Val-des-Bois, Quebec

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Val-des-Bois
Municipality
Municipal office
Municipal office
Location within Papineau RCM.
Location within Papineau RCM.
Val-des-Bois is located in Western Quebec
Val-des-Bois
Val-des-Bois
Location in western Quebec.
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Country  Canada
Province  Quebec
Region Outaouais
RCM Papineau
Constituted January 1, 1885
Government[2]
 • Mayor Marcel Proulx
 • Federal riding Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel
 • Prov. riding Papineau
Area[2][3]
 • Total 245.60 km2 (94.83 sq mi)
 • Land 225.35 km2 (87.01 sq mi)
Population (2011)[3]
 • Total 938
 • Density 4.2/km2 (11/sq mi)
 • Pop 2006-2011 Increase 7.4%
 • Dwellings 1,003
Time zone EST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s) J0X 3C0
Area code(s) 819
Highways Route 309
Website www.val-des-bois.ca

Val-des-Bois is a town and municipality in the Papineau Regional County Municipality in the Outaouais region of Quebec, Canada. The town is located on the eastern shores of the Du Lièvre River, 47 kilometers (29 mi) north of Buckingham.

The main local economic activity depends on cottage tourism.[4] The eastern half of the municipality is part of the Papineau-Labelle Wildlife Reserve.

Geography

As part of the Laurentian Highlands, its territory is dotted with lakes such Écho, de l'Argile, de l'Aqueduc, Vert, and Delphis. Echo Lake lies at an altitude of 243 meters (797 ft), while the surrounding relief rises to 472 meters (1,549 ft) above sea level.[5]

History

In 1873, the Township of Villeneuve was formed and named after Léonard-Vincent-Léon Villeneuve (1808-1873), member of Society of Saint-Sulpice, professor at the Petit Séminaire de Montréal (1838-1846), and pastor of Oka from 1871 to 1873.[4]

In 1878, the local post office was named "Val-des-Bois". In 1883, the parish of Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde was formed, and two years later, the United Township Municipality of Bowman-et-Villeneuve was established. In 1913, the townships separated, forming the Township Municipality of Bowman and the Township Municipality of Villeneuve.[4] In 1929, James Maclaren began construction on a dam at the High Falls of the Lièvre River, displacing 156 families because of the rising waters. The majority of them where German settlers, the average amount the families received from the MacLaren Co. were, depending on the acreage, between $ 1000.-- to $ 2000 each. [6]

In 1958, Villeneuve was renamed to Val-des-Bois (French for "Valley of the Woods"), in reference to the beautiful forest which decorated the banks of the Lièvre River.[4]

On 23 June 2010 a 5.0 earthquake struck the region, with its epicentre 8 km from Val-des-Bois, which was the closest settlement.[7]

Demographics

Population trend:[8]

  • Population in 2011: 938 (2006 to 2011 population change: 7.4%)
  • Population in 2006: 873
  • Population in 2001: 732
  • Population in 1996: 668
  • Population in 1991: 624

Private dwellings (occupied by usual residents): 469

Languages:

  • English as first language: 4%
  • French as first language: 95%
  • English and French as first language: 1%
  • Other as first language: 0%

References

  1. Reference number 64777 of the Commission de toponymie du Québec (French)
  2. 2.0 2.1 Geographic code 80140 in the official Répertoire des municipalités (French)
  3. 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. "Tracing their footsteps" by research-author Anne Schnurr
  7. http://earthquakescanada.nrcan.gc.ca/recent_eq/2010/20100623.1741/index-eng.php
  8. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census