by Château Dufresne in Montreal, Canada, was the home of brothers Marius Dufresne and Oscar Dufresne, along with their families. The brothers built a single building that was split down the middle to create two complete yet separate residences for the two families. It is no longer quite so obvious today that it had been set up that way.
The Chateau was built from 1915 to 1918 in the Beaux-Arts style, modeled on the Petit Trianon at the Palace of Versailles in France, naturally. It has 40 rooms and runs about 20,000 square feet!
The interior of the home is absolutely beautiful –– the walls, ceilings, windows, floors, and fireplaces are lavish works of art on their own. An Italian artist, Guido Nincheri, painted murals and ceilings in the 1920s and 1930s.
The Dufresne brothers were entrepreneurs who were involved in several successful business ventures. Interestingly, the museum’s website refers to them as “prominent middle class figures!” I’d like to see how they see the upper class in Montreal living!
Between the two brothers, they designed public buildings, constructed civil works projects such as tunnels and bridges, held positions on boards or as directors in companies, and were involved in all manner of charitable endeavors. They had a big impact on Montreal!
Many years after the brothers passed, their heirs eventually sold the building to a religious order in 1947, who then sold it to the City of Montreal in 1957. It was used as a cultural center and housed periodic exhibits, but sadly experienced a period of neglect as well. In 1999, it opened as the Musée du Château Dufresne and thus preserves this work of art for visitors to enjoy.
