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City of Dorval Ville de Dorval
Train station and Trudeau Airport in Dorval.
Location within the Island of Montreal
Coordinates: 45°27′N 73°45′W / 45.45, -73.75
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Montréal
Founded	1667
Incorporated	1892
Reestablished	January 1, 2006
Government
- Mayor	Edgar Rouleau
Area
- Total	20.87 km² (8.1 sq mi)
Population (2006)
- Total	18,088
- Density	866.5/km² (2,244.2/sq mi)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Postal code span	H9P, H4Y, H9S
Area code(s)	(514) and (438)
Website: www.ville.dorval.qc.ca

Dorval is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada, in the southwestern part of the Island of Montreal; pop. 17,706 (2001). As of the 2006 Canadian Census, the population increased by 2.2% to 18,088. Although the city has the largest surface area in the West Island, it is among the least populated. Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport constitutes about 60% of the city's land, forcing all of Dorval's population to be concentrated in the southern part of the city, making it the most densely populated city of the West Island.

Dorval is the oldest city in the West Island, having been founded in 1667, and one of the oldest in Canada and North America.

The history of Dorval dates back more than 300 years to 1665 when Sulpician priests established a mission on the outskirts of Ville-Marie, a french settlement which later became known as Montreal. Dorval was originally named Gentilly. It was later renamed La Présentation-de-la-Vierge-Marie and finally Dorval. It was incorporated as a village in 1892, a town in 1903, and a city in 1956. (In French it was termed a cité, an old term used to translate the English legal term "city.")

As with many other settlements on the Island of Montreal, the Grand Trunk Railway, which came to Dorval in 1855, was highly instrumental in attracting many wealthier families, mostly English speaking, in search of a summer refuge in proximity to their downtown residence and place of work. Access to Dorval from Montreal was also facilitated by the extension of streetcar service to Dorval's eastern city limits in the interwar period. After the Second World War many middle-class families migrated to Dorval from the city of Montreal and from other parts of Canada. This migration was made possible by the widening of highway 20 and by the large-scale construction of new dwellings. This new housing consisted mostly of single family homes with some townhouses and low-rise apartment buildings, built on lands previously used for agriculture and recreational activities such as golf. The postwar period also saw the construction of Dorval Gardens shopping center in 1956, one of Greater Montreal's first mall-style shopping centers. Today the shopping center remains the city's principal center of retail trade. From 12,853 residents in 1955, Dorval numbers today more than 17,500. Île Dorval, colonized in 1860 and located less than one kilometre offshore from Dorval, is a summer cottage community which has only two permanent residents and remains a pristine environment. The island is connected to Dorval proper by a private ferry service.

On January 1, 2002 Dorval, as an entity, was dissolved by the province of Quebec via Bill 170 (Municipal Territorial Organization) and was annexed to the city of Montréal. On June 20, 2004, the residents of Dorval voted to separate from Montreal to become an independent city once more. This renewed independence took effect on January 1, 2006.

Dorval was the home of the Allison family, one of the most recognizable families who were on board the Titanic in 1912. Their story can be seen in the 1996 TV Miniseries called Titanic which was broadcast on CBS. Trevor Allison, the youngest of the family, was the only survivor.

Dorval is the location of Dorval Airport, officially known as Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. From 1975 to 2005, Dorval Airport was one of two passenger airports serving Greater Montreal. But since 2005, it has become the primary passenger airport once again. Originally a military airfield used mainly to refuel new fighters and bombers being flown to Great Britain during the Second World War, Dorval Airport today serves over 11 million passengers annually. The airport is by far the largest employer in the West Island, let alone Dorval. It is also a major source of municipal tax revenue.

Residential street in Dorval.

As of the census of 2001, there were 17,706 people, 7,857 households in the city. The population density was 848.3/km². The racial makeup of the city was 86.07% White, 2.87% Black Canadian, 1.21% Aboriginal, 8.07% Asian Canadian, 1.09% Middle Eastern, 0.69% Latino Canadian. ^[1]

• Dorval station
• List of former boroughs
• Montreal Merger
• Municipal reorganization in Quebec

1. ^ Statistics Canada 2001 Census Community Profile

• City of Dorval homepage

v • d • e Municipalities of the urban agglomeration/administrative region of Montreal
Baie-d'Urfé - Beaconsfield - Côte-Saint-Luc - Dollard-Des Ormeaux - Dorval - Hampstead - Kirkland - L'Île-Dorval - Montreal - Montréal-Est - Montreal West - Mount Royal - Pointe-Claire - Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue - Senneville - Westmount
Urban agglomerations of Quebec — Administrative regions of Quebec — Region of Montréal — Subdivisions of Quebec
Subdivisions of Region number: 01 · 02 · 03 · 04 · 05 · 06 · 07 · 08 · 09 · 10 · 11 · 12 · 13 · 14 · 15 · 16 · 17

Coordinates: 45°27′N, 73°45′W