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n addition to its French Catholic core, Ste. Agathe also boasts large English-speaking Jewish and Protestant communities, and, just like the French, these others are founded upon the efforts and encouragement of strong leaders and benefactors. Two such men were Sir Mortimer B. Davis and Lorne McGibbon and despite their differing roots, they lived surprisingly parallel lives. They were both born to well established families; both attended Montreal High School, both became business leaders in Montreal, and both chose to holiday in Ste. Agathe. Even their choice of property was similar. They each built large stone homes on the south side of the lake on huge tracts of land with commanding views. Each property had a peninsula jutting out into the lake, and both homes survive today, although, at least in the case of Lorne McGibbon’s, in somewhat modified form.

Most importantly, both men were major benefactors of tuberculosis hospitals in Ste. Agathe. The Laurentian Sanitarium was largely the achievement of Lorne McGibbon and Sir Mortimer B. Davis was the major contributor to the construction and operation of Mount Sinai Hospital.

When Dr.Richer’s hospital burned down in 1902, its loss did not put an end to TB treatment in Ste. Agathe. There is sufficient evidence that even prior to the founding of the Richer hospital people were coming for ‘the cure’. This cure, pioneered by Dr. Bremner in Germany and Dr. Trudeau in Saranac Lake, New York, consisted of obliging the patient to shed all responsibility and move to a cool, dry climate high above sea level. There, he or she was to rest and let nature do her work.

The importance of the cure in Ste. Agathe life can be seen in Dr. Grignon’s Album Historique from 1912. Not only does he list three TB sanitaria and preventoria, he also refers to other buildings that had previously been used for the cure. He lists seven different private sanitaria adding ‘et cetera’ to the end of the list, all the while protesting that the TB patients in Ste. Agathe in no way endanger the health of other visitors and residents.

There are many stories of people coming to Ste. Agathe and buying a property simply to allow a sick family member to ‘take the cure’. Many of us are descended from these TB patients. In a very real sense, the story of Ste. Agathe is the story of TB which was a very important aspect of our society. Who can forget the once ubiquitous cross with the double horizontal axis that was the symbol of TB care and fund-raising, or the annual tests in the schools to make sure we were not TB positive.

When TB was finally conquered with streptomycin in 1954, Ste. Agathe went into an economic tailspin from which it has never fully recovered. Even now, a debate continues over what to do with the Mount Sinai Hospital building that sits abandoned and deteriorating on a hillside above Préfontaine. At the same time, the original building of the Laurentian Sanitarium, a beautiful three-storey Tudor structure, stands behind the hospital and is only partly in use as administrative offices.

This fall the Ste. Agathe city council voted to name a road going over the original Davis property the Chemin Sir Mortimer B. Davis, but Lorne McGibbon still awaits similar public recognition.

It will take two future editions of the Ballyhoo to describe these two great benefactors. It will take many more than that to recount even a fragment of the stories that resulted from this period.

Joseph Graham has written a book that features a select number of stories of Laurentian places and how they got their names. To learn more, click here.

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This material may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the author. © Joseph Graham