So you might think the old Conveyor dock's tower straight out of the fourteenth century, but you're wrong. The pier on which it is located was built in 1956-1957 and was one of the last marine works at the port of Montreal before it does change its vocation and become a place recreotourism. Originally, there were even two towers, but only one has survived, the one at the end of the dock.

Credit: Collection of the Canadian National, no CN000475; © City of Montreal, 2001

The towers of the Conveyors dock was used to unload ships laden with grain. On the left side of the pelvis King Edward (not visible in photo) was located on each tower an articulated arm which was attached to an endless belt on which containers were used to rip the content of the ships. Mounted on rails, the towers had the advantage of being mobile and was able to unload a ship or two big ones. The grain was then forwarded to the grain silo number 1 (now destroyed), which was located at the end of the Conveyors's pier.

It was in the 1980s and 1990s that the vocation of the Old Port of Montreal has changed. While the neighborhood was in a lamentable condition, a great revitalization of the area will lead to the destruction of several buildings, including the silo number one and several warehouses located on the Quai de l'Horloge.

Today, the Old Port of Montreal is one of the most visited places in the city, although  recreotourism part still rub shoulders with the good old vocation of the port.

Anecdote about the pictures. Because this place is barricaded, we had the chance to visit it with the agreement of the port authorities. We were looking for a location for an advertising campaign and officials have agreed to unlock the door for our shooting. That explains the photo of the chocolate cat into the blender.

By the way, the Conveyor's dock was also the location for the Bon Cop Bad Cop movie (final scenes), the TV series Fortier written by Fabienne Larouche and a ad ... for the Federation of Dairy Farmers of Canada.

Oh yeah! Last thing: a week before our visit, the lady in charge of the place, told us that a man had come to hang himself... Morbid, you say?