457, rue Saint-François-Xavier

If you are walking on Saint Francois Xavier Street, you may be captivated by this very nice architecture among others. With its six (6) Corinthian columns, lions heads aligned on top, the fine details, not commonly seen in Montreal, and the lettering stating Montreal Stock Exchange, you can’t mistake the first role of the building.   While it is currently a theater, it functioned as the stock exchange until 1965.  

Build in 1903, the architect of this building was Mr. George B. Post who is the same architect as the New York Stock Exchange building. It seems to be the only Canadian work that Mr. Post did in Canada but he was very active in the USA.

The first Canadian stock exchange building was built in the financial area of the time. The Bank of Montreal, the New York Life building, Aldred building and the Molson Bank are all close by. Within a 10 minute’s walk you can reach all these historical structures and more.

With its exterior details, I understand the motivation for the art community to establish themselves in this beautiful building. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity to visit the interior.

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