TRAIN STATION, MONTEBELLO

Author:
Matthew Farfan

Former train station, now a tourist bureau. (Photo - Matthew Farfan)The old Montebello train station (502-A Notre-Dame Street) has been a landmark on Route 148 since 1931. Once crowded with passengers arriving by train from Montreal, Ottawa, the United States, and elsewhere -- people coming to stay at the famous Château Montebello -- the station is now home to the local tourist bureau. Like the nearby Château Montebello, the train station was built entirely of red cedar logs, a style of construction influenced by Scandinavian trends and fashionable in the Laurentians and other areas north of Montreal from the 1930s to the 1950s.

Today, visitors to the station may procure information on area attractions, lodging, and dining. Also on display are objects and documentation on the history of the village and surrounding area. The station also has a souvenir shop and serves as the ticket office for the nearby Manoir Papineau National Historic Site of Canada, and as a starting point for trails to the Château Montebello hotel. The tourist bureau is open year-round. For information, call (819) 423-5602.