MONT GABRIEL, RESORT NATURE, A TRIBUTE PORTFOLIO, SAINTE-ADÈLE

In the early 1930s, Marie-Joséphine Hartford, a wealthy American, regularly visited the Saint-Sauveur region. In 1934, this heiress of the famous A&P stores bought the region’s land and, in 1936, had a 16-room inn built there as a place to relax after a day of bobsledding, downhill skiing, or cross-country skiing. She sold the property to four Americans in 1941, and it became the property of Herbert John O’Connell, a good friend of Maurice Duplessis, in 1951. In 1956, Mont Gabriel became a city and O’Connell was elected its mayor. He made numerous improvements to the building, the site, and the ski runs, which helped give the establishment its reputation for excellence.

In 1960, Donald M. Mumford, President and CEO of the Reine Élizabeth Hotel at the time, acquired the facilities and considerably enlarged the hotel complex. Several well-known characters on the national and international stages stayed there. In 1975, a man named Laurent Dupras acquired the complex and built an 18-hole golf course, among other additions.

In 1998, Tidan acquired the complex and has since carried out several renovations and construction projects. But unpredicted challenges are never far away. Due to a fire that took place in December 2022, the establishment has been going under a major makeover and is fully reopened since fall 2024.