McGill Library
McLennan Library Building3459 rue McTavish
Montreal, Quebec
H3A 0C9
Saint Helen's Island Collection
Collection
1 cm of textual records
Purchased for Rare Books and Special Collections from Warren Baker, Montreal, in September, 2017.
Collection consists of three items relating to Saint Helen's Island (Île Sainte-Hélène), located southeast of the Island of Montreal in the Saint Lawrence River. The items relate to the island's military installations, built as defenses for the city of Montreal as a result of the War of 1812 and used as a munitions depot for the British Army and later a garrison, arsenal, and military prison operated by the Canadian Army. Items include a manuscript entitled, "Military Defences. St. Helen's Island - Barons of Longeuil," written by Charles Walkem, August, 1873; "Plan of Isle St. Helens," an undated map on linen paper, with a key pointing out the military installations; and "The Fort, St. Helen's Island," a 4-page pamphlet containing schematics and descriptions of the island's fort as well as a history of the island dating from 1611 to the 1960s. The pamphlet cover photograph features a soldier of the Royal Artillery, Saint Helen's Island Fort, circa 1865. Part of the manuscript document also deals with the hereditary Barony of Longueuil.
Also described in the McGill Libraries catalogue.
Note in ink on manuscript: "Copy of manuscript handed to me by Mr. Walkem (the author), 1879, with a map of St. Helen's Island, also copied."
Handwriting inverted on verso of each leaf.
Includes 1 manuscript (35 leaves), 1 pamphlet (26 x 20.5 cm), and 1 colour map (folded ; 41 x 53)