Grande-Vallée () is a municipality in the Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine region of the province of Quebec in Canada.
Its name (French for "Great Valley") describes its location in a large fertile valley through which the Grand Vallée River flows.
History
In 1691, Governor General Frontenac granted the area to François Hazeur, a prosperous merchant from Quebec City. The seignory, called La Grande-Vallée-des-Monts, stretched from Rivière-Magdeleine Seignory in the west to the Saint-Hélier portage in the east. It was inherited by Hazeur's son-in-law, Michel Sarrazin, a surgeon, biologist, and doctor of the King.
No colonization took place until the 1830s, when fishermen of Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagny occupied the place during the summer. In 1842, Alexis Caron and his family, also from Saint-Thomas-de-Montmagny, became the first permanent settlers. In 1846, the mission of Saint-François-Xavier-de-Grande-Vallée was founded. In 1872, the post office opened.
On September 15, 1927, the village was incorporated as a parish municipality, with Arthur S. Fournier as first mayor, although its status as parish municipality was not officially recognized until 1995. In 2005, Grande-Vallée changed its status from parish municipality to just municipality.
Geography
Communities The following locations reside within the municipality's boundaries: Grande-Vallée-des-Monts () – a hamlet located along Rivière de la Grande Vallée L'Anse-à-Mercier () – a hamlet located on the Saint Lawrence River
Lakes & Rivers
The following waterways pass through or are situated within the municipality's boundaries: Rivière de la Grande Vallée () – a river that empties into Anse de la Rivière de la Grande Vallée Lac de la Confrérie () – a small lake located southeast of Grande-Vallée village Lac du Rocher () – a lake that lies just south of Route 132
Demographics
Population
Language Canada Census Mother Tongue - Grande-Vallée, QuebecStatistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census Census Total Year Responses Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % 1,065 1.4% 99.1% 5 0.0% 0.5% 0 100.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 1,050 6.7% 99.1% 5 n/a% 0.5% 5 n/a% 0.5% 0 100.0% 0.0% 1,125 2.0% 99.6% 0 0.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 5 n/a% 0.4% 1,205 6.6% 100.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 1,290 7.2% 100.0% 0 100.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0% 1,390 n/a 98.2% 25 n/a 1.8% 0 n/a 0.0% 0 n/a 0.0%
Government List of former mayors: Arthur S. Fournier (1927–1933) Wilfrid Fournier (1933–1945) Georges Fournier (1945–1951) Robert Lebreux (1951–1959, 1960–1969) Rodolphe Fournier (1959–1960) Rock Fournier (1969–1978) Jean Claude Côté (1978–1986) Nelson Fournier (1986–1993) Sylvain Bouchard (1993–2005) Gabriel Minville (2005–2009) Nathalie Côté (2009–2017) Noël Richard (2017–present)
See also List of municipalities in Quebec
References
External links