La Tuque

Ville de La Tuque
Downtown La Tuque
Coat of arms
Motto: Industriis et labore cresco (Industry and work to grow)
Coordinates: 47°27′N 72°47′W / 47.45°N 72.783°W / 47.45; -72.783Coordinates: 47°27′N 72°47′W / 47.45°N 72.783°W / 47.45; -72.783
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Mauricie
Census division	La Tuque
Settled	1850s
Incorporated	March 26, 2003
Government[1]
• Type	Ville
• Mayor	Normand Beaudoin
Area[1][2]
• City	28,421.48 km2 (10,973.6 sq mi)
• Land	25,104.59 km2 (9,692.9 sq mi)
• Urban	25.84 km2 (10 sq mi)
• Metro	25,431.76 km2 (9,819.3 sq mi)
Population (2006)[2]
• City	11,821
• Density	0.5/km2 (1.3/sq mi)
• Urban	9,716
• Urban density	376.0/km2 (973.8/sq mi)
• Metro	15,293
• Metro density	0.6/km2 (1.6/sq mi)
Time zone	EST (UTC−5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
Area code(s)	819
Website	www.ville.latuque.qc.ca

The paper mill in La Tuque.

La Tuque is a city in south central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. In 2006, it had a population of 11,821 Latuquois.

Whereas the actual town of La Tuque is fairly small, its huge territory is the second largest incorporated municipal entity in Quebec after Baie-James and the sixth in Canada. It consists of almost the entire former regional county of Haut-Saint-Maurice, and includes the settlements of Carignan, La Croche, Fitzpatrick, Oskelaneo, Parent, Rapide-Blanc, Rivière-aux-Rats, and Sanmaur. Enclosed by but administratively not part of the city are the three Indian Reserves of Coucoucache, Obedjiwan, and Wemotaci.

The local economy centres on pulp and paper; the city has a pulp-milling centre as well as a major hydroelectric station. As the gateway to the upper Mauricie, La Tuque's economy also offers outdoor tourism opportunities and caters to hunting and fishing trips in its large hinterland; the city is known as the Queen of Haute-Mauricie and the Classique internationale de canots de la Mauricie canoeing race begins at La Tuque.

Etymology

The name, which dates to the eighteenth century, originates from a nearby rock formation which resembles the well-known French-Canadian hat known as the tuque. In 1823-24, the explorer François Verreault described the location as:

un Portage nommé Ushabatshuan (le courant trop fort pour le sauter). Les Voyageurs le nomment la Tuque, à cause d'une Montagne haute, dont le pic resemble à une Tuque. Ce portage est d'une lieue, avec des fortes côtes à monter. "a portage named Ushabatshuan ('the rapids too strong to jump'). The voyageurs call it La Tuque, due to a tall mountain whose peak resembles a tuque. The portage is a league long, and climbs steep slopes."^[3]

History

The territory of La Tuque was originally inhabited by Atikamekw indigenous people. In the early 1850s, settlers were drawn to the area to exploit the forest resources. The La Tuque Post Office opened in 1887, but the area remained isolated from the rest of the Mauricie until the early 1900s when the National Transcontinental Railway was built, prompting industrial development and the growth of a community on the east bank of the Saint-Maurice River where there was a large set of falls.^[3]

On November 15, 1909, the Village Municipality of La Tuque was incorporated, with Achille Comeau as first mayor. A few months later on April 4, 1910, the Village Municipality of La Tuque Falls was formed, with Wenceslas Plante as first mayor. Less than one year later later in March 1911, both villages merged to form the Town of La Tuque, with Wenceslas Plante as first mayor.^[3][4]

In the 1940s, the hydro-electric generating station on the Saint-Maurice was built, requiring the partial destruction of the rock formation that gave the town its name.^[3]

In 1972, the Municipality of Haute-Mauricie was formed out of portions from the unincorporated Carignan and Malhiot Townships, in the proximity of the Saint-Maurice Wildlife Reserve. However, its low population and constantly rising administrative costs led to the merger of Haute-Mauricie with La Tuque in August 1993.^[3]

On March 26, 2003, the Haut-Saint-Maurice Regional County was dissolved and all its municipalities and unorganized territories were amalgamated into the new City of La Tuque, thereby becoming the largest municipality with city status in land area in Quebec, and second largest in Canada (38,000 km²). On January 1, 2006, the municipalities of La Bostonnais and Lac-Édouard separated and were reestablished.^[3]

In May 2010, some 120 forest fires broke out around La Tuque, burning until June. Smoke from these fires reached portions of Eastern Ontario and southern Quebec, including the cities of Ottawa and Montreal, as well as the northern US states.

Demographics

Population trend:^[5]

• Population in 2006: 11,821 (2001 to 2006 population change: −5.3 %)
• Population in 2001: 11,298 (or 12,488 when adjusted for 2006 boundaries)
• Population in 1996: 12,102

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 5338 (total dwellings: 6438)

Mother tongue:

• English as first language: 1.6 %
• French as first language: 95.6 %
• English and French as first language: 0.2 %
• Other as first language: 2.6 %

Transportation

The main highway is Quebec Route 155 that connects La Tuque with Shawinigan to the south and the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region to the north. Numerous forest roads provide access to remote hunting and fishing camps, and the village of Parent is accessible by a 175 kilometres (109 mi) long gravel road from Mont-Saint-Michel in the Laurentides region.

The Canadian National Railway dissects La Tuque's territory. This railway, built in 1910 by the National Transcontinental Railway, connected Quebec City to the Canadian Prairies and goes through vast wilderness areas of northern Quebec and Ontario. While it was intended to ship grain from the prairies to the Port of Quebec and to open up virgin territories, it never carried much rail traffic but is still serviced by Via Rail at the La Tuque railway station and Parent railway station, with request stops at Fitzpatrick, Oskelaneo, and Clova. Other sidings along the line are Casey, Hibbard, Cann, Sanmaur, Vandry, Windigo, and Rapide-Blanc-Station.

The La Tuque Airport is located directly south of the town's centre on Route 155.

List of mayors

The Mayor is the municipality's highest elected official. La Tuque has had fifteen mayors, since its incorporation as a city.^[6]

Famous residents

• Félix Leclerc, poet and singer
• Sylvie Roy, politician
• Maude Guérin, actress
• Jean-Philippe Tremblay : Photographe - Fondateur de Exode Magazine^[13]
• Steven Guilbault, environmentalist
• Jean-Jacqui Boutet, actor
• Dominique Trottier, TV reporter

See also

• Municipal reorganization in Quebec

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: La Tuque, Québec

• (French) City of La Tuque official website
• (French) La Tuque (Tourisme Haut-Saint-Maurice)
• (French) Ville de La Tuque (Haut-Saint-Maurice)
• (French) Eau Quai Saint-Maurice (Kayaking on St. Maurice River)
• (English) Tourisme Mauricie Regional tourist office
• (English) Ski area profile in English

	Baie-James	Lac-Ashuapmushuan	Lac-Bouchette Lac-Moncouche
	Senneterre		Lac-Jacques-Cartier Lac-Croche Lac-Édouard La Bostonnais
		La Tuque
	Dépôt-Échouani	Lac-de-la-Bidière, Lac-Bazinet, Baie-Obaoca, Lac-Normand, Trois-Rives, Lac-Masketsi	Lac-Lapeyrère, Linton

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