The Montreal Holocaust Museum in Québec has started building its new museum in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough.
The new 50,000-square-foot building will replace the current museum. Construction is expected to be completed in late 2025, with a public opening scheduled for June 2026.
The museum’s relocation and expansion is in response to the public’s growing interest in Holocaust history and human rights. In November, the Montreal Holocaust Museum recorded the highest number of visitors in its history.
“By beginning construction of the new Montreal Holocaust Museum, we pay tribute to our survivor founders, whose courage, resistance, and resilience inspire us, and whose precious legacy will be inscribed in perpetuity,” said Daniel Amar, the museum’s executive director.
“Their testimonies and struggles against hatred and prejudice are life lessons that the new museum intends to preserve and share with as many people as possible.
“We look forward to being able to better serve visitors of all ages and backgrounds in our new custom-built facility, where visitors will learn about the Holocaust and its human rights legacy while being inspired to be upstanding citizens today.”
The upcoming museum’s permanent exhibition is co-curated by Marie-Blanche Fourcade, head of collections, and Robert Jan Van Pelt, a renowned Holocaust expert.
Growing interest in Holocaust history
The exhibition will utilise the museum’s collection of nearly 900 recorded survivor testimonies and 13,000 objects.
“As we face rising intolerance around the world, education remains the greatest tool at our disposal to combat racism, misinformation, and propaganda. The new [museum] is well placed to be at the forefront of this fight,” said Jacques Saada, president of the Montreal Holocaust Museum.
Elsewhere, Holocaust Museum LA has started constructing the largest expansion in its history to double the size of its Pan Pacific Park campus.
Images courtesy of the Montreal Holocaust Museum
