Battle of the Châteauguay
National Historic Site

Beauharnois Generating Station

Biophare

Blockhaus de la rivière-Lacolle

Chambly Canal
National Historic Site

Coteau-du-Lac
National Historic Site

Électrium, the Hydro-Québec Electricity Interpretation Centre

Exporail, The Canadian Railway Museum

Expression, Centre d’exposition de Saint-Hyacinthe

Fort Chambly
National Historic Site

Fort Lennox
National Historic Site

La Maison amérindienne

Maison Lenoblet-du-Plessis

Maison LePailleur

Maison nationale des Patriotes

Missisquoi Museum

Musée des beaux-arts
de Mont-Saint-Hilaire

Musée du costume
et du textile du Québec

Musée du Haut-Richelieu

Musée régional
de Vaudreuil-Soulanges

Muséobus,
the Children’s Museum

MUSO – Musée de société
des Deux-Rives

Plein sud, Centre d’exposition en art actuel

Quebec Museum of Archaeology

Saint-Ours Canal
National Historic Site

This section presents an overview of the permanent exhibitions you can visit in the Montérégie Museums. Click on the name of a museum to go to its fact sheet, which gives contact information, its opening hours and describes everything offered by the museum in addition to its exhibitions.

Entry Hall ... as regards.
The exhibition in the hall introduces you to the historical context of the Battle of the Châteauguay and its main actors such as Charles-Michel de Salaberry and the unknown heroes.

Checkmate! On the Warpath... Over the Ages
The chess room has been designed to offer insight into warfare down through the ages. As in the game of chess, war has two opposing sides which attempt to outmanoeuvre each other and thus clinch victory.

Now Showing...
In the interpretation centre's amphitheatre, the past comes alive right under your very eyes in The Battle of the Châteauguay, a film produced by the National Film Board of Canada. This movie is about the main events surrounding the war of 1812 and the renown Battle won by Charles-Michel de Salaberry and his men.

The Battlefield : The lookout
The indoor lookout provides an exceptional panoramic view of the battlefield. Using a scale model, the interpreters will enrich your tour by revealing the great strategies of the confrontation which happened along the Châteauguay River.

It's a Soldier's Life! Museum room
By visiting the museum exhibition gallery, you will become acquainted with the living conditions of soldiers who participated in an early 19th -century military campaign. The exhibit also showcases objects and original documents that once belonged to the Salaberry family. Check and see whether one of your ancestors took part in the battle by doing a search on the computer included in the exhibit.

Where does electricity come from?
Electricity is part of our everyday lives, but do you know how it is produced and where it comes from? A visit to the Beauharnois Generating Station will shed light on such questions. A 90-minute tour will show you how water power is transformed into electricity and you'll see the turbine generator groups in action. You're bound to be impressed by our kilometre-long station!

Today known as the Biophare, the Centre d'interprétation du patrimoine de Sorel inaugurated a new permanent exhibition on June 29, 2009, exactly 400 years, to the day, after Samuel de Champlain named Lake Saint-Pierre when he travelled through Sorel. Called the Lake Saint-Pierre Observatory, the exhibition transports visitors back through time and lets them discover the history and natural environment of this region, which served as the inspiration for Le Survenant, a well-known Québécois novel. The exhibition presents an overview of the main periods in the development of the Sorel-Tracy area and lets visitors discover the amazing universe of the region’s unique plant and animal life, as well as its inhabitants and history.

To commemorate Champlain’s travels in the region, a segment of the exhibition is devoted to the explorer and features an interview with Christian Morissonneau, a specialist on the subject.

Under the wings of the archipelago
This exhibition enables visitors to understand the pertinence and necessity of human intervention in the Lake Saint-Pierre archipelago to help maintain diversity in the islands’ bird population.

Waters of Life
Designed in close collaboration with researchers from the Université de Montréal, this virtual exhibition informs visitors about underwater life in Lake Saint-Pierre and the St. Lawrence River through images, video clips and interviews.

Visit this exhibition: www.eauxdevies.ca

Constructed around 1781, the Blockhaus de la rivière Lacolle was part of the British colony's defensive system. Intended to protect the sawmill and lighthouse built on the Lacolle River, the blockhouse was an outpost for British troops stationed in the Upper Richelieu area and at Lake Champlain. It is now an interpretation centre with a permanent exhibition that highlights the building's architectural and defensive features, as well as presenting other military constructions in the Upper Richelieu, the American Revolution (1775-1783) and the stirrings of the Patriote (1837-1838) and Fenian (1866) movements in the region.

Interpretive Tour
Discover the canal's history through the interpretive panels found along its route.

Meeting the Challenges of the St.Lawrence
The interpretation centre offers the first contact with Coteau-du-Lac National Historic Site. Upon arrival, a team of interpreters will introduce you to the history of the site using maps, photographs and a scale model. You may also visit a display of some of the artifacts discovered during an archaeological dig which took place on the site. Finally, a lookout offers you an exceptional view of the site and the immensity of the St. Lawrence river.

The Octagonal Blockhouse
Constructed on the promontory of a clover-leaf shaped bastion, the blockhouse is the symbol of Coteau-du-Lac and constitutes a prominent regional attraction. The replica of a British military building constructed for the War of 1812, it is recognizable by its octagonal shape. Inside, a thematic display includes scale models, original artefacts, a collection of pertinant objects and interpretive panels. The second floor offers an unrestricted view of the river and shows the strategic importance of the site.

The Military Remains
During the War of 1812, the British authorities constructed a fortification on the site to protect the lock canal and eventually, to protect against an American invasion. Although none of the original buildings were conserved, traces of the fortifications still exist. By following the footpath, the visitor is able to view the remaining foundations of the original military buildings; barracks, powder magazine, commanding officer house and warehouses as well as panels relating the history and use of each building. The remains of the man-made land shapes constituting the ramparts and bastions are still visible on the site and permit the visitor to discover the environment of the soldiers posted at Coteau-du-Lac.

The "Rigolet" Canal
Built in 1749, the "rigolet" canal - a channel, actually - is the oldest extant vestige on the site, and the only throwback to the French regime. This rudimentary construction consists in a rock embankment which runs parallel to the shore and which in its time formed a corridor through which the voyageurs could manoeuvre their boats. The canal was the project built in order to avoid the rapids. A stylized boat placed inside the channel gives an idea of the scale of the work required to bypass the Coteau-du-Lac rapids.

The Lock Canal
As the first lock canal in North America, the Coteau-du-Lac canal recalls the birth of transport technology in this country. Functioning since the spring of 1781, the Coteau-du-Lac canal combines the two metres difference in water level, permitting boats and Durham boats to go around the rapids without danger. By walking through the hundred metres long remains, made of original stones and magnificently conserved, the visitor can discover the genius of the artists, the british military and the stonemasons, as well as the workings of this visionary work, precursor to the St. Lawrence Seaway.

The fascinating world of electricity, accessible to all!
Electricity plays an essential role in the human body, in nature and in our everyday lives. However, many signs of its presence in our environment remain little understood. Électrium will provide you with explanations for all kinds of electricity-related phenomena – lightning, atoms, static electricity, electric and magnetic fields, and much more. Discover where lightning comes from, measure the electricity in your own body, observe living creatures that produce electricity and take part in fascinating experiments.

Harnessing the mysteries of electricity, a family experience
Demystify electricity and find out more about the role it plays in our bodies, in nature and in everyday life. Électrium offers you guided tours, films, models, interactive modules and even electric fish!

A world of giants
You enter a world of giants when you visit Exporail, the Canadian Railway Museum, and its exhibition hall. Come and discover a collection of over 160 vehicles, one of the largest in North America.

The fort presents thematic exhibitions that chronicle the history of New France. Venture into the heart of the fort and discover its mysteries: its military role in various conflicts, the activities of its garrison, its relationship with the population of the Chambly seigneury, and its architectural evolution.

It is possible to do a self-guided tour of the exhibition or to participate at the activities led by the heritage presenter. Models, 3D recreations, sound clips, interactive terminals, artifacts and video clips are there to enliven the visit.

The Gentlemen Officers
Located in the officers' quarters, this exhibition unveils the daily life of officers at Fort Lennox during the first third of the 19th century through reconstructions of the period, historical objects and archaeological artifacts.

Fort Lennox, a Work by the Royal Engineers
Located in the ordonance magazine, this exhibit will inform you on 19th-century military engineering and on the most recent restoration of Fort Lennox.

Braving prejudice
Prejudices generally target different categories of the population, such as teenagers, the elderly, women, ethnic groups and aboriginal people. Do you know what is said about the first people in this country? Through photographs and texts that encourage reflection, this exhibition seeks to demystify certain preconceptions.

The Maison Lenoblet-du-Plessis, built in 1794, is also Contrecoeur's heritage interpretation centre. Its permanent exhibition presents the municipality's rich heritage and highlights certain events that have marked its history.

A reference house
Phase 1- Building and outfitting the Maison LePailleur in Lower Canada
Constructed in 1792, the Maison LePailleur is the work of craftsmen who were aware of the long-term value of their daily labour. They developed unique skills, adapted to their environment. The permanent exhibition explores the age-old techniques employed in Québec’s domestic architecture at the end of the 18th century and underlines the rich heritage represented by this building.

A heroic struggle, a civic legacy – The history of the Lower Canada Patriots, 1832-1850
Through imaginative displays in the rooms of the inn owned by patriot Jean-Baptiste Mâsse, the public is invited to experience the 1817 and 1838 rebellions in all their complexity. Numerous authentic artifacts and reconstructed elements bear witness to life in 19th-century Lower Canada and recreate evocative atmospheres of long ago.
A true historical adventure!

The Missisquoi Museum possesses a collection of over 14 000 objects reflecting the history of Missisquoi county, its rural and industrial traditions and its social, political, military, artistic and religious life.

Visitors can also enter the nearby Hodge Store, built in 1841. This former general store holds all kinds of merchandise dating from the time of the Second World War.

New exhibition space: The Walbridge Barn
Located in the hamlet of Mystic, this unique barn built by engineer Alexander Walbridge joins the Cornell Mill and the Hodge Store as an exhibition space managed by the Museum. Constructed in 1882, it is the oldest polygonal barn in Québec and the only one to have 12 sides. Designated a historic monument and beautifully restored, it now houses the Missisquoi Historical Society’s collection of farm tools and machinery. It bears witness to the creative genius and originality of the gentleman farmer / inventor who designed it. The Walbridge Barn is located at 189 Mystic Road, in the municipality of Saint-Ignace-de-Stanbridge.

Carrefour, le Haut-Richelieu des origines à nos jours
Crossroads: the Upper Richelieu, from its origins to the present day is an exhibition that shows how the Upper Richelieu has been a focal point in the military, social, economic and political history of Québec. Since the region was once known as the Canadian capital of ceramics, the exhibition also pays homage to the development of the ceramics industry in Canada. If you enjoy history and crafts, you’ll discover the fascinating past of a region that shaped the story of our nation.

Back to class!
This exhibition presents the history and architecture of the former Saint-Michel School, which now houses the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional Museum. The exhibition also showcases various items from the Museum’s permanent collection.

Québec decoys: Ducks that are sure to please
Based on the large decoy collection belonging to the Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional Museum, this exhibition presents various angles of the history and development of one of the richest forms of expression in Québécois folk art.

The touring mobile museum suggests interactive exhibitions set up in museum buses:

Watershed....Teeming with life
In this exhibition, you meet Samuel de Champlain, who will be happy to reveal the secrets of the Richelieu River and awaken both adults and youngsters to the importance of water and its management. The exhibition deals with four themes: history, the economy, geography and the environment.

The changing climate
This interactive exhibition offers insights into the phenomenon of climate change and shows how important it is to find solutions and put them into practice in order to reduce greenhouse gases and lessen their impact on the environment.

Two permanent exhibitions:

Stopped in their tracks
A paleontological exhibition showcasing unique fossil tracks discovered in the region. These tracks (including the world’s largest track of an invertebrate) have been recognized by a number of North American specialists, as well as by Québec universities.

100% public digs: discoveries revealed
For over a decade, public digs at Pointe-du-Buisson have led to the discovery and documentation of artifacts, leading to a better understanding of the various human populations who have occupied the site. This exhibition is intended not only to explain archaeological methods, but also to pay homage to the amateur archaeologists who participated in these digs.

So Small, Yet So Large!
At the Superintendent's House, visit the exhibit recounting the evolution of the channelling of the Richelieu River. On Darvard Island, interpretation panels enable visitors to discover more about the site's historical remains and the island's flora. Interpretation panels at the Vianney-Legendre fish ladder will enhance your knowledge of fish species in the Richelieu River while you learn about construction of the ladder itself.