Fascinating Photos of Expo 67 in Montreal

Expo 67, officially known as the 1967 International and Universal Exposition, was a world’s fair held in Montreal, Canada, from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was the main feature of Canada’s centennial celebrations and is widely regarded as one of the most successful world expositions of the 20th century.

Built primarily on Île Sainte-Hélène and the artificial Île Notre-Dame in the St. Lawrence River, Expo 67 showcased over 60 national pavilions, along with cultural and thematic exhibits that celebrated innovation, technology, and global unity.

Highlights included Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome for the United States pavilion, the striking Habitat 67 housing complex by architect Moshe Safdie, and avant-garde displays from countries around the world. More than 50 million visitors attended, far surpassing expectations and leaving a lasting cultural legacy for Montreal and Canada.

Expo 67 not only reflected the optimism and creativity of the 1960s but also marked a moment when Montreal became a global cultural hub. Many of its structures, such as Habitat 67, remain enduring symbols of modernist architecture and design.

These fascinating photos by Bill Harrison capture the innovation, architecture, and cultural spirit of Expo 67 in Montreal.

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30 Vintage Found Photos of the Expo 67

The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World’s Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most successful World’s Fairs of the 20th century with the most attendees to that date and 62 nations participating. It also set the single-day attendance record for a world's fair, with 569,500 visitors on its third day.

Expo 67 was Canada’s main celebration during its centennial year. The fair had been intended to be held in Moscow, to help the Soviet Union celebrate the Russian Revolution's 50th anniversary; however, for various reasons, the Soviets decided to cancel, and Canada was awarded it in late 1962.

After Expo 67 ended in October 1967, the site and most of the pavilions continued on as an exhibition called Man and His World, open during the summer months from 1968 until 1984. By that time, most of the buildings—which had not been designed to last beyond the original exhibition—had deteriorated and were dismantled. Today, the islands that hosted the world exhibition are mainly used as parkland and for recreational use, with only a few remaining structures from Expo 67 to show that the event was held there.

These vintage photos were found by Oliver G that show the Expo 67.

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Take a Trip Back Into 1950s Montreal Through Beautiful Color Photos

The 1950s were a simpler time. A time where every man wore a tie to work, no matter what is job was, and modern conveniences meant housewives could just get hammered all day. Looking back to Montreal in the 1950s, you can almost feel the wholesomeness and nostalgia.

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33 Fascinating Photos Capture Street Scenes of Montreal in the 1950s

Montreal is the most populous municipality in the Canadian province of Quebec and the second-most populous municipality in Canada.

The city is centred on the Island of Montreal, which got its name from the same origin as the city, and a few much smaller peripheral islands, the largest of which is Île Bizard. It has a distinct four-season continental climate with warm to hot summers and cold, snowy winters.

Montreal is the second largest primarily French-speaking city in the developed world, after Paris. It is situated 196 km (122 mi) east of the national capital Ottawa, and 258 km (160 mi) south-west of the provincial capital Quebec City.

Montreal is considered one of the most liveable cities in the world, and the best city in the world to be a university student in the QS World University Rankings.

Take a look at these fascinating photos to see what street scenes of Montreal looked like in the 1950s.

Montreal street scene

A woman smelling some flowers offered by a vendor at the Bonsecours market

Bank of Montreal

Bonsecours Market

Château Ramezay

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Rare Photographs of the Construction of Habitat 67, the Most Recognizable and Spectacular Building in Montreal, Canada

The pilot project of Moshe Safdie’s mission to reinvent apartment living became mired in controversy – yet it remains a functioning icon of 1960s utopianism, and one of that period’s most important buildings.

Habitat 67, or simply Habitat, is a model community and housing complex in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, designed by Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie. It was originally conceived as his master’s thesis in architecture at McGill University and then built as a pavilion for Expo 67, the World’s Fair held from April to October 1967. It is located at 2600 Avenue Pierre-Dupuy on the Marc-Drouin Quay next to the Saint Lawrence River. Habitat 67 is widely considered an architectural landmark and one of the most recognizable and spectacular buildings in both Montreal and Canada.

Habitat 67 comprises 354 identical, prefabricated concrete forms arranged in various combinations, reaching up to 12 stories in height. Together these units create 146 residences of varying sizes and configurations, each formed from one to eight linked concrete units. The complex originally contained 158 apartments, but several apartments have since been joined to create larger units, reducing the total number. Each unit is connected to at least one private terrace, which can range from approximately 20 to 90 square metres (225 to 1,000 sq ft) in size.

Architect Moshe Safdie with the model for Habitat 67.

Moshe Safdie working on a model of Habitat 67.

Moshe Safdie with Edouard Fiset, chief architect of Expo, 1965.

Moshe Safdie on site during the construction of Habitat 67, 1966.

The development was designed to integrate the benefits of suburban homes—namely gardens, fresh air, privacy, and multileveled environments—with the economics and density of a modern urban apartment building. It was believed to illustrate the new lifestyle people would live in increasingly crowded cities around the world. Safdie’s goal for the project to be affordable housing largely failed: demand for the building's units has made them more expensive than originally envisioned. In addition, the existing structure was originally meant to only be the first phase of a much larger complex, but the high per-unit cost of approximately C$140,000 (C$22,120,000 for all 158) prevented that possibility.

The theme of Expo 67 was “Man and his World”, taken from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s memoir Terre des hommes (literally “land of men”, though it was published under the title Wind, Sand and Stars). Housing was also one of the main themes of Expo 67. Habitat 67 then became a thematic pavilion visited by thousands of visitors who came from around the world, and during the expo also served as the temporary residence of the many dignitaries visiting Montreal.

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A Beautiful Found Photo Collection of Montreal Expo 1967

The 1967 International and Universal Exposition or Expo 67 was a general exhibition, Category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It is considered to be the most successful World's Fair of the 20th century with the most attendees to that date and 62 nations participating. It also set the single-day attendance record for a world's fair, with 569,500 visitors on its third day.

Expo 67 was Canada's main celebration during its centennial year. The fair had been intended to be held in Moscow, to help the Soviet Union celebrate the Russian Revolution's 50th anniversary; however, for various reasons, the Soviets decided to cancel, and Canada was awarded it in late 1962.

After Expo 67 ended in October 1967, the site and most of the pavilions continued on as an exhibition called Man and His World, open during the summer months from 1968 until 1984.

Today, the islands that hosted the world exhibition are mainly used as parkland and for recreational use, with only a few remaining structures from Expo 67 to show that the event was held there.

Take a look at these amazing photos from Austin Hall to see what the Montreal Expo 1967 looked like.

“These photos were found on the street in Cambridge, MA. They were originally glued onto scrapbook sheets like this. I've attempted to arrange them in a sensible order based on page numbering and picture content, but this is the best I could do. 

Most of the photos were "tagged" with a labelmaker and I have placed these labels in the "Description" field. Some of the labels have been adjusted for the sake of clarity. 

To the best of my knowledge, these photos were taken by Lillian Seymour.”

Holland

Hovercraft

Indians of Canada

Israel

Japan pavilion

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30 Vintage Photographs Capture Canadian Punk Scenes From the Early 1980s

The first punk rock bands in Canada emerged during the late 1970s, in the wake of the US band Ramones and the UK bands Sex Pistols and the Clash. The Viletones, the Diodes and the Demics were among the pioneers, together with the Skulls (featuring Joey who would go on to form DOA, and Wimpy (Brian Roy) who would lead the Subhumans) from Vancouver, and Hamilton's Teenage Head, whose records and live shows earned them the nickname "Canada's Ramones". Vibrant local punk scenes sprung up in Toronto and Vancouver and other Canadian cities. By 1980/81 a Canadian hardcore punk scene emerged.

These candid photographs were taken by a Flicker's user ragamuffin1984 from 1980 to 1984. They give us a glimpse into Canadian Punk scenes in Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto in the early 1980s.

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The US Pavilion for Expo 67 engulfed in flames after a fire broke out during structural renovations, Montreal, May 1976

15 Stunning Vintage Photographs Capture Street Scenes of Montreal From Between the 1910s and 1920s

A collection of 15 vintage photographs of Montreal, the second-largest city in Canada, from 1914 to 1926, via Archives de la Ville de Montréal.

Sainte-Catherine Street, 1921

Bleury Street, 1921

Sainte-Catherine Street, 1914

Intersection of Saint-Laurent Boulevard and St. Catherine Street, 1914

Craig Street (now Saint-Antoine), 1921

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Wonderful Color Photographs Capture Street Scenes of Montreal, Canada in the 1960s

These wonderful color photographs from the Archives de la Ville de Montréal capture street scenes of Montreal, Canada in the 1960s...

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