A remarkable building in the heart of the Old City: a former British colonial prison (built 1808) that was converted into a college and library in 1868. The Morrin Centre now houses the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec — whose library, established in 1824, is the oldest English-language library in Canada still in its original building.
Tours of the building take visitors through the old prison cells in the basement (where prisoners were once held in conditions that would now be criminal), up through the Victorian reading room above, with its leather-bound volumes and wood-panelled shelves. It's one of the hidden gems of the Old City, largely missed by tourists focused on the nearby Château Frontenac. The centre runs lectures, concerts, and cultural events in English throughout the year.