Bundled up against the cold, British soldiers stand guard on the Plains of Abraham. Like every winter, the expanse is buried in snow. Most certainly a winter place, Québec City receives 303 centimetres of snow on average every year. The column seen in this piece is the monument to British general James Wolfe, a tribute that has taken many forms over the years.

1840 - 1894

Ah! “It has snowed, oh, how it has snowed!”

These words were written by the famous Québécois poet Émile Nelligan in the late 19th century. Since then, they have been repeated at every large snowfall. And Québec City is certainly one of the places where this poem is quoted most often: It is one of the snowiest cities in the world! Explore this album of photos and other artworks to learn how 19th-century residents of Québec City made the most of winter. Lots of questions about these images await!

The snow-covered Plains of Abraham

John Philip Bainbridge Bundled up against the cold, British soldiers stand guard on the Plains of Abraham. Like every winter, the expanse is buried in snow. Most certainly a winter place, Québec City receives 303 centimetres of snow on average every year. The column seen in this piece is the monument to British general James Wolfe, a tribute that has taken many forms over the years.

Chronoscope Can you locate this monument on the map? (unilingual French for a limited time)

Depicted period: 1840

Source: Library and Archives Canada Document in the public domain (free of copyright) - Acc. No. 1983-47-108 - Date: 1840

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