Verdun Model School – Collège Jean-Jacques Olier

The enclosed photo shows this school which indicates year 1902 with 2 wings and a picket fence wich may be an addition to the original church. Since the longer wing which was added to the left does not appear on a 1913 map, and does appear on a 1922 map, we can assume that this addition was built between these two dates. We are continuing our research to determine the dates of these additions, the demolition and the construction of the McDonald's wich is situated exactly on the grounds of the old school.

Here are some details taken from the Lovell's directory wich gives us the evolution of one of the first schools to be built in Verdun:

1895-96-97 Verdun School, John Hale, caretaker

1897-98 Verdun Public School, Lower Lachine Road

1902 Verdun Protestant School, Lower Lachine Road

1905-06 Verdun Model School, 159 Lower Lachine Road

1910-11 Verdun Model School, 384-388 Lower Lachine Road

1920-21 Verdun Model School, 388 LaSalle Road

1925 to 1928 LaSalle Road School, 388 LaSalle Blvd

1929 to 1951 Verdun Model School , 4300 LaSalle Blvd

1952 to 1956 Classical College (Sulpiciens)

1957 to 1969 Collège Jean-Jacques Olier

You will notice that the directory has shown different names and addresses over the years. The school changed to l'Externat Classique Jean-Jacques Olier during the 1950s.

The Guardian of September 30th 1954 indicates that the construction was completed in 1902. In front of the school, there were tramways at the beginning of the tramway era, late 1800s and early 1900s, the Wellington tramway traveled west to Rielle, up to LaSalle then east to Gordon, north to Wellington then back east. One of our members, Helen Ward related to us that she attended first the Woodland primary school, then the Verdun Model School. <@$p>(Guy Billard, Société d'Histoire et de Généalogie de Verdun