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| Montreal fireworks shop seen in 1972 |
Hard to imagine that an entire generation of Montrealers is approaching middle age without ever having enjoyed the excitement, risk and peril of playing with firecrackers.
Firecrackers, exciting little red pop-pop-pop explosive devices adored by kids and used at Chinese parades met their slow ban, first being outlawed in Montreal in 1960, then more seriously in 1972. After that they became still possible, but rather difficult to find.
The cost-benefit ratio of these devices seemed clear: many people were hurt, scared, and occasionally even killed by the little explosives.
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| Young Montrealer seen lighting a cracker at a Chinese parade in 1971 |
Those boyish adventures tossing firecrackers in the woods weren't considered newsworthy but the relatively-rare disastrous incidents they spawned, unfortunately did.
For example, Taxi Fraternity boss Eddy Giller, 52, died of a heart attack in May 1957 after a scuffle at the Show Mart, an event that included a firecracker attack.
A more tragic incident occurred on the South Shore two years later when Gilles Roy, 16 and Michel Souci, 11, were killed when their 16-year-old buddy tossed firecrackers into a pharmacy, which set off an explosion amid the insect spray which killed the two boys.
The 16-year-old called cops and helped three employees out through the smoke but nonetheless must have felt very guilty about losing his two buddies.
There were other scattered reports of kids getting hurt by playing with firecrackers, such as this one in 1938.
Some firecrackers are bigger than others, such as the one that blew the hood of a car owned by labour leader William Leger in Ville Emard in 1965.
Cops have always hated 'em, way back in 1931 they were shocked when somebody tossed some into their station. And as recently as 2008 they came to the sight of a shooting ready to fire but realized it was just firecracker explosions.
Some firecrackers are bigger than others, such as the one that blew the hood of a car owned by labour leader William Leger in Ville Emard in 1965.
Cops have always hated 'em, way back in 1931 they were shocked when somebody tossed some into their station. And as recently as 2008 they came to the sight of a shooting ready to fire but realized it was just firecracker explosions.
A death of a young man in Toronto inspired two Conservative MPs to propose a federal Anti-Explosives Act in 1946, an early attempt to ban the little firecrackers.
Even though firecrackers, they are apparently quite easy to obtain, perhaps by making your own, or by purchasing them on the black market. They are still occasionally used at political protests, such as one that saw protesters toss firecrackers at cops in Montreal in 1995.
3 comments:
Firecrackers can be purchased and exploded in Chinatown during certain summer festivals.
Call ahead for the dates.
Firecrackers can still be purchased from our native friends if you look hard enough. Follow the smoke.
In the late 50's - early 60's, every Victoria day weekend we would walk down the hill from Montreal West to Ville St.Pierre where there were two stores that sold firecrackers - Chevrier's hardware, and a small variety store across the street that was known to us as "The Old Lady's".
We would put our nickels and dimes on the counter and request a variety of "ladyfingers", "3-inch cannons", or something in between.
A 5-cent string of 50 ladyfingers would let off continuous "pops" for a good 30 seconds if lit all at once. The larger ones would be lit one at a time (via a thick string - lit at the end - which would be put against the "wick" of the firecracker). A "cannon" placed inside an inverted can could lift it 30-40 feet in the air, or cause a loud muffled "boom" when dropped down a sewer (hopefully before it hit any water).
Often we would create "flares" by bending one in half, and lighting the exposed fuse in the middle. This would ignite the powder with a 5-second flash, but no bang.
Much as our parents disapproved, this went on year after year. They did approve of "sparklers" - metal rods that could be lit at the end, and would emit sparks for a good 30 seconds. At night, we would throw them in the air, and watch the sparks streak through the air.
Some parents arranged small fireworks exhibits in their backyards - Roman candles, pinwheels, etc. - but the favourite was always the "burning schoolhouse" which one family would have year after year.
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