William Dow & Co. / Brasserie Dow

The Dow name standing alone — and a date this archive will not pretend is settled. The Quebec cultural-heritage register puts the change to William Dow & Co. at 1841; the Dictionary of Canadian Biography puts it at 1834, the year Thomas Dunn died. Both are recorded and neither is chosen. What is not in dispute is the ending: the firm joined the National Breweries consolidation in 1909, and the Montréal complex outlived the beer by decades, closing in 1991.

1. 1841
   The Dow name (disputed)

   Quebec cultural-heritage register dates it here; the Dictionary of Canadian Biography says 1834.

2. 1909
   Into National Breweries

   One of fourteen Montréal breweries consolidated.

3. 1991
   The Montréal complex closes

   The buildings outlasted the brand.

1. 1841Founded
2. 1909Into National Breweries

   One of fourteen Montréal breweries consolidated.

Sources

1. foundedDisputed

   The 1841 date is the Quebec cultural-heritage register's. The Dictionary of Canadian Biography instead dates the William Dow and Company name to 1834, the year of Thomas Dunn's death. The archive holds 1841 here because that is what this record's own source states, and flags the disagreement rather than silently preferring one authority.

   DOW, WILLIAM — Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 9 · University of Toronto / Université Laval · 2026

   ScholarlyHigh reliabilityAccessed 2026-08-19Reviewed 2026-08-19
2. historyProbable

   Lineage dates as recorded in Quebec Pass 83: 1841, 1909, 1991.

   Tally's Quebec master, Pass 83 (research workbook) · Tally's Beer Universe research workbook · 2026

   CommercialMedium reliabilityAccessed 2026-08-19Reviewed 2026-08-19

Only the claims above are sourced. Everything else on this page is the archive's own research and has not yet been tied to a document — which is worth knowing rather than hiding.