| Coordinates | 48°32′N 67°33′W |
|---|---|
| Region | Bas-Saint-Laurent |
| RCM | La Matapédia |
| Settled | 1872 |
| Constituted | December 20, 1986 |
| Mayor | Jacques Pelletier |
| Federal riding | Rimouski—La Matapédia |
| Prov. riding | Matane-Matapédia |
| Area total | 90.90 km² |
| Area land | 77.90 km² |
| Population total | 899 |
| Population as of | 2021 |
| Population density | 11.5 km² |
| Pop 2016-2021 | 3% |
| Dwellings | 504 |
| Time zone | EST (UTC−5) |
| Time zone (DST) | EDT (UTC−4) |
| Postal code(s) | G0J 3L0 |
| Area codes | 418 and 581 |
| Website | www.valbrillant.ca |
Val-Brillant (val bʁijɑ̃) is a municipality in eastern Quebec, Canada, at the base of the Gaspé peninsula. On the southern shores of the Lake Matapedia, Val-Brillant is part of the Matapédia Valley.
The place was previously known by many other names: Lac-Matapédia; Brochu or Brouché, followed by Lac-à-Brochu until 1871 (after Pierre Brochu (1795–1871), the first settler in the valley in what is now Sayabec); McGowe (after an engineer working on the railroad); Cedar Hall from 1876 to 1912 (referring to the large hangar built from pieces of cedar that served as a coal shed for the railway); and Saint-Pierre-du-Lac (in honour of Pierre Brillant (1852–1911), missionary in the Matapedia Valley from 1881 to 1889 and parish priest from 1889 to his death).[1]
History
Originally Mi'kmaq territory, the area was granted as a seignory by Louis de Buade de Frontenac to Charles-Nicolas-Joseph D’Amours in 1694. D'Amours died in 1728 and none of his descendants claimed the rights to the seignory. So it remained a remote and undeveloped land until the 19th century. In 1830 construction began on the Kempt Road, a strategic military road between Quebec and the Maritimes, completed in 1833. An inn serving postilions and travellers along the road operated there from 1867 to 1876.[2]
European settlement began in 1872 during the construction of the Intercolonial Railway. Supervisor Engineer Peter Grant built for himself a house that also accommodated the railway employees for many years. In 1876, the railway was completed and on July 1 the first train passed through. In 1881, the post office opened, and two years later, the Mission of Saint-Pierre-du-Lac was established, named in honour of Pierre Brillant. In 1890, the Parish Municipality of Saint-Pierre-du-Lac was founded. By 1898, it had a population of 1600 people.[1][2]
In 1915, the main population centre separated from the parish municipality and was incorporated as the Village Municipality of Saint-Pierre-du-Lac, but renamed one year later to Val-Brillant.[1]
In 1986, the Village Municipality of Val-Brillant and the Parish Municipality of Saint-Pierre-du-Lac were rejoined in the current Municipality of Val-Brillant.[1]
Demographics
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 1,024 | — |
| 1996 | 1,040 | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 997 | −4.1% |
| 2006 | 1,003 | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 955 | −4.8% |
| 2016 | 927 | −2.9% |
| 2021 | 899 | −3.0% |
Mother tongue:[3]
- English as first language: 0%
- French as first language: 99.4%
- English and French as first language: 0%
- Other as first language: 0.6%
Government
Municipal council
- Mayor: Jacques Pelletier
- Councillors: Stevens Pelletier, Maxime Tremblay, Geneviève Leblanc, Johanne D'Amours, Richard Turgeon, Denis Couture
List of former mayors:
- Marc-André Turcotte (2001–2005)
- Marc Bélanger (2005–2009)
- Donald Malenfant (2009–2013)
- Jacques Pelletier (2013–present)
See also
References
- ^ "Val-Brillant (Municipalité)" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
- ^ "Historique" (in French). Municipalité de Val-Brillant. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
- ^ "Val-Brillant community profile". 2021 Census data. Statistics Canada. 9 February 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-02.
External links
- Bibliothèque et Archives Nationales du Québec - Cedar Hall (in French)
- Info Gaspésie - Val-Brillant