Dollard-des-Ormeaux (; commonly referred to as D.D.O. or simply Dollard) is a predominantly English-speaking suburb of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

in southwestern

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada. It is located on the Island of Montreal. The town was named after French

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

Adam Dollard des Ormeaux Adam Dollard des Ormeaux (July 23, 1635 – May 21, 1660) is an iconic figure in the history of New France. Arriving in the colony in 1658, Dollard was appointed the position of garrison commander of the fort of Ville-Marie (now Montreal). ...

. The town was merged with the city of

in 2002, and became part of the borough of Dollard-Des Ormeaux–Roxboro. When residents were later offered the option, they chose to leave the city of Montreal, and the town was reinstated as a separate entity in 2006.

Name

The

orthography An orthography is a set of conventions for writing a language, including norms of spelling, hyphenation, capitalization, word breaks, emphasis, and punctuation. Most transnational languages in the modern period have a writing system, and ...

of the city's name has been adjusted periodically. Originally written as Dollard-des-Ormeaux, it became Dollard des Ormeaux (no hyphens) in 1960, and reverted again to the hyphenated spelling in 1969. In 2001, the official Commission de toponymie du Québec ruled that the correct

of the city's name is Dollard-Des Ormeaux (one hyphen, one space, all title caps) due to the

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...

particle In the physical sciences, a particle (or corpuscule in older texts) is a small localized object which can be described by several physical or chemical properties, such as volume, density, or mass. They vary greatly in size or quantity, from ...

. However, this was not widely accepted, and is rarely used in practice. In particular, , the city's own website did not use this way of writing the city's name. In 2022, the Commission officially reverted to the spelling Dollard-des-Ormeaux, which had been in use since 1924.

History

Early history

In 1714, the area was part of the Parish of St-Joachim de Pointe-Claire. It became part of the Parish of Ste-Geneviève when it detached from Pointe-Claire in 1845. On July 29, 1924, Dollard-des-Ormeaux detached from the Parish of Ste-Geneviève and became a separate municipality in response to a tax imposed by the Parish road improvements on Gouin Boulevard. Its first mayor was Hormidas Meloche. The town's name honours the French

, who was killed by the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

Long Sault Long Sault was a rapid in the St. Lawrence River upstream and west of Cornwall, Ontario. ''Sault'' is the archaic spelling of the French word ''saut'', meaning rapids. The Long Sault created a navigation barrier along the river for much of its ...

in 1660.

Later history

The City of Dollard-des-Ormeaux obtained a new charter and was incorporated as a city on February 4, 1960. Dollard-des-Ormeaux was originally a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

in the early 1960s. The population was barely a few hundred in 1960, and within 10 years, exceeded 15,000. One of its original main axes, Anselme-Lavigne Street in the Westpark neighbourhood, is named for a farmer who sold his land to the Belcourt Construction Company. Many of the streets in the Sunnydale neighbourhood, including "Sunshine" and "Hyman", are named for members in the prominent Zunenshine family who owned Belcourt. The community is a mixture of residential and commercial properties. Des Sources and St-Jean Boulevards are its main commercial arteries, and are represented by the two vertical lines in the city's official logo. The three circles in the logo, from left to right, respectively represent the St-Jean Sector, the Westpark Sector and the Sunnybrooke Sector. The three circles and two vertical lines in the logo represent the city's geography and artfully spell out "ddo". The Town Hall was located in a house on Des Sources Boulevard in the early 1960s, and was moved to an 1806 French-Canadian farmhouse in 1964. When Canada's centennial anniversary was due to occur, the town decided to create a "Centennial Park," featuring a man-made lake and hills. It was suggested to use this project for a reservoir for stormwater drainage, as the city was faced with the need to expand surface drainage pipes. The project was announced September 8, 1966. However the project ran into problems and became a local scandal and a major drain on resources. It was finally completed in the 1970s, albeit overdue and overbudget. Dollard-des-Ormeaux was included in the

Montreal Urban Community The Montreal Urban Community (MUC) (''Communauté Urbaine de Montréal'' – ''CUM'') was a regional government in Quebec, Canada, that covered all municipalities located on the Island of Montreal and the islands of L'Île-Dorval and Île ...

when that government was created in 1970.

Recent years

On January 1, 2002, as part of the 2002–2006 municipal reorganization of Montreal, it merged with the city of

and became part of the Dollard-Des Ormeaux–Roxboro borough. After a change of government and a 2004 demerger referendum, Dollard-des-Ormeaux was reconstituted as an independent city on January 1, 2006. It is now the Montreal Island's most populous city outside Montreal. Albeit not served by the Montreal Metro, it is planned that the city would be served by the planned Réseau électrique métropolitain light rail system with at least one station at the juncture of Highway 40 and Des Sources Boulevard.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by Statistics Canada, Dollard-Des Ormeaux had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Parks and facilities

Dollard is known for its many well-attended green spaces, providing a park within one kilometre of each home. Notable parks include Centennial Park, Westminster Park, Frederick Wilson (Fredmir) Park, Baffin Park, and Terry Fox Park. Edward Janiszewski Park was named after the longest-reigning mayor of the city. Dollard-des-Ormeaux is home to the Dollard Civic Centre, which serves as city hall, the public library, and houses ice skating and swimming facilities.

Sports

Dollard is home to many juvenile sports teams, including hockey, soccer, baseball, swimming, and

ringette Ringette is a non-contact winter team sport played on ice hockey rinks using ice hockey skates, straight sticks with drag-tips, and a blue, rubber, pneumatic ring designed for use on ice surfaces. The sport is among a small number of organize ...

. In 2013, the city received $20 000 from Kraft Le Hockey Continue program in recognition of the efforts of Lance Taylor Townend, an administrator and coach with the Dollard Hockey Association.

Administration

The city administration # Laurence Parent (District 1) # Errol Johnson (District 2) # Mickey Max Guttman (District 3) # Tanya Toledano (District 4) # Morris Vesely (District 5) # Valérie Assouline (District 6) # Ryan Brownstein (District 7) # Anastasia Assimakopoulos (District 8) Since the city's incorporation in 1960, there have been seven mayors. They are Alfred Labrosse (1960–1963), Frederick T. Wilson (1963–1968), Gerald Dephoure (1968–1978), Jean Cournoyer (1978–1982), Gerry Weiner (1982–1984), Edward Janiszewski (1984–2017) and Alex Bottausci (2017–present). Edward Janiszewski's 33 years as Mayor of DDO makes him the longest-serving Mayor in the city's history, and the second longest-serving Mayor in the history of Canada, behind

Hazel McCallion Hazel McCallion, (; born February 14, 1921) is a Canadian businesswoman and retired politician who served as the fifth mayor of Mississauga, Ontario, from 1978 until 2014. She is the first and current chancellor of Sheridan College. McCalli ...

. He was first elected to the city council in 1978 before becoming mayor in 1984. During his tenure, he also oversaw the construction of Dollard-des-Ormeaux's famous library and many of the additions which were made to the civic centre. At the time of his defeat in 2017, the city was left with a surplus of $15 million.

Municipal Patrol

Dodge Charger Dollard-Des-Ormeaux Police

Established in 1980, a municipal patrol service was initially created to enhance public safety in the city and to enforce parking violations after the merger of police departments on the Island of Montreal. The service is responsible for public safety, municipal by-law enforcement, crime prevention, emergency measures, and community relations.

List of former mayors

List of former mayors: * Hormidas Meloche (1924–1925, 1927–1929) * Joseph Paiement (1925–1927, 1957–1960) * Daniel Chauret (1929–1933) * Jean-Baptiste Aumais (1933–1939) * Edmond Lavigne (1939–1942) * Romain Jauron (1942–1945) * Armand Labrosse (1945–1947) * Joseph Cousineau (1947–1949) * Anselme Lavigne (1949–1957) * Alfred Labrosse (1960–1963) * Frederick T. Wilson (1963–1968) * R. Gérard Dephoure (1968–1978) * Jean Cournoyer (1978–1982) * Gerald Weiner (1982–1984) * Edward Janisweski (1984–2002, 2006–2017) * Alex Bottausci (2017–present)

Education

The Lester B. Pearson School Board operates four Anglophone public schools in the area. Schools operated by the LBPSB include Springdale Elementary School, Sunshine Academy, Westpark Elementary School, and Wilder Penfield Elementary School. Beechwood Elementary and Kingsdale Academy in

Pierrefonds-Roxboro Pierrefonds-Roxboro is a borough of the city of Montreal. It was created January 1, 2006, following the demerger of parts of the city. Geography It is composed of the former municipalities of Pierrefonds and Roxboro, spanning the northern par ...

also serve portions of Dollard-des-Ormeaux. The '' Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys'' operates Francophone public schools, but were previously operated by the ''

Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys The Marguerite-Bourgeoys School Board (') was a French language public School Board on Montreal Island, Quebec, Canada. Its headquarters was in the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal. Its education centre was in LaSalle, also in Montreal. It wa ...

'' until June 15, 2020. The change was a result of a law passed by the Quebec government that changed the school board system from denominational to

linguistic Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

.ÉCOLES ET CENTRES
" ''

Commission Scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys The Marguerite-Bourgeoys School Board (') was a French language public School Board on Montreal Island, Quebec, Canada. Its headquarters was in the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal. Its education centre was in LaSalle, also in Montreal. It wa ...

''. Retrieved on December 7, 2014. Francophone public schools in the area includes ''École primaire Dollard-Des Ormeaux'', the ''École primaire du Bois-de-Liesse'', the ''École primaire Saint-Luc'', and the ''École secondaire des Sources''. Private schools include West Island College, Emmanuel Christian School, and Hebrew Foundation School.

Notable residents

Goldie Hershon Goldie Brenda Hershon (July 25, 1941 – December 4, 2020) was a Canadian activist from Montreal and former president of the Canadian Jewish Congress (1995–1998). Her presidency was marked by the focus on national unity, support for Jewish com ...

(1941–2020), activist and president of the

Canadian Jewish Congress The Canadian Jewish Congress (, , ) was, for more than ninety years, the main advocacy group for the Jewish community in Canada. Regarded by many as the "Parliament of Canadian Jewry," the Congress was at the forefront of the struggle for human ...

* Devon Levi (born 2001), ice hockey goaltender (

Northeastern Huskies The Northeastern Huskies are the athletic teams representing Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. They compete in thirteen varsity team sports: men's and women's hockey (in Hockey East); men's baseball, men's and women's basketball ...

, Canada men's national junior ice hockey team) * Jaclyn Linetsky (1986–2003), actress *

Adrien Plavsic Adrien Plavsic (born January 13, 1970) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). Biography As a youth, Plavsic played in the 1982 and 1983 Quebec International Pee-Wee H ...

(born 1970), NHL ice hockey defenceman * Gerry Weiner (born 1933), politician, Mayor of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Member of Parliament of Canada

References and notes

External links

Official site
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Quebec Jewish communities in Canada Jews and Judaism in Quebec