An important slice of the city of Repentigny’s history is hidden behind the imposing concrete pillars in one of its popular parks along the St. Lawrence River, but their presence there is still a mystery to many.
To tell the truth, these columns are the remains of the Center d’art de Repentigny which was opened in the early 1960s when Quebec was living its Quiet Revolution and Repentigny, still very rural at that time, was experiencing a cultural effervescence.
“It was the meeting place in Repentigny, there wasn’t much else, it was very rural,” told us Caroline Deschamps, who was 17 at the time, remembering that wolves roamed his neighborhood on occasion.
The place also acted as a song box, on Fridays and young people could go there, because alcohol was not served there.
“There was no alcohol, but a friend had brought alcohol and that’s where I had my first drunk, told us for her part, a childhood friend of Ms. Deschamps, Nicole David Copley, who was 16 at the time. I came home sick, my mother was really not happy.
COURTESY PHOTO / Repentigny History Workshop
great artists
But the Art Center radiated beyond the Montreal suburbs where it was located. Pierre Lalonde hosted the summer “Youth today”, a flagship program of the time. And Félix Leclerc is on the list of artists who have performed there.
Ms. Deschamps remembers a rather comical anecdote about an artist who almost went on stage at the Center d’art one evening in the 1960s.
“Tex Lecor was showing one evening at the theater, but he had stayed in a bar and he never came, she recalls. We had the tickets reimbursed.
End of the celebrations
But this Repentance cultural experience only lasted a few years, from 1963, the year the place was inaugurated, to 1967, the year it disappeared due to a tragic fire.
Two young police-firefighters and a theater employee perished in this fire of July 26, 1967.
“It was the theater of all the agglomerations and it is sure that this drama created a stir”, explained François Longpré, president of the Atelier d’histoire de Repentigny.
The two police firefighters, Yves Saint-Germain, 22, and Roger Saint-Jean, 25, died trying to rescue the theater caretaker, Napoléon Sainte-Marie, 68, from the flames. soul during the fire.
“I went to the funeral of Yves Saint-Germain, his younger brother was a friend of mine,” recalls very well Mrs. David Copley, who also knew the other policeman.
Caroline Deschamps also knew the two men who died on duty.
“I remember the drama, it really marked me, I still remember the date, told us Ms. Deschamps, who is now 72 years old. It saddened me, at this age, we are very impressionable.