Who we are

The parish council owned a key asset: a piece of land bequeathed by Nicolas Desautels on April 22, 1841. This long strip of land marked the boundary of an area stretched 117 m along the St. Lawrence River to the south, and nearly 5 km to the north, up to the present-day Metropolitan expressway.

The parish council also purchased twelve arpents of land near the northern part of this property, adding to the Désautels bequest. Eventually, the cemetery was established along the road known as Chemin de la Longue-Pointe and measured, as was said at the time, “84 arpents deep by 8 arpents wide”.

On December 27, 1915, Bishop Bruchési approved the resolutions presented to him by the churchwardens and recommended that the Quebec government adopt the private bill piloted by Bishop LePailleur.

On March 16, 1916, the legislation establishing the Cimetière de l’Est de Montréal, sponsored by Quebec premier Lomer Gouin, Laval MNA Wenceslas Lévesque, and Émery Larivière, municipal councillor for the Mercier district on the Montréal City Council, was assented to by the parliament of Quebec.

As the “Compagnie Limitée du Cimetière de l’Est de Montréal” needed resources to develop a cemetery from scratch, amendments were made to the Act in 1918 authorizing the company to borrow.

First office on the cemetery site

Faced with a shortage of space to adequately meet the needs of bereaved families, the administrators decided on May 21, 1957, to expand the administrative structure by building a proper office on the cemetery site.

The cemetery’s first office building was delivered at the end of April 1958.

From 1916 to 1972, two parish priests at Saint-François-d’Assise— Bishop LePailleur and Father Adrien Robillard—successively held de facto positions as chairman of the Board of Directors and managing director of the Cimetière de l’Est. 

Sixty-six years later, a layman took the helm of the cemetery. Gérard Bourgault (1972–1983) was the first secular director general appointed by the Board of Directors.

In 1972, the director general convinced the Board that the cemetery’s modernization project should include the construction of a crematorium.

In 1977, the cemetery Board commissioned architect André Ritchot to design a major project that would considerably alter the cemetery’s overall appearance. The project included a new administrative building, reception chapels, spacious parking areas and a basement with three large, refrigerated repositories where the deceased can be kept with dignity before their interment.

In the mid-1980s, Bishop Turcotte, who chaired the Board of Directors between 1983 and 1987, launched a strategic thinking process and provided tangible guidance on the choices to be made by the cemetery as a Catholic institution.

One of the main recommendations concerned changing the name. The choice of the new name had to reflect the peaceful and comforting nature of the cemetery while at the same time exploring the historical and secular link between the cemetery and its founding parish: Saint-François-d’Assise.

In the spring of 1986, the Board of Directors confirmed the cemetery’s new name: “Le repos Saint-François d’Assise,” and a private bill was immediately requested to modify the cemetery charter.

• A state-of-the-art IT system
  • Today, a state-of-the-art IT system integrates all of the cemetery’s administrative operations.
  • What’s more, an interactive website gives Internet users access to a wealth of information, including how to search for a deceased relative and locate their burial site.
• Improved equipment and mechanization
• A high-tech crematorium

In the mid-1980s, the cemetery became the first in Canada to adopt a long-term vision, with a master plan for the construction of six mausoleum-columbaria over a 15-year period (1982–1997). Architect André Ritchot designed the plans and erected the first mausoleum-columbaria in 1982.

In 1999, this vision was updated when the cemetery submitted its new development vision for the next twenty-five years to the City of Montréal. The plan focuses on the cohesive development of new mausoleum-columbaria, the addition of several gardens, and the renaturalization of areas bordering nearby residences.

For the construction of the last five mausoleum-columbaria, the cemetery is working closely with Quebec architect Martin Frenette. The 11 mausoleum-columbaria provide visitors with the opportunity to pay their respects 365 days a year, without being affected by the weather.

The desire to make the site beautiful has been a constant. In 1971, an ambitious development plan prepared by Christian Lalonde (a specialist in environmental design) was approved.

In 1989, François Lefebvre, the cemetery’s third secular director, commissioned architect Roger Leblanc to transform the main entrance at the corner of Desautels and Sherbrooke into an oasis of greenery. His innovative plan was implemented, creating a welcoming green space and a majestic entrance. This involved moving the sales office from Sherbrooke Street to its new location, opposite the administrative offices.

In 1999, still under the guidance of the third secular director, the idea of a garden of remembrance was born with the presentation of the master plan for the mausoleum-columbarium. Completed in June 2016 to mark the cemetery’s 100 years of service, the new facility was inaugurated and blessed by Abbot François Baril, the Saint-François-d’Assise parish priest.

The cemetery is constantly seeking new ways to meet the needs of the families of today and tomorrow. Over the years, it has done its utmost to support families, encourage contemplation and respect the funeral rites of various communities, in keeping with its Catholic vocation. It also offers psychological support to the bereaved.