmount, Quebec, Canada. Part of the geographical summit is located adjacent to the Montreal borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.
The summit is approximately 201 metres (659 ft) above sea-level. [1] The park occupies approximately 23.087 hectares (57.05 acres) of land at the summit, making it the largest park in Westmount. [2]
A lookout is located on its southern face, providing views over Westmount, Montreal, the south shore and the Eastern Townships. Saint Joseph's Oratory is on the northern side, on Queen Mary Road in Côte-des-Neiges.
In 1895, McGill University purchased several tracts of land covering Westmount Summit, using funds donated by William Christopher Macdonald. These properties were acquired for the construction of an observatory and access roads, to be used by McGill's Survey School. Many of the purchased lots were subject to a perpetual servitude restricting building heights, so as not to block views from the planned observatory. [3] [4]
In the late 19th century, interest in astronomical observatories was growing due to the importance of celestial references for standardized timekeeping, which was in turn crucial for emerging railway networks and shipping. Use of the observatory was short-lived however, due to increasing light and air pollution from the growing City of Montreal. [3] [5] In 1940 McGill sold the land that is now Summit Woods to the City of Westmount for CAD$300,000, under the condition that the property be used "as a park or playground in perpetuity." [6]
The forested area of the park is bordered on three sides by Summit Circle, a picturesque residential portion of Westmount. Some of the nearby homes are still subject to the height restriction servitudes introduced in 1895 for the McGill observatory. [3] The Northern section, featuring more rugged terrain, extends to the boundary with the Montreal neighbourhood of Côte-des-Neiges.
Summit Woods has been used as an area for the off-leash exercise of dogs for generations, a designation which was officially sanctioned by the City of Westmount in 1989. [7] Two years later, in 1991, it was also recognized by the City as an "urban forest and bird and wild flower sanctuary." [8] [9] Although Summit Woods is not protected under Federal or Provincial law as a bird sanctuary, wildlife preserve, or nature preserve, it was included as part of the Mount Royal Heritage Zone created by the Quebec Government in 2005. [10]
The Woods are home to many species of animals including approximately twenty species of mammals, 150 species of birds, and thousands of insect species as well as snakes and other reptiles. There are also many species of wild plants, fungi, and flowers located in the forested areas. [1]
The Summit Woods urban forest is now a popular spot for bird watchers and dog walkers, [11] although the massive foundation blocks once used for telescopes remain prominently visible in their original locations.
In 1885 McGill University established a Chair of Botany and Vegetal Physiology, which was first held by David P. Penhallow. Penhallow and other local botanists sought to establish a botanical garden in Montreal, but struggled to secure a suitable site. From 1890 to around 1901, McGill leased 3.6 hectares (nine acres) of land on the lower slopes of Westmount Summit, along Côte-des-Neiges Road just South of the Boulevard. [12] [13] This site was to be the temporary home for McGill's botanical studies program, [14] until the opening of McGill's Macdonald Campus in the early 20th century.
The site was known as the Montreal Botanical gardens and was open to the general public. [15] The Gardens included greenhouses with a total area of 455 square metres (4,900 square feet), comprising "three temperate houses and one mixed stove house." The collection included "a large representation of type groups suited to purposes of instruction, and an especially valuable collection of Australasian plants chiefly derived from donations by the late Baron Von Mueller of Melbourne." [16]
It appears that the Montreal Botanical Gardens on Côte-des-Neiges Road ceased to exist around 1901, with no further mentions of their use or even their closure in the historical record. [13] In 1907 McGill opened MacDonald College in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, which became the nexus for plant and agricultural sciences at McGill. [17]
In 1931, the City of Montreal founded what is now the Montreal Botanical Garden, a site comprising 75 hectares (190 acres) of thematic gardens and greenhouses, in the East End of Montreal.
Deed numbers 57280, 57353, 57120, 57349, 57352, and 57121
details location of McGill's Botanical Gardens from 1890-1901