1642 Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve (1612–1676) founds the Ville Marie de Montréal.
1734 In Montreal in New France, a slave known by the French name of Marie-Joseph Angélique is put to death, having been convicted of the arson that destroyed much of the city.
1763 Fire destroys a large part of Montreal, Quebec.
1817 The Bank of Montreal, Canada's oldest chartered bank, opens in Montreal, Quebec.
1847 The second Canadian railway line, the Montreal and Lachine Railway, is opened.
1849 The Governor General of Canada, Lord Elgin, signs the Rebellion Losses Bill, outraging Montreal's English population and triggering the Montreal Riots.
1875 The first ever organized indoor game of ice hockey is played in Montreal, Canada as recorded in ''The Montreal Gazette''.
1885 Riots break out in Montreal to protest against compulsory smallpox vaccination.
1886 The first transcontinental train trip across Canada departs from Montreal. It arrives in Port Moody, British Columbia on July 4.
1918 First airmail service in Canada from Montreal to Toronto.
1920 Montreal, Quebec radio station XWA broadcasts the first regularly scheduled radio programming in North America.
1939 Trans-Canada Air Lines (forerunner of Air Canada) begins transcontinental operations (between Vancouver and Montreal).
1952 Canada's first television station, CBFT-TV, opens in Montreal.
1955 The Richard Riot occurs in the streets of Montreal over the suspension of hockey legend Maurice Richard.
1963 Trans-Canada Airlines Flight 831: A Douglas DC-8 carrying 118, crashes after taking-off from Dorval Airport near Montreal.
1966 The city of Montreal, Quebec, begins the operation of its underground Montreal Metro rapid-transit system.
1967 Expo 67 officially opens in Montreal, Canada with a large opening ceremony broadcast around the world. It opens to the public the next day.
1967 Expo 67 opens to the public in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
1967 During an official state visit to Canada, French President Charles de Gaulle declares to a crowd of over 100,000 in Montreal: ''Vive le Québec libre!'' ("Long live free Quebec!"). The statement, interpreted as support for Quebec independence, delighted many Quebecers but angered the Canadian government and many English Canadians.
1967 Montreal's World Fair, Expo 67, closes with over 50 million visitors.
1984 The Good Friday Massacre, an extremely violent ice hockey playoff game, is played in Montreal, Canada.
1989 The École Polytechnique Massacre (or Montreal Massacre): Marc Lépine, an anti-feminist gunman, murders 14 young women at the École Polytechnique in Montreal.