Montreal street hockey scenes

[HABsurd]

Not sure if this is the correct board, but thought some might appreciate the following past scenes from Montreal life.

From parc Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, 1957 (surprised they aren't all wearing #9)



Hôtel-de-Ville, near Prince-Arthur, 1970s

[blny]

Nice finds. I think this the perfect place.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Nice pics for sure ... it triggers some memories I have while growing up in Ottawa's west end ... folks from Ottawa will probably know the area I'm talking about ... they used to set up an outdoor rink in the field at the Westboro Community Centre every winter and I remember the winters were a lot more harsh in Ottawa than nowadays ... they also set up a shack where you'd be be able to put your skates on ... it had a wood stove in the middle of it and was it ever toasty ... sometimes we'd walk a couple of blocks wearing our skate guards so we didn't have to leave anything in the shack ... good times ...

Cheers.

[Willie Dog]

Dec 9, 2018 21:09:27 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

Nice pics for sure ... it triggers some memories I have while growing up in Ottawa's west end ... folks from Ottawa will probably know the area I'm talking about ... they used to set up an outdoor rink in the field at the Westboro Community Centre every winter and I remember the winters were a lot more harsh in Ottawa than nowadays ... they also set up a shack where you'd be be able to put your skates on ... it had a wood stove in the middle of it and was it ever toasty ... sometimes we'd walk a couple of blocks wearing our skate guards so we didn't have to leave anything in the shack ... good times ...

Cheers.

I remember playing hockey after school in the school yard and someone who had the same boots as me (the brown rubber cowboy boot ones with the flat front, I still remember those hideous things) but a smaller size took mine and left me theirs... had to walk a kilometer in my skates (no skate guards) to get home...

Boy was my mom pissed someone took my boots

[Cranky]

Dec 7, 2018 13:03:35 GMT -5 HABsurd said:

Not sure if this is the correct board, but thought some might appreciate the following past scenes from Montreal life.

From parc Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, 1957 (surprised they aren't all wearing #9)

View Attachment

Hôtel-de-Ville, near Prince-Arthur, 1970s

View Attachment

Actually, Prince Arthur and Hotel-De-Ville are parallel to each other. I don't know when in the 70's the picture was taken nor any rink near us at the time I was in that neighborhood. It's probably nearer to Park Avenue or St Urbain.

I fondly remember the fights between the "moudzi" immigrants and the pure laines. Most of which I won.

Also remember the rat and roach infested palaces....and burning coal, yes, coal when we first moved in the neighborhood. Most people don't realize that the first use of those sheds going up to the back of the duplex/triplex apartments where coal storage sheds. The kept thieves and fire departments busy for generations.

Small ****** world.....and memories, good and bad, NOT forgotten.

[Cranky]

Dec 30, 2018 7:47:11 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I remember playing hockey after school in the school yard and someone who had the same boots as me (the brown rubber cowboy boot ones with the flat front, I still remember those hideous things) but a smaller size took mine and left me theirs... had to walk a kilometer in my skates (no skate guards) to get home...

Boy was my mom pissed someone took my boots

You had boots? AND skates? You were obviously born a golden spooner.

When I could afford to buy another cheap stick, anything suitable and old was the uniform. Skates? SKATES? That was out of the question. That's what rich people bought for their kids. We played street hockey like it was our only mission in life, summer and winter, but none of us could afford anything resembling skates or God forbid, to play organized hockey in a HOCKEY RING.

Which, brings me to something else. Komisarek started playing hockey when he was 11. By eleven, safe to say we played five thousand hours of street hockey. Muscle memory and reflexes were baked in by the time he pickup a hockey stick. That is whey he never "learned" to read the play or had any "hockey sense". I bet the vast majority of great players learned the game just after graduating from diapers.

[Willie Dog]

Dec 30, 2018 18:06:25 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Dec 30, 2018 7:47:11 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I remember playing hockey after school in the school yard and someone who had the same boots as me (the brown rubber cowboy boot ones with the flat front, I still remember those hideous things) but a smaller size took mine and left me theirs... had to walk a kilometer in my skates (no skate guards) to get home...

Boy was my mom pissed someone took my boots

You had boots? AND skates? You were obviously born a golden spooner.

When I could afford to buy another cheap stick, anything suitable and old was the uniform. Skates? SKATES? That was out of the question. That's what rich people bought for their kids. We played street hockey like it was our only mission in life, summer and winter, but none of us could afford anything resembling skates or God forbid, to play organized hockey in a HOCKEY RING.

All hand me downs Sir Cranks... and the hockey was totally unorganized

Which, brings me to something else. Komisarek started playing hockey when he was 11. By eleven, safe to say we played five thousand hours of street hockey. Muscle memory and reflexes were baked in by the time he pickup a hockey stick. That is whey he never "learned" to read the play or had any "hockey sense". I bet the vast majority of great players learned the game just after graduating from diapers.

True, that never occurred to me about Komisarek.

I played loads of street hockey 10 months of the year... July and August I was at the local park (Kingsmere) in the city run pool... lived there... got there at 8am, left at 6pm... brought a lunch.

[Cranky]

Dec 9, 2018 21:09:27 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

Nice pics for sure ... it triggers some memories I have while growing up in Ottawa's west end ... folks from Ottawa will probably know the area I'm talking about ... they used to set up an outdoor rink in the field at the Westboro Community Centre every winter and I remember the winters were a lot more harsh in Ottawa than nowadays ... they also set up a shack where you'd be be able to put your skates on ... it had a wood stove in the middle of it and was it ever toasty ... sometimes we'd walk a couple of blocks wearing our skate guards so we didn't have to leave anything in the shack ... good times ...

Cheers.

You too had skates? WTF......

I begged for skates and my parents only response was.....waste of money. When my friend brother gave me a pair, my parents wouldn't let me wear "dirty stuff from other peoples feet". This while living in a roach and rat infested apartment heated by coal.

Even weirder, my father loved hockey, but he never cared to explain why they were so against me playing organized hockey. The only explanation is so I wouldn't want to stay in the "new world".

I love my parents, I have forgiven them a long time ago..........but I have never forgotten.

[Cranky]

Dec 30, 2018 18:21:55 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

True, that never occurred to me about Komisarek.

I played loads of street hockey 10 months of the year... July and August I was at the local park (Kingsmere) in the city run pool... lived there... got there at 8am, left at 6pm... brought a lunch.

You had a pool too? Cripes......

I play right defense. Komisarek was going to be the player I never was. He even looked like me a little bit. When they were in Hamilton, I went to see the Bulldogs, primarily to see how he played. Up close and personal, I was concerned. He simply couldn't read the play or see it develop. Time and again, he was in the wrong place or over committed.

From the 3 scouting reports...in order....

Now we go into an area of major concern. He was consistently beaten to the outside. Not to the extent that the guy went around him but to the extent that a Zednik could turn him or a Bury would burn him. I am really not sure why although I have two theories. One, he is use to a slower pace of collage hockey and not to high speed game. The guys on both sides have real NHL speed and I think that he has not adjusted yet to players going to the outside at 25 to 30 miles an hour. Secondly, he is not reading the play fast enough and traveling in the same direction as the play. At 25 mph, the guys are traveling 18 feet in half a second. An instant of hesitation and the guy is on your side, traveling at full speed. The other reason can be is that when I watched him in collage games, he was always playing deep as a defensive defenseman. He also played more towards the center of the ice where as in the AHL he has to play more positional hockey. Maybe that is still confusing him. In fact, a couple of times I saw him cut off a player and follow him laterally on the ice and instead of handing off the man to his partner, he followed him around and took himself completely out of position. OUCH. I am not 100% sure but if he was taught to play man to man hockey in collage then this would explain a lot. Bottom line, major problem right now. Forget Christmas, the kid needs the year in the AHL. By the way, anyone who still wants to argue that there is not a big difference between AHL hockey and collage hockey should have his heads wrapped in a cold, wet towel.

Komisarek: I am not happy with what I saw on this night. He came out as the third defensive pairing and the second pp unit and I did not like that. Is this bludgeoning hint about his play? He looked tentative on some plays and on way too many times he came back to the bench down on himself. To do this in a game that was so one sided concerns me about his confidence level. The glaring shortcoming of him beaten on the outside did not manifest itself tonight. This has more to do with the quality of the opposition then an improvement of Komi’s play. His reads were better but again, the opponents were much worse then last time. My previous mention of a very hard wrist shot showed up again and two goals resulted from it. The shot did not go by the goaltenders but because it was hard and low, it caused a rebound and was converted easily. No physical presence shown and no hard checks thrown even though he had many opportunities. In fact, he was double “hit” and appeared to be a target on a few occasions.

On this night, he was average in all aspects. In all honesty, I had this feeling that he was playing like “the new kid on the block”. He wants to do his best and play “smart” defense which hinders his naturally aggressive game. You can see him try to think of his options instead of being instinctive. Before people start crying, remember that he is still very young and will be much better in a short while. Short while? Between one to three years. I know it’s hard to quantify this but you can “feel” that there is a lot more to him then what you currently see on the ice. Speed, shot, size and desire will allow him to excel.

Komisarek.

Shooting: Excellent and sneaky wrist shot.

Skating: Speed is very good. Agility is average. Balance is very good.
Average acceleration.

Puckmovement: Confused. Often looks down at the puck when he receives it. Occasional small delay in deciding who to pass too. Somewhat improved in reading the play. He is playing a little better positional. Note that this has to do a lot with the opposition he faces. In the first game I saw, the opponents were much faster and broke into his zone with a lot of speed. Physical play was non existent. Did not take an opportunity to hit anyone even though he had several chances. His “evergy level” was average.

An example of his play: In the third period, he is on the penalty kill. The box collapses and he moves to the top of the goal crease to block a PASS from getting through to the player BEHIND him. The opposing passer in front of him was physically covered so he should of taken the opposing player that he skated by. On this occasion, he was lucky that the pass hit him but five of the ten passes on similar occasions will get through and give the opposing forward a easy goal.

ALL of this was due because he simply because he never developed the "hockey sense" some of us did when starting from a very early age.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Dec 30, 2018 18:21:55 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I played loads of street hockey 10 months of the year... July and August I was at the local park (Kingsmere) in the city run pool... lived there... got there at 8am, left at 6pm... brought a lunch.

The shack I described earlier was in the field at Dovercourt Rec Centre in Westboro ... we used to play street hockey on Roosevelt, Melbourne, Edison and also in the parking area in behind the apartments on Tilbury ... a lot of those guys who I played street hockey with actually formed the West End Cougars broomball team ... we were all teenagers and we were all friends ... we played in the Ottawa Men's Broomball League and didn't do so well the first year, but we won the regular season championship in our second ... lost in the first round, though ... still good enough for us to pool our money and order some proper jerseys ... played on a lot of outdoor rinks and at the old Cattle Castle at Landsdowne ... if it got cold enough the air in the ball would freeze and it would split open if hit hard enough ... Dovercourt RC was our home (outdoor) rink ... we didn't have any practice times because it was a public skating rink, but we got the rink to ourselves plenty of times ... we played only one more year after that then everyone grew up ... I'm still in touch with some of those guys on FB ... good times ...

Cheers.

[Willie Dog]

Dec 30, 2018 20:27:17 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

Dec 30, 2018 18:21:55 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I played loads of street hockey 10 months of the year... July and August I was at the local park (Kingsmere) in the city run pool... lived there... got there at 8am, left at 6pm... brought a lunch.

The shack I described earlier was in the field at Dovercourt Rec Centre in Westboro ... we used to play street hockey on Roosevelt, Melbourne, Edison and also in the parking area in behind the apartments on Tilbury ... a lot of those guys who I played street hockey with actually formed the West End Cougars broomball team ... we were all teenagers and we were all friends ... we played in the Ottawa Men's Broomball League and didn't do so well the first year, but we won the regular season championship in our second ... lost in the first round, though ... still good enough for us to pool our money and order some proper jerseys ... played on a lot of outdoor rinks and at the old Cattle Castle at Landsdowne ... if it got cold enough the air in the ball would freeze and it would split open if hit hard enough ... Dovercourt RC was our home (outdoor) rink ... we didn't have any practice times because it was a public skating rink, but we got the rink to ourselves plenty of times ... we played only one more year after that then everyone grew up ... I'm still in touch with some of those guys on FB ... good times ...

Cheers.

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Dec 30, 2018 20:44:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

Dec 30, 2018 20:27:17 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

The shack I described earlier was in the field at Dovercourt Rec Centre in Westboro ... we used to play street hockey on Roosevelt, Melbourne, Edison and also in the parking area in behind the apartments on Tilbury ... a lot of those guys who I played street hockey with actually formed the West End Cougars broomball team ... we were all teenagers and we were all friends ... we played in the Ottawa Men's Broomball League and didn't do so well the first year, but we won the regular season championship in our second ... lost in the first round, though ... still good enough for us to pool our money and order some proper jerseys ... played on a lot of outdoor rinks and at the old Cattle Castle at Landsdowne ... if it got cold enough the air in the ball would freeze and it would split open if hit hard enough ... Dovercourt RC was our home (outdoor) rink ... we didn't have any practice times because it was a public skating rink, but we got the rink to ourselves plenty of times ... we played only one more year after that then everyone grew up ... I'm still in touch with some of those guys on FB ... good times ...

Cheers.

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

I knew where you were right away when you mentioned "Kingsmere" ... you were close to "The Golden Palace" ... former Magic 100 news anchor, Wayne Parkinson, was part of our team (forward) and he grew up on Roosevelt ... another guy I played with is a professional drummer in Calgary ... I think both of them went to Nepean, as did most of the team ... I moved out of the neighbourhood in '72 and graduated from Woodroffe four years later ... it was easy getting back to Dovercourt for practices ... knew the OC Transpo routes like the back of my hand ... we'd convene at the Carleton Tavern for beers after any outdoor game in Mechanicsville ... the waiters would ask us if we were of age to drink and a collective "yes" was good enough (followed by jocularity, jocularity) ... we hit the old Kingsway Restaurant for beers when we had games close to Richmond Rd/Churchill Ave intersection ... mind you, the guys would come up to my end of the city, Redwood, usually when my parents went out of town ... insert party here, kinda thing ... some of us would continue to play ball hockey in the summer ... a good summer 'rink' was the Dovercourt tennis courts or any high school parking lot ...

Cheers.

[Willie Dog]

Dec 30, 2018 23:04:50 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

Dec 30, 2018 20:44:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

I knew where you were right away when you mentioned "Kingsmere" ... you were close to "The Golden Palace" ... former Magic 100 news anchor, Wayne Parkinson, was part of our team (forward) and he grew up on Roosevelt ... another guy I played with is a professional drummer in Calgary ... I think both of them went to Nepean, as did most of the team ... I moved out of the neighbourhood in '72 and graduated from Woodroffe four years later ... it was easy getting back to Dovercourt for practices ... knew the OC Transpo routes like the back of my hand ... we'd convene at the Carleton Tavern for beers after any outdoor game in Mechanicsville ... the waiters would ask us if we were of age to drink and a collective "yes" was good enough (followed by jocularity, jocularity) ... we hit the old Kingsway Restaurant for beers when we had games close to Richmond Rd/Churchill Ave intersection ... mind you, the guys would come up to my end of the city, Redwood, usually when my parents went out of town ... insert party here, kinda thing ... some of us would continue to play ball hockey in the summer ... a good summer 'rink' was the Dovercourt tennis courts or any high school parking lot ...

Cheers.

I lived on Kingsmere near Carling and went to Woodroffe 77-82... walking distance to Golden Palace, Mister Donut(drag racing Friday and Saturday nights), Miracle Mart (loved their candy store... 2 MoJos for a penny)... I remember when the 61 ended at Carlingwood

[Boston_Habs]

Love it. Outdoor rink hockey was the best. I'd leave the house after an early lunch and wouldn't be home until it was dark. The best part was it was totally democratic. Throw the sticks in the middle of the ice and have at it. 10 year olds playing with 18 year olds and 40 year olds.

For Montrealers: Westmount outdoor rink near the public arena, another one at Wood and Sherbrooke. We'd travel to the ones in TMR and Cote St Luc - they'd actually water the ice overnight!

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Dec 31, 2018 16:56:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

Dec 30, 2018 23:04:50 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

I knew where you were right away when you mentioned "Kingsmere" ... you were close to "The Golden Palace" ... former Magic 100 news anchor, Wayne Parkinson, was part of our team (forward) and he grew up on Roosevelt ... another guy I played with is a professional drummer in Calgary ... I think both of them went to Nepean, as did most of the team ... I moved out of the neighbourhood in '72 and graduated from Woodroffe four years later ... it was easy getting back to Dovercourt for practices ... knew the OC Transpo routes like the back of my hand ... we'd convene at the Carleton Tavern for beers after any outdoor game in Mechanicsville ... the waiters would ask us if we were of age to drink and a collective "yes" was good enough (followed by jocularity, jocularity) ... we hit the old Kingsway Restaurant for beers when we had games close to Richmond Rd/Churchill Ave intersection ... mind you, the guys would come up to my end of the city, Redwood, usually when my parents went out of town ... insert party here, kinda thing ... some of us would continue to play ball hockey in the summer ... a good summer 'rink' was the Dovercourt tennis courts or any high school parking lot ...

Cheers.

I lived on Kingsmere near Carling and went to Woodroffe 77-82... walking distance to Golden Palace, Mister Donut(drag racing Friday and Saturday nights), Miracle Mart (loved their candy store... 2 MoJos for a penny)... I remember when the 61 ended at Carlingwood

The 61 ... I should know that (bus route?) ... I think that was bus that took me into Dovercourt ... I remember the drag racing, yup ... the start line was at the lights at the Mr Donut you mentioned ... we used to go to Lady Jane Donuts on the corner of Broadview and Carling ... McKellar Park wasn't too far from you either ... they had a decent outdoor rink too ... I don't know how many of these rinks are still around, but every neighbourhood had their own outdoor rink when I was growing up and a lot of organized hockey was played on them ...

Cheers.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Dec 31, 2018 18:12:37 GMT -5 Boston_Habs said:

Love it. Outdoor rink hockey was the best. I'd leave the house after an early lunch and wouldn't be home until it was dark. The best part was it was totally democratic. Throw the sticks in the middle of the ice and have at it. 10 year olds playing with 18 year olds and 40 year olds.

For Montrealers: Westmount outdoor rink near the public arena, another one at Wood and Sherbrooke. We'd travel to the ones in TMR and Cote St Luc - they'd actually water the ice overnight!

Just getting those rinks started was a big job ... the boards had to go up and someone had to water the rinks just about every night ... the flood lights were necessary because some games would be over by 9:30/10:00 PM, but someone had to stick around to turn them off ... but, you know, as I was saying to WD, every neighbourhood had their own outdoor rink in Ottawa ... that's a lot of people in behind the scenes ...

Cheers.

[duster]

Dec 30, 2018 20:44:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

Dec 30, 2018 20:27:17 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

The shack I described earlier was in the field at Dovercourt Rec Centre in Westboro ... we used to play street hockey on Roosevelt, Melbourne, Edison and also in the parking area in behind the apartments on Tilbury ... a lot of those guys who I played street hockey with actually formed the West End Cougars broomball team ... we were all teenagers and we were all friends ... we played in the Ottawa Men's Broomball League and didn't do so well the first year, but we won the regular season championship in our second ... lost in the first round, though ... still good enough for us to pool our money and order some proper jerseys ... played on a lot of outdoor rinks and at the old Cattle Castle at Landsdowne ... if it got cold enough the air in the ball would freeze and it would split open if hit hard enough ... Dovercourt RC was our home (outdoor) rink ... we didn't have any practice times because it was a public skating rink, but we got the rink to ourselves plenty of times ... we played only one more year after that then everyone grew up ... I'm still in touch with some of those guys on FB ... good times ...

Cheers.

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

Small world. I lived at the corner of Westminster and Dovercourt. Use to take the 61 or 62 at Carlingwood (I miss the Golden Palace). My parents worked at CBC on Lanark. I use to hang out with a bunch of kids who lived on Wavell. Played baseball at McKellar park. Street hockey at Tilbury and Broadview among others. Minor hockey at Lions Arena. Wouldn't be surprised if I actually played street hockey against you Dis.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Jan 5, 2019 19:15:11 GMT -5 duster said:

Dec 30, 2018 20:44:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

Small world. I lived at the corner of Westminster and Dovercourt. Use to take the 61 or 62 at Carlingwood (I miss the Golden Palace). My parents worked at CBC on Lanark. I use to hang out with a bunch of kids who lived on Wavell. Played baseball at McKellar park. Street hockey at Tilbury and Broadview among others. Minor hockey at Lions Arena. Wouldn't be surprised if I actually played street hockey against you Dis.

Small world, indeed ... I had a few friends in the area and I'll bounce some names off you later, buds ... I attended Cubs and Scouts at the Westminster Presbyterian Church ... the thing about Tilbury ... it never used to go straight through from Churchill to Broadview ... there was a wooded area we used to all the "Tilbury Bush" and Tilbury would end where the bush started and continued on the other side of "the bush" ... we knew the paths all through it like the backs of our hands ... everyone was at "the bush" in the summer ... we'd play street hockey in the summer at the Dovercourt tennis courts ... we'd give up the courts if someone wanted to play, but we'd take the net down if no one was there ... can't remember where we got the nets from for hockey but they were there ...

Cheers.

[Willie Dog]

I also played football for the McKellar Park Blue Bombers

[Cranky]

Jan 6, 2019 1:10:05 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I also played football for the McKellar Park Blue Bombers

My father knew I wanted to play hockey and football...and wanted to know why I didn't want to play a gentleman game like soccer.

Funny he should say that. We played "soccer" every lunch time in the high-school solarium. It was lined with steel lockers....and every single one of them was caved in. Obviously he didn't know about our version of hockey inspired soccer.

BTW.....it was so violent, you quickly learned how to do a "double step" or "roll" to avoid becoming part of the locker pin-ups. Which is great tool for a running back with size......which does nothing to stop the pile-ons and the knee tackles.....which is why I stopped playing and still have great looking knees!

Ahhhh......I could'a been a contendah.....if I wasn't such a p*ss*.

[Willie Dog]

Jan 6, 2019 15:30:41 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Jan 6, 2019 1:10:05 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

I also played football for the McKellar Park Blue Bombers

My father knew I wanted to play hockey and football...and wanted to know why I didn't want to play a gentleman game like soccer.

Funny he should say that. We played "soccer" every lunch time in the high-school solarium. It was lined with steel lockers....and every single one of them was caved in. Obviously he didn't know about our version of hockey inspired soccer.

BTW.....it was so violent, you quickly learned how to do a "double step" or "roll" to avoid becoming part of the locker pin-ups. Which is great tool for a running back with size......which does nothing to stop the pile-ons and the knee tackles.....which is why I stopped playing and still have great looking knees!

Ahhhh......I could'a been a contendah.....if I wasn't such a p*ss*.

Always played on the line, D or O...

[HABsurd]

Dec 30, 2018 17:53:56 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Dec 7, 2018 13:03:35 GMT -5 HABsurd said:

Not sure if this is the correct board, but thought some might appreciate the following past scenes from Montreal life.

From parc Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, 1957 (surprised they aren't all wearing #9)



Hôtel-de-Ville, near Prince-Arthur, 1970s

Actually, Prince Arthur and Hotel-De-Ville are parallel to each other. I don't know when in the 70's the picture was taken nor any rink near us at the time I was in that neighborhood. It's probably nearer to Park Avenue or St Urbain.

I fondly remember the fights between the "moudzi" immigrants and the pure laines. Most of which I won.

Also remember the rat and roach infested palaces....and burning coal, yes, coal when we first moved in the neighborhood. Most people don't realize that the first use of those sheds going up to the back of the duplex/triplex apartments where coal storage sheds. The kept thieves and fire departments busy for generations.

Small ****** world.....and memories, good and bad, NOT forgotten.

Maybe not forgotten, but the geography can become hazy. Hôtel-de-Ville does cross Prince-Arthur (here is the street view location of the park in the photo Parc De Bullion).

[Cranky]

Jan 7, 2019 11:00:21 GMT -5 HABsurd said:

Dec 30, 2018 17:53:56 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Actually, Prince Arthur and Hotel-De-Ville are parallel to each other. I don't know when in the 70's the picture was taken nor any rink near us at the time I was in that neighborhood. It's probably nearer to Park Avenue or St Urbain.

I fondly remember the fights between the "moudzi" immigrants and the pure laines. Most of which I won.

Also remember the rat and roach infested palaces....and burning coal, yes, coal when we first moved in the neighborhood. Most people don't realize that the first use of those sheds going up to the back of the duplex/triplex apartments where coal storage sheds. The kept thieves and fire departments busy for generations.

Small ****** world.....and memories, good and bad, NOT forgotten.

Maybe not forgotten, but the geography can become hazy. Hôtel-de-Ville does cross Prince-Arthur (here is the street view location of the park in the photo Parc De Bullion).

Big ooops here.....reading one thing, thinking another. My geography wasn't hazy, it was my mind! I read Hotel-de-Ville and thought...Pine Avenue. Then tried to find where they intersected! Sheesh......

That's picture is even "closer to home" then I thought.

Some history.....there is a park there where there use to be a taxi parking lot. In fact, I still remember playing in the rubble when they first brought down the houses to extend the original lot. We left in the mid 60's and the park was built after we left the area. Up the street, there use to be a convent and we played in their lot. Now, almost the entire block has changed.

You want to talk about how small the world is? IF that picture of the the park was in the very early 70's, then chances are there may be people in that picture that I knew or played street hockey against. Or their brothers.

How about this.....for a brief period, my jailer wife use to live in the area and two blocks away from me. TWO BLOCKS. Then 16 years later, on the other side of the city we meet and the rest is history..... ........

This is thread is fun....and bit painful. We are talking about over half a century ago........

[Disgruntled70sHab]

Jan 5, 2019 19:15:11 GMT -5 duster said:

Dec 30, 2018 20:44:57 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

That's cool... my cousins grew up on Roosevelt and went to Nepean

Small world. I lived at the corner of Westminster and Dovercourt. Use to take the 61 or 62 at Carlingwood (I miss the Golden Palace). My parents worked at CBC on Lanark. I use to hang out with a bunch of kids who lived on Wavell. Played baseball at McKellar park. Street hockey at Tilbury and Broadview among others. Minor hockey at Lions Arena. Wouldn't be surprised if I actually played street hockey against you Dis.

I had a friend that lived on the corner of (?) and Dovercourt, and his name was "Brian" (IIRC) ... we used to start at the top of hill on Denbury Ave and fly down Dovercourt running every stop sign/yield sign just to pick up momentum ... not the smartest thing to do, but for an indestructible kid it was okay ...

Cheers.

[duster]

Jan 8, 2019 12:12:08 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

Jan 5, 2019 19:15:11 GMT -5 duster said:

Small world. I lived at the corner of Westminster and Dovercourt. Use to take the 61 or 62 at Carlingwood (I miss the Golden Palace). My parents worked at CBC on Lanark. I use to hang out with a bunch of kids who lived on Wavell. Played baseball at McKellar park. Street hockey at Tilbury and Broadview among others. Minor hockey at Lions Arena. Wouldn't be surprised if I actually played street hockey against you Dis.

I had a friend that lived on the corner of (?) and Dovercourt, and his name was "Brian" (IIRC) ... we used to start at the top of hill on Denbury Ave and fly down Dovercourt running every stop sign/yield sign just to pick up momentum ... not the smartest thing to do, but for an indestructible kid it was okay ...

Cheers.

Agreed. I knew a Brian who lived near Courtenay and Dovercourt but I don't recall him doing that. I'll ask my brother who did his elementary school at Broadview and grade 9 at Nepean if he knew him.

I use to hang out with the Auclair twins, the Barrett's and Letourneau's. Some of us use to travel all over playing street hockey with kids from other neighbourhoods. We even played a couple of games at the elementary school on Maitland (forget the name). That was considered the other end of the world. Good times!

When we moved to Selby and Churchill, I became good friends with the Atkins kids and Charbonneaus. Atkins Sr became my commanding officer almost 15 years later in Edmonton. Again, small world...

[Cranky]

Somewhat related....

Reading Dusters post and the....."That was considered the other end of the world" comment. I remember when I got my first bicycle at about 7 or 8 years old, all of a sudden, all those far away places like 6 blocks over were within the newly minted explorers reach! I couldn't wait to take the bike the next day and do some more exploring. Maybe even go as far as TEN BLOCKS!

It wasn't just a bike, it was a deep rooted feeling. Which makes me wonder if it's part of our DNA.

Also, I wonder if these days, if parents will allow their 8 year old to go a couple of blocks away, never mind 10 blocks in an inner city.

.

(good God, I should read and edit my posts before posting them. Made worse with these damn spellcheckers changing words.)

[Willie Dog]

Jan 8, 2019 13:05:59 GMT -5 duster said:

Jan 8, 2019 12:12:08 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

I had a friend that lived on the corner of (?) and Dovercourt, and his name was "Brian" (IIRC) ... we used to start at the top of hill on Denbury Ave and fly down Dovercourt running every stop sign/yield sign just to pick up momentum ... not the smartest thing to do, but for an indestructible kid it was okay ...

Cheers.

Agreed. I knew a Brian who lived near Courtenay and Dovercourt but I don't recall him doing that. I'll ask my brother who did his elementary school at Broadview and grade 9 at Nepean if he knew him.

I use to hang out with the Auclair twins, the Barrett's and Letourneau's. Some of us use to travel all over playing street hockey with kids from other neighbourhoods. We even played a couple of games at the elementary school on Maitland (forget the name). That was considered the other end of the world. Good times!

When we moved to Selby and Churchill, I became good friends with the Atkins kids and Charbonneaus. Atkins Sr became my commanding officer almost 15 years later in Edmonton. Again, small world...

I don't remember an elementary school on Maitland, but there was one on Woodroffe near Richmond called Our Lady of Fatima... just down the road from the YMCA and the Carlingwood shopping centre

[Willie Dog]

Jan 8, 2019 15:34:07 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Somewhat related....

Reading Dusters post and the....."That was considered the other end of the world" comment. I remember when I got my first bicycle at about 7 or 8 years old, all of a sudden, all those far away places like 6 blocks over were within the newly minted explorers reach! I couldn't wait to take the bike the next day and do some more exploring. Maybe even go as far as TEN BLOCKS!

It wasn't just a bike, it was a deep rooted feeling. Which makes me wonder if it's part of our DNA.

Also, I wonder if these days, parents will allow their 8 year old to go a couple of clocks away, never mind 10 blocks in an inner city.

Funny, I felt the same way about my first car... a 1977 Nova Concours (the luxury model) lol... 4 door cream coloured car... Man I loved that car. I had the best times in it.

[Cranky]

Jan 8, 2019 15:38:39 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

Jan 8, 2019 15:34:07 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Somewhat related....

Reading Dusters post and the....."That was considered the other end of the world" comment. I remember when I got my first bicycle at about 7 or 8 years old, all of a sudden, all those far away places like 6 blocks over were within the newly minted explorers reach! I couldn't wait to take the bike the next day and do some more exploring. Maybe even go as far as TEN BLOCKS!

It wasn't just a bike, it was a deep rooted feeling. Which makes me wonder if it's part of our DNA.

Also, I wonder if these days, parents will allow their 8 year old to go a couple of clocks away, never mind 10 blocks in an inner city.

Funny, I felt the same way about my first car... a 1977 Nova Concours (the luxury model) lol... 4 door cream coloured car... Man I loved that car. I had the best times in it.

Great car. Back in the day, those were "sleepers". We pulled the straight six, put in a hot small block, police tires and stiff springs.....then terrorized Camaros and Mustangs.

Those Nova's were tanks. I'm a car nut (see above) so my wife girlfriend asked my opinion if she should buy a second version Nova. My response was that it was the perfect car for someone who needed a reliable tank that anyone could fix. She kept it for 15 years with zero problems, but rust eating through it. Then bought a Camry. A few years later, she learned far more then she wanted about dealers, reliability and costs.

[Willie Dog]

Jan 8, 2019 16:04:41 GMT -5 Cranky said:

Jan 8, 2019 15:38:39 GMT -5 Willie Dog said:

Funny, I felt the same way about my first car... a 1977 Nova Concours (the luxury model) lol... 4 door cream coloured car... Man I loved that car. I had the best times in it.

Great car. Back in the day, those were "sleepers". We pulled the straight six, put in a hot small block, police tires and stiff springs.....then terrorized Camaros and Mustangs.

Those Nova's were tanks. I'm a car nut (see above) so my wife girlfriend asked my opinion if she should buy a second version Nova. My response was that it was the perfect car for someone who needed a reliable tank that anyone could fix. She kept it for 15 years with zero problems, but rust eating through it. Then bought a Camry. A few years later, she learned far more then she wanted about dealers, reliability and costs.

Couldn't kill the motor (305) or tranny... but the body went to Saperlipopette.

My cousin kept telling me to turn it into a sleeper... drop a big block into it... I wish I had taken better care of it