Roxboro, Quebec, was once a thriving town on the Island of Montreal. Founded in 1914, it was a vibrant community until its dissolution on January 1, 2002, due to a municipal reorganization in Quebec. Nestled along the Rivière des Prairies, Roxboro was home to approximately 6,000 residents at the time of its merger with Montreal.
The geographical landscape of Roxboro, Quebec, was unique, particularly the area north of the train tracks, which was prone to frequent flooding. Despite this, the town thrived and developed its own unique character.
In 1974, the town of Roxboro made a significant decision to purchase an island (Lot 311) located at the North end of 5th Avenue North. The town paid $46,130.36 to the former owner following a court expropriation decision. The Archives de Montréal has preserved an aerial photo of the island from 1947. This island is part of the Hochelaga Archipelago and was officially named by the Federal and Provincial government on April 12, 1991. The island is equipped with a bridge, lighting for nighttime, and garbage disposal facilities.
Roxboro, Quebec, is also home to a section of land named "Boisé de Roxboro." This area was designated as protected woodland on August 22, 2001. However, unlike the Parc des Rapides-du-Cheval-Blanc (named on March 25, 1997), the Quebec and Federal governments do not actively protect this park and woods. As a result, the area of parkland has significantly shrunk and continues to shrink due to development.
The city of Montreal had been attempting to merge Roxboro and other municipalities for many years. On January 1, 2002, Roxboro was forcibly merged with Dollard-des-Ormeaux to become a borough in the new city of Montreal. A referendum held on June 20, 2004, saw 67% of residents voting to demerge from Montreal. However, due to the province requiring a 35% turnout for the result to be valid, the referendum did not carry, and the town remained merged. The former city of Pierrefonds, which adjoined Roxboro, voted to stay in the new city and joined with Roxboro to form the borough of Pierrefonds-Roxboro on January 1, 2006. Roxboro's former borough partner, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, voted against the reorganization and de-merged at that time.
Since its founding in 1914, Roxboro, Quebec, has been led by six mayors. The first mayor, John Rowley, took office on March 19, 1914. He was succeeded by Geo. H. Whitehead on March 5, 1936, followed by Roland Bigras on June 4, 1946. René Labelle took the helm on July 11, 1958, followed by William G. Boll on November 2, 1964. Ovide T. Baciu became mayor on November 4, 1990, and the most recent mayor, Dimitrios Beis, took office on November 3, 2013.
