Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada | Museum

Sometimes who you know determines where you end up. For Marguerite Bourgeoys whom the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum was named after, it was Louise Chomedey, a sister in the cloistered Congrégation de Notre-Dame of Troyes and director of an extern group of women. When Louise’s brother, Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve, Governor of Montreal in New France, asked his sister for help in finding a teacher for the settlement,  Louise suggested Marguerite, the leader of the group of young women who taught the children of the poor.

Marguerite was born in Troyes in the Champagne region of France in 1620. At the age of 20, she experienced a profound change in herself during a church procession that led her to set aside the frivolous things of life. By the time she met Monsieur de Maisonneuve, her qualities of leadership and her ability to gather people together for a common cause were well recognized.

Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel, parl of the  Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum in Montreal, Canada, has stood as a witness to the history of  Montreal since 1675 and continues to do so.

Following in the steps of the pilgrims who have gathered here for more than three centuries, you will discover …

A place of peace and contemplation …

A place brimming with history where the quest for beauty and the quest for spirituality meet, the artifacts in the chapel place before the eye the means of making visible the invisible world. The windows, the paintings and the sculptures foster contemplation and prayer.

Crowning an ancient promontory above the Saint Lawrence River, once a favoured Amerindian campsite, a 300-year-old chapel, a Museum of history and an archaeological site invite you to hear what they have to say about the people who founded Montreal.

Through the achievements of Marguerite Bourgeoys, a woman of courage and compassion who lived in 17^th-century Montreal, you will find yourself transported back through time to another world, that of our ancestors.

The river, hope of a better life

The highest view of Old Montreal seen from the tower of the chapel will draw your attention to today’s landscape while conjuring up that of days gone by. Imagine the old town by the river with the woods, the fortifications and the few houses that existed at the time. Think of the courage of the men and women who had to face an ocean voyage and the mighty river to begin to build a new life as settlers in Montreal. Crowning an ancient promontory above the Saint Lawrence River, once a favoured Amerindian campsite, a 300-year-old chapel, the  Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum of history ,and an archaeological site invite you to hear what they have to say about the people who founded Montreal.

No visit to Montreal is complete without a visit to the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum.