Fabled City: The Jews of Montreal

Fabled City chronicles 250 years of the Jewish community’s growth in Montreal, beginning in the 1760s, when Jews were first granted the right to legal residency in Quebec. From the beginning, and despite anti-Semitic sentiments that would dog them to the present day, Jews have made important contributions to the region’s cultural, political, and economic spheres. Author Joe King provides profiles of such diverse pioneers as Jesse Joseph, nineteenth-century founder of the city’s first street railway and the Montreal Telegraph Company; world figure skating champion Louis Rubenstein; member of parliament Sam Jacobs; businessman and philanthropist Samuel Bronfman; and librarian extraordinaire Eleanor London – as well as such colourful characters as the Jewish Chinese general “Two-Gun” Cohen and gambling czar Harry Davis. Readers can also glimpse the lives of those behind the icons – the Jewish Montrealers who fought in both World Wars, the war orphans displaced from Europe who settled in the area, and the Yiddish-speaking immigrants who settled along the Main. Also featured are many integral aspects of the urban landscape, including the Jewish Public Library, the Jewish General Hospital, and the Seagrams Building. King’s easy narrative style and anecdotes about his own interactions with historical figures make for a lively read. mRb