Val-David, Quebec

Val-David
Village municipality
Motto(s): Un monde à part, et à partager (A world apart, and to be shared)

Location within Les Laurentides RCM
Val-David
Location in central Quebec
Coordinates: 46°02′N 74°13′W / 46.03°N 74.22°W / 46.03; -74.22Coordinates: 46°02′N 74°13′W / 46.03°N 74.22°W / 46.03; -74.22[1]
Country  Canada
Province  Quebec
Region Laurentides
RCM Les Laurentides
Constituted May 10, 1921
Government[2]
 • Mayor Kathy Poulin
 • Federal riding Laurentides—Labelle
 • Prov. riding Bertrand
Area[2][3]
 • Total 43.90 km2 (16.95 sq mi)
 • Land 42.83 km2 (16.54 sq mi)
 • Water 3 km2 (1 sq mi)
Elevation[1] 322 m (1,056 ft)
Population (2011)[3]
 • Total 4,450
 • Density 103.9/km2 (269/sq mi)
 • Pop 2006-2011 Increase 5.6%
 • Dwellings 2,785
Time zone UTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s) J0T 2N0
Area code(s) 819
Highways
A-15 (TCH)
Route 117
Website www.valdavid.com

Val-David is a village of almost 5,000 inhabitants in the Laurentian Mountains about 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Atrracting about 100,000 tourists a year, Val-David is predominantly francophone although it has a small anglophone minority.

The village is famous for its artistic character. Many renowned and amateur artists, writers and dancers live and have lived in Val-David, notably Québécois poet Gaston Miron, jazz bassist Charlie Biddle, and Alan Gerber the singer-songwriter.

Val-David is also a centre for much outdoor recreational activity as its 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) Parc Dufresne is the most popular rock-climbing destination in eastern Canada. Additionally, the Parc Linéaire Le P'tit Train du Nord, a 200 kilometres (120 mi) bike trail, and groomed cross-country ski and snowshoe trails in Winter, run throughout the town's splendid nature.

History

Val-David

The place was first known as Belisle's Mills, named after the owner of one of the area's first sawmills. In 1873, its post office opened under the name of Mont-Morin, renamed to Belisle's Mills in 1901. In 1917, the parish of Saint-Jean-Baptiste-de-Belisle or Bélisle was formed, detached from Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts. In 1921, the village municipality was officially established and named after the parish.[1]

In 1923, the post office was renamed to Val-David, which also became the official designation of the municipality in 1944. It pays tribute to Louis Athanase David (1882-1953), member of parliament for Terrebonne from 1916 to 1919 and secretary of Quebec from 1919 to 1936, and his father Laurent-Olivier David (1840-1926), member of the House of Commons and author of several books.[1]

It boasts the very first local community monthly newspaper ski-se-dit.

Demographics

Population trend:[4]

  • Population in 2011: 4450 (2006 to 2011 population change: 5.6%)
  • Population in 2006: 4216
  • Population in 2001: 3819
  • Population in 1996: 3473
  • Population in 1991: 2976

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 2084 (total dwellings: 2785)

Mother tongue:

  • English as first language: 3.3%
  • French as first language: 93.3%
  • English and French as first language: 1%
  • Other as first language: 2.4%

Education

Sainte Agathe Academy (of the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board) in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts serves English-speaking students in this community for both elementary and secondary levels.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Reference number 64775 of the Commission de toponymie du Québec (in French)
  2. 1 2 Geographic code 78010 in the official Répertoire des municipalités (in French)
  3. 1 2 "(Code 2478010) Census Profile". 2011 census. Statistics Canada. 2012.
  4. ↑ Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
  5. ↑ "About Us." Saint Agathe Academy. Retrieved on September 4, 2017. See Elementary zone map and Secondary zone map - Note that all areas covered in the elementary map are also covered in the secondary one.
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