$30.00 CAD
| /
Nice image of the Manoir on one side, with description of accommodations: “Sport and Leisure are successfully blended at Murray Bay ... rare experience to those who would escape from cities on Summer days … one of Canada’s greatest golf courses ... riding and mountain paths …“.
Contact CSL at 715 Victoria Sq. Montreal.
Reverse has Directory of European Agencies: London, Bordeaux. Hamburg, Havre, Rotterdam.
Fresh colours. Top and bottom have creases. Slight browning front, back left sides.
18 x 5.5 cm.
In the mid-nineteenth century, La Malbaie was a vacation resort much appreciated by the well-off bourgeoisie and the wealthy classes of Canada and the United States. When a pier was built for steamboats at Pointe-au-Pic in 1853, competition between the major navigation companies increased, as did Charlevoix's attraction for tourists . More infrastructure was soon put in place in the region, in particular at Cap-à-l'Aigle and at Saint-Irénée.
In the 1890s, the financier Louis-Joseph Forget became president of the Richelieu and Ontario Ships Line, and restored the finances of the company. In 1898 while Forget was president, the company enlarged the Hotel Tadoussac and built the luxurious Manoir Richelieu at Pointe-au-Pic to receive its rich clientele. In addition to highly-regarded food and service, the Manoir Richelieu offered cruisers and vacationers a range of activities that were in fashion in high society of the time: boating, sailing, swimming, tennis, golf, riding, fishing, and dance evenings.
At the end of the 1928 summer season, the Manoir Richelieu was completely destroyed by a fire. Concerned not to lose its clients who had already reserved for the next year, the Canada Steamship Lines, which by that time owned the hotel, decided to rebuild it as quickly as possible. The challenge was considered overwhelming because of the short time frame and the technical means available at the time, and because much of the work would take place during the winter. Against all expectations, the Manoir Richelieu opened its doors in June 1929. Its luxury and monumental architecture evoked a French Renaissance chateau and made a great impression. At this time, the Manoir was the largest resort hotel in Canada; it outclassed even the famous hotels built all across the company by the Canadian Pacific Railway.
The new hotel offered clients an Olympic pool filled with sea water, a magnificent beach, riding trails, a bowling green, tennis courts, guides for fishing excursions on the lake, and a casino. Except for necessary renovations, it remains the same today.
www.ameriquefrancaise.org
