Native name: Île Sainte-Hélène | |
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 Saint Helen's Island with theMontreal Biosphere on the right | |
 Interactive map of Saint Helen's Island | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Saint Lawrence River |
| Coordinates | 45°31′04″N73°32′02″W / 45.51778°N 73.53389°W /45.51778; -73.53389 |
| Archipelago | Hochelaga Archipelago |
| Administration | |
Canada | |
| Province | Quebec |
| City | Montreal |
| Borough | Ville-Marie |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Uninhabited |
Saint Helen's Island (French:Île Sainte-Hélène) is an island in theSt. Lawrence River, in the territory of the city ofMontreal,Quebec, Canada. It forms part of theHochelaga Archipelago. It is situated immediately offshore fromOld Montreal on the southeastern side of theIsland of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, and is part of the central borough ofVille-Marie. The Le Moyne Channel separates it fromNotre Dame Island. Saint Helen's Island and Notre Dame Island together make upJean-Drapeau Park (formerly Parc des Îles).
It was named in 1611 bySamuel de Champlain in honour of his wife, Hélène de Champlain, née Boullé. The island belonged to the Le Moyne family ofLongueuil from 1665 until 1818, when it was purchased by theBritish government. A fort (Saint Helen Island Fort), powderhouse and blockhouse were built on the island as defences for the city, in consequence of theWar of 1812.
In 1838 plans were in place by the BritishOrdnance Department to establish an observatory, but it was moved toToronto instead.[1]
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.[2]
In the 1940s, duringWorld War II, Saint Helen's Island, along with various other regions within Canada, such as theSaguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean andHull, Quebec hadprisoner-of-war camps. St. Helen's prison was number 47 and remained unnamed just like most of Canada's other war prisons.[3] Theprisoners of war (POWs) were sorted and classified into categories, including their nationality and civilian or military status. In this camp, POWs were mostly of Italian and German nationality.[4] Also, prisoners were forced into hard labour which included farming and lumbering the land. In 1944, the camp was 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 ofExpo 67, aWorld's Fair on the theme ofMan and His World, or inFrench,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 theMontreal Metro. The nearby island,Notre Dame 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 orTerre des Hommes. Most of the expo installations were dismantled and the island was returned to parkland.
Several important attractions are found on the island, including theSaint Helen Island Fort, theLa Ronde amusement park, theBiosphere (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 recreation site for Montrealers and hosts frequent events, concerts and shows, including theL'International des Feux Loto-Québec internationalfireworks competition and the annualOsheaga,Île Soniq. andLasso Montreal music festivals.[5][6]
During the summer season, there are also live DJs at the Piknic Elektronic on sundays.[7]
St-Helen's island is the also gateway to theCircuit Gilles Villeneuve, a 4,361-metre long car-racing track, located on nearbyNotre Dame Island. It has played host to theCanadian Grand Prix since 1978.[8]
The island can be accessed by public transit, by car, by bicycle or by foot. TheConcordia Bridge links St. Helen's Island to Montreal'sCité du Havre neighbourhood on theIsland of Montreal as well as Notre Dame Island (which itself is connected toSaint-Lambert on thesouth shore by bicycle paths). The island is also accessible via theJacques Cartier Bridge from both the Island of Montreal andLongueuil on the south shore. TheYellow Line of the Montreal Metro has a stop on St. Helen's Island:Jean-Drapeau station.
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