Saint-Cléophas, Quebec

Saint-Cléophas
Parish municipality

Location within La Matapédia RCM.
Saint-Cléophas

Location in eastern Quebec.

Coordinates: 48°29′N 67°45′W / 48.483°N 67.750°W / 48.483; -67.750Coordinates: 48°29′N 67°45′W / 48.483°N 67.750°W / 48.483; -67.750[1]
Country  Canada
Province  Quebec
Region Bas-Saint-Laurent
RCM La Matapédia
Settled 1908
Constituted May 19, 1921
Government[2]
 • Mayor Jean-Paul Bélanger
 • Federal riding Haute-Gaspésie—La
Mitis—Matane—Matapédia
 • Prov. riding Matane-Matapédia
Area[2][3]
 • Total 97.70 km2 (37.72 sq mi)
 • Land 97.74 km2 (37.74 sq mi)
  There is an apparent
contradiction between two
authoritative sources
Population (2011)[3]
 • Total 334
 • Density 3.4/km2 (9/sq mi)
 • Pop 2006-2011 Decrease 9.0%
 • Dwellings 137
Time zone EST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s) G0J 3N0
Area code(s) 418 and 581
Highways No major routes

Saint-Cléophas is a Parish municipality in the regional county municipality of La Matapédia in Quebec (Canada), situated in the administrative region of Bas-Saint-Laurent.

Toponomy

The name chosen for the parish during the municipal erection in 1921, highlights the work of Father Joseph Cleophas Saindon (1866-1941), a priest of the neighboring parish of Saint-Nom-de-Marie-de-Sayabec from 1896 to 1941, serving the parish from 1918. It is also named in honor of Saint Cleophas.[4]

Administrative Region

The Parish Municipality of Saint-Cleophas is part of the La Matapédia Regional County Municipality in the Bas-Saint-Laurent. The parish of Saint-Cleophas is part of the Archdiocese of Rimouski.

Geographical Location

Saint-Cleophas is located on a side of the mountain chain of the Appalachian specifically in the section of Mt Saint-Anne. The municipality is located 8 km south of the Highway 132 through Sayabec on Lacroix road.

Economy

The local economy is mainly based on forestry, sawmills, agriculture and cattle farms of both sheep and dairy. There are also many forests producing maple syrup. In addition, Panval plant in Sayabec provides many jobs.[5]

History

In the early 1900s, the pioneers of Sayabec created the foundations for St Cleophas in a town known as Awantjish, which was described as having good soil and timber (especially birch, maple and cedar.)[6][7] By 1908, a group of settlers living in the territory of what is today St. Cleophas made offerings to the Bishop of Rimouski, Monsignor André-Albert Blais, to found a parish in the area. The prelate had considered that it was a premature gesture due to the low population of the area (about 300 people). Finally the parish opened at the end of the First World War. The mission of St. Cleophas to gain both parish and municipality status became a reality, and in 1921 the town detached from the Municipality of Sayabec. However, the pastor of Sayabec, Father Cleophas Saindon, served as the first pastor at St Cleophas until the vicar of Sayabec, Father Charles Pelletier could become pastor of St. Cleophas. It is also in 1921 that the town began to officially use a calendar to mark milestones.

Important Events

In 1944, the church chapel was burned. That same year, Georges-Émile Côté built a new sawmill. Today, the mill is no longer in operation. In 1973 a zoo was built, the St Cleophas Ecological Center, funded through donations from nine parishioners. In 1976 the name St Cleophas Ecological Center became known as Naturanimo which closed 1996.

History of the parish

In 1918 the parish founded the first mission of St. Cleophas. On the 17th of January 1921, the first priest was appointed and so began the canonical life of the parish.

Motto

The motto of the municipality is Freedom, Love, Work .

Important People born in Saint-Cleophas

Tourism

Saint-Cleophas is often visited in spring for its numerous maple groves. Moreover, this is a place for hiking, snowmobile and ATV through its many trails. Between 1973 and 1996, St-Cleophas was a very important tourist attraction in the region with the Naturanimo Centre . The zoo housed mainly Canadian animals. Its varieties of species, its large size, its development and activities such as horse pulls, 4x4, tractors and country meals, added to the popularity of Naturanimo Centre. The municipality is part of the tourist region of Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine in the Matapedia Valley.

Administration

Municipal Council

The council consists of a mayor and six councilors who are elected every four year block without territorial division through rotation.

mandate function name
2005 - 2009 mayor Madame Lise Dompierre
councillors
#1 Monsieur Jean-Paul Bélanger
#2 Monsieur Marcel Bélanger
#3 Monsieur Michel Santerre
#4 Monsieur Bruno Gauvin
#5 Monsieur Stéphane Bélanger
#6 Madame Linda Hudon

Political representations

Provincially Saint-Cleophas is part of the provincial riding of Matapédia (electoral district). In the Quebec general election of 2008, the outgoing MP Danielle Doyer, the Parti Québécois was re-elected to represent the people of Saint-Cleophas in the National Assembly of Quebec.

Federally Saint-Cleophas is part of the federal riding of Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia. In the Canadian federal election of 2008, the incumbent Jean-Yves Roy of the Bloc Québécois, was elected to represent the people of Saint-Cleophas in the House of Commons of Canada.

Demographics

Population

Canada census – Saint-Cléophas, Quebec community profile
2011 2006 2001
Population: 334 (-9.0% from 2006) 367 (-3.4% from 2001) 380 (-5.9% from 1996)
Land area: 97.74 km2 (37.74 sq mi) 97.74 km2 (37.74 sq mi) 97.74 km2 (37.74 sq mi)
Population density: 3.4/km2 (8.8/sq mi) 3.8/km2 (9.8/sq mi) 3.9/km2 (10/sq mi)
Median age: 46.2 (M: 48.5, F: 42.8) 43.3 (M: 44.0, F: 41.9) 39.5 (M: 40.0, F: 38.7)
Total private dwellings: 137 156 161
Median household income: $.N/A $38,353 $28,705
Notes: 2011 income data for this area has been suppressed for data quality or confidentiality reasons. – References: 2011[3] 2006[8] 2001[9]
Historical Census Data - Saint-Cléophas, Quebec[10]
YearPop.±%
1991 440—    
YearPop.±%
1996 404−8.2%
YearPop.±%
2001 380−5.9%
YearPop.±%
2006 367−3.4%
YearPop.±%
2011 334−9.0%

See also

References

  1. ↑ Reference number 55843 of the Commission de toponymie du Québec (French)
  2. 1 2 "Saint-Cléophas". Répertoire des municipalités (in French). Ministère des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
  3. 1 2 3 "Saint-Cléophas census profile". 2011 Census data. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
  4. ↑ The Lives of Saints. Thomas Meighan. 1729-01-01.
  5. ↑ "Uniboard™ to invest into particleboard capacity expansion and a new thermally fused laminate (TFL)... -- LAVAL, QC, July 14, 2015". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
  6. ↑ Langelier, Jean Chrysostôme (1884-01-01). A Sketch on Gaspesia. J. Dussault.
  7. ↑ Duhamel, G.E. (1889). Description of the surveyed townships and explored territories of the province of Quebec. C.F. Langlois.
  8. ↑ "2006 Community Profiles". Canada 2006 Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
  9. ↑ "2001 Community Profiles". Canada 2001 Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-26.
  10. ↑ Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
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Adjacent Municipal Subdivisions
Saint-Moïse Sayabec Val-Brillant
  Saint-Cléophas  
La Rédemption Lac-Alfred Sainte-Irène


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