Who We Are

Founded in 1907, The University Club of Montreal is one of the city’s most prestigious and historical organisations.

Nestled in the heart of the Golden Square Mile, the Club resides in a stately Victorian house, Maison Reid Wilson, an architectural gem whose stony façade gazes upon downtown’s Sherbrooke Street.

For over 100 years the Club has been a social and cultural centre, a space where illustrious minds mingle, discuss and enjoy art, culture, gastronomy and business. In perpetrating this tradition, the Club today is dedicated to providing a refuge, a home to cultivate a rich exchange between dynamic members from a diversified academic and professional milieu.

Come and enjoy our eclectic spaces with each its own ambiance and charm, a state-of-the-art kitchen for memorable culinary experiences, an elegant bar and dining room, and a dedicated staff motivated to make your time with us exceptional.

We’ve been writing Montreal’s history for over 100 years. Our historical members and leaders represent the best of the best in Montreal, and we continue to foster and cultivate Montreal’s future leaders. We are ‘Montreal’ — the people, the culture, the city.

Feel free to explore the possibilities and reach out to us.

Mission

The University Club of Montreal is an influential social and business community that has been part of Montreal’s history and culture for over 100 years.

Vision

Be the inclusive and indispensable private club of the Greater Montreal community, at the crossroads of culture, collegiality and inspiration.

Our Values

Camaraderie

Excellence

Ethics

Leadership

Refinement

Team

Sylvie Chevarie
General Manager
Erica Oosterbaan
Director of Administration
David Capel
Executive Chef
Teri Jalbert
Maître d’Hôtel

University Club of Montreal: A Brief History

In 1907, the University Club of Montreal was founded by a group of McGill University professors who were joined by a broad-based group of friends who wanted a place to socialize. They wanted a club with a more academic atmosphere than found in the several business-oriented clubs of Montreal. In order to join the UCM, one had to be a university graduate, although this rule was removed in 1973. The group flourished in the initial years, to the point that in December 1913, the club opened its own building on Mansfield Street, designed by founding member, Percy Nobbs, director of McGill’s School of Architecture. Nobbs integrated the coats of arms of the members’ international and Canadian Alma Maters into the stained-glass windows and plaster decoration of the building’s architecture.

Originally the club was intended only for male members, but women could accompany the men for dinner, or the wives of members could hold social events in rooms especially set aside for them. Women were finally given the right to be members in 1988.

Many men from the club served and died in both world wars, including founding member, Dr. John McCrae, a distinguished surgeon, military officer, poet, and war hero. He became internationally celebrated for his poem, In Flanders Field, composed in 1915 from the front lines of war, before he died in France in 1918. Two stained-glass windows adjacent to the former club’s interior main staircase were commissioned from Nobbs and record the names of those who served and those who fell in World War I.

The club has always had a congenial atmosphere heightened by a full program of social events. Outside speakers and members have been invited to give talks on a variety of topics in the fields of politics, history, investments, music, literature, art, and wine and food. And who will forget the assembly of four former Quebec premiers of differing political stripes, gathered at the club for a discussion on the challenges they faced in political life. Also, members of the gourmet set have ensured the UCM’s reputation for fine dining by organizing “themed” culinary or wine-tasting events.

Long, double-martini business lunches and billiard games stretching into the evening belong to the shades of the past. However, traditions have not been allowed to fall, as the club continues to hold oyster parties, a president’s cocktail, a round-table for lunch, business breakfasts, and annual dinners to celebrate exceptional members. The UCM Christmas dinners and never-ending lunches are still an integral part of the club’s festivities.

In 2007 a history of the University Club of Montreal was published in celebration of its one-hundred years. Long-standing members hold fond memories of the former Mansfield Street “club house,” but we look forward to settling into a grey-stone mansion built in 1882 on Sherbrooke Steet, which was once labelled the “Fifth Avenue” of Montreal. On the walls inside the club will be examples of the art collection: landscapes of the Laurentian hills, portraits of early founders, such as the well-loved author and humourist Stephen Leacock, and non-figurative renderings by prominent Quebec artists, Alfred Pellan and Jean-Paul Riopelle. In the new quarters, members will be able to settle back in their favourite old (reupholstered) couches and chairs and place their drinks on the revered brass-topped side tables from the former club lounge.

The membership of the Club has broadened its reach culturally and linguistically, and we are on the verge of a new history based on a solid historical foundation and traditions of friendship and conviviality.

Library & Art Committee
December 2021

Coat Of Arms

Extract from letters patent granting Armorial Bearings to the University Club of Montreal:
“BY Claire Boudreau, Chief Herald of Canada

WHEREAS a request that armorial hearings be granted has been received from the University Club of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Incorporated on the 8th day of November 1907 by Letters Patent of the Lieutenant- Governor of Quebec, and on the 5th day of June 1974 under the Companies Act of the province of Quebec…

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