A padlocked, cast-iron gate, bearing the Molson name below the image of two bare-breasted angels around a clove, guards the remains of family members.
Built between 1860 and 1863, the then-$15,000 mausoleum is perhaps one of the most impressive monuments at a very picturesque cemetery.
Forget Paris's Pere Lachaise or Washington's Arlington National Cemetery. History buffs with a penchant for the macabre need not roam far in search of a posthumous brush with a famous writer, revered statesman or notorious criminal.
Between Mount Royal and the neighbouring and much larger Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery, Montreal is the final resting place for upwards of 500 notable figures, from author Mordecai Richler to assassinated Father of Confederation Thomas D'Arcy McGee.
A 2006 project to painstakingly locate around 400 notables at Notre-Dame-des-Neiges resulted in a 40-page downloadable booklet, filled with the names and locations of every noteworthy grave and monument.
Just weeks ago, the smaller 50-hectare Mount Royal Cemetery, perched 225 metres above the city on the northern slope of the iconic mountain that is its namesake, came out with its own handy, colour-coded pamphlet. It contains a map and brief descriptions of more than 80 of its best-known residents.
"Some of the names you'd probably recognize include Sir John Abbott, one of the prime minister's of Canada (and) Anna Leonowens of 'The King and I,' " said cemetery spokesman Timothy Thompson.
Leonowens was the British teacher and governess to the King of Siam's many children and wives in the 1860s. She spent the last 15 years of her life in Montreal, was fictionalized in the book "Anna and the King" and the hit Rodgers and Hammerstein musical "The King and I."
"We have some of hockey fame, including (former Montreal Canadiens) Howie Morenz as well as (Hector) Toe Blake," he added, during an interview beneath the towering Molson tomb.
Mount Royal is home to a number of residents bearing the names of familiar brands and retail outlets. Col. Jacob Schick, inventor of the electric shaver in 1928 and Schick injector razors, still produced today, is there, as is jeweller Henry Birks, sugar refinery founder John Redpath and Walter Philip Zeller, of bargain-chain fame.
Arthur James Nesbitt, who in 1912 co-founded the brokerage firm bearing his name, is also poised to spend eternity at the top of the city's famous mountain, along with Frederick Neal Southam, founder of Southam newspapers in 1877.
And among its 200,000-plus residents are many lesser known but equally interesting figures. There is Rev. William Squire, a Methodist minister and cholera victim who was the very first person interred at the cemetery on Oct. 19, 1852. And there is Shadrach Minking, an African-American slave who escaped to Montreal in 1851 to live out his days a free man.
Notre-Dame-des-Neiges, almost three times as large at 142 hectares, contains more than 900,000 graves, including a long list of Quebec judges, politicians, actors and other notables.
"The cemetery is the biggest one in Canada," said spokesman Jean-Francois Breton. It was named a heritage site a few years.
"We've calculated more than 175,000 people come every year to visit their loved ones, but not only their loved ones, they come to witness the architecture and the funeral patrimony."
Some 20 former Montreal mayors are buried here, including Jean Drapeau, who brought Expo 67 and the 1976 summer Olympics to the city.
Other famous residents include hockey legend Maurice "Rocket" Richard, "O Canada" composer Calixa Lavallee and A.L. Van Houtte - the man behind the coffee brand.
The tomb of Pierre Laporte, the politician kidnapped and murdered by members of the Front de Liberation du Quebec and the trigger for the 1970 October Crisis, can be found at Notre-Dame-des-Neiges.
So too can that of Marc Lepine, the mass murderer who gunned down 14 women at Ecole Polytechnique on Dec. 6, 1989. Two victims and at least one survivor of the Titanic sinking were also laid to rest at the cemetery.
While each famous grave has been identified, either on a map or in writing by section, locating them can be something of a treasure hunt - one best conducted by bicycle if pressed for time. That said, both cemeteries encourage visitors to spend the day and enjoy the scenery.
"It's a place for the living as well," Thompson said. Mount Royal plays host to historic walking tours and special events such as Shakespeare in the Park.
"We think it's important to introduce people, whether it's young students or older Montrealers, to the cemetery.
"Often in the summer we see people coming through with carriages or on bikes or even stopping to have picnics."
With its winding paved roads and scenic foot paths, meandering past trees, flowers and fruit-bearing shrubs, the cemetery has become a popular nature trail. More than 145 species of birds have been spotted on cemetery grounds including warblers, screech owls, hawks and mocking birds.
Similarly, Notre-Dame-des-Neiges boasts around 10,000 trees - 100 of which pre-date its founding in 1854 and are up to 225 years old.
Breton said each year, around the cemetery's anniversary, a guided tour is held to highlight some of its offerings. About 275 people signed up for the last one which was, unfortunately, rained out.
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If you go . . .
Notre-Dame-des-Neiges: Access the cemetery through the main entrance at 4601 Cote-des-Neiges Rd. Other entries are located on Decelles St. and along Camilien-Houde Rd. on Mount Royal. Open in summer from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and in winter from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Mount Royal Cemetery: Access the cemetery through the main entrance at 1297 de la Foret Rd. Main gate open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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