Introduction to looking for the action

How has work changed?

Where could Montréalers find work? How did they make a living? How was work changing? We have mapped the occupations of all urban and suburban household heads in 1848, 1860, 1880, and 1900. That does not account for all the jobs, since other family members and boarders worked, too.

Find the city’s butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers… or locate a particular business, workplace, or shop. You can even get personal! Track down your great-grandmother, the Mayor of Montréal, or the city’s biggest property owners. You won’t find them all, but the more questions you ask, the more possibilities and mysteries you’ll discover.

DID NEIGHBOURS DO SIMILAR KINDS OF WORK?
DID PEOPLE WHO WORKED TOGETHER LIVE CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER?

How did Montréal’s urban and suburban households make ends meet? In 90% of cases, the occupation or profession of the “man of the house” brought in the largest sum. But household income was often supplemented by second or seasonal jobs, as well as wages earned by wives, children, and boarders.

The city’s tax assessors registered householders annually, and a list of about one hundred common “occupation titles” covers 96% of household heads. The other 4% include unique titles like “Mayor of Montréal”, or descriptions like “blindman” or “beggar”. 

Since people with different occupations often lived in the same building, we have mapped occupations by street segment, with each street segment covering between 30 and 150 families. In most cases, houses on either side of the same street were home to people with similar occupations.

Information gathered from four dates (1848, 1861, 1881, and 1901) sheds light on the effects of industrialization in Montréal. Work processes changed, producers sought out new suppliers and new customers, people made novel work-related choices, qualifications changed, and the city was transformed…

Here are two ways of looking at the transformation:

• First, you can choose a sector of the economy such as construction, liberal professions, metal manufacturing, printing, or railways.
• How Did They Make a Living? This page lets you discover the spatial distribution of various occupations
• Second, you can explore the relationship between place of residence and occupation. Where did various sorts of workers choose to live? Since most people tried to keep their commute as short as possible, they tended to live close to work. Likewise, many shops and factories were located close to their suppliers or customers.
• Living Together: this map lets you explore different street clusters and see how Montréal changed over time