Beloeil, Quebec
Belœil | |
---|---|
City | |
Ville de Beloeil | |
450 and 579 | |
Highways A-20 (TCH) | R-116 R-223 R-229 |
Website | beloeil |
Beloeil (
The population as of the
Belœil was created as a village in 1903 and became a ville (city) in 1914, but can trace its history through the parish of Saint-Mathieu-de-Belœil, established in 1772, and the seigneurie de Belœil, founded in 1694. Its name probably derives from the old French expression "Quel bel œil!", meaning "What a beautiful view!", generally attributed to Jean-Baptiste Hertel, brother of the first seigneur (lord) of Belœil, Joseph-François Hertel de la Fresnière.[10][11]
History
Although there has been evidence found of a prior indigenous peoples' presence along the Richelieu River, none of it has been found on the territory of Beloeil. Development of the region in the first several decades after the arrival of Europeans in the region was slow, owing to the geographic situation of the Richelieu, which made it a primary avenue of attack from New York toward New France.[12][13]
The recorded history of Belœil began on 18 January 1694 when Governor
By 1768, however, the local population had grown to the point where a request to the
Meanwhile, on 28 December 1848, the portion of the
In 1903, the two hamlets (around the Church and Belœil-Station), dissatisfied with the aqueduct service in the parish municipality of Saint-Mathieu-de-Belœil, requested and were granted permission to become the village of Belœil, whose population reached nearly 700 inhabitants in 1911. By 1914, the village had grown further, sufficiently so to become the
Name
The origins of the name Belœil have been a matter of debate between two competing theories.[11]
One theory argues that the city derives its name from the view from atop the Mont Saint-Hilaire. According to this theory, in 1693, shortly before receiving the seigneurie from Frontenac, Joseph Hertel and his brother Jean-Baptiste climbed atop the Mont Saint-Hilaire, where, upon seeing the view, Jean-Baptiste Hertel exclaimed "Quel bel œil!", which, in seventeenth-century French, meant "What a beautiful view!". According to this theory, when he was later granted his seigneurie, Joseph Hertel, remembering the exclamation, chose to name it Belœil (beautiful view). The alternate theory states that the name derives from the like-named town in Belgium, with a wide variety of possible links between the two towns.[10]
While city government of Beloeil refuses to take a position in the debate on the origin of the name, local historian Pierre Lambert has demonstrated that the various proposed links between the Belgian and Quebec cities are very tenuous at best, whereas the "Bel Œil" theory was first put forward by the Campbell family, who (having purchased the seigneurie of Rouville in the nineteenth century) had access to the archives of Jean-Baptiste Hertel. As a result, Lambert argues for "beautiful view" as the probable origin of the name.[10][11]
Geography
Beloeil lies in the central
Generally, the region surrounding Beloeil remains agricultural. The
Beloeil is part of a broader agglomeration of over forty thousand inhabitants, formed by four towns spread out on the sides of the Richelieu River. It represents the northwestern portion of the agglomeration and is separated from Mont Saint-Hilaire (northeastern) and Otterburn Park (southeastern) only by the Richlieu river, while Bernard-Pilon street (Quebec Route 229) forms the limit between Beloeil and McMasterville (southwestern). Most of the urban portion of the city as it exists today lies within the area delimited by Bernard-Pilon Street to the south, the Richelieu river to the east, Yvon-L'Heureux Boulevard to the west, and Quebec Autoroute 20 to the north. The land north of the autoroute or west of Yvon-L'Heureux is still largely rural.[9][30]
Historically, Belœil grew as two separate hamlets, one around the Saint-Mathieu-de-Belœil parish church and the other around the train station. Although the inland growth of the town starting in the 1950s has linked the two hamlets into a single city, the historical neighborhoods still exist, as the Vieux-Belœil (English "Old Belœil"), around the Saint-Mathieu Church at the meeting of the Richelieu and Saint-Jean-Baptiste streets, and Belœil-Station by the railway and along the shores of the river further south, although much of the territory of Belœil-Station seceded in 1917 to form the municipality of McMasterville.[15][31]
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Beloeil had a population of 24,104 living in 10,140 of its 10,338 total private dwellings, a change of 7.3% from its 2016 population of 22,458. With a land area of 24.38 km2 (9.41 sq mi), it had a population density of 988.7/km2 (2,560.7/sq mi) in 2021.In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Beloeil had a population of 24,104 living in 10,140 of its 10,338 total private dwellings, a change of 7.3% from its 2016 population of 22,458. With a land area of 24.38 km2 (9.41 sq mi), it had a population density of 988.7/km2 (2,560.7/sq mi) in 2021. In 2021, 82.9% of the population was 15 years of age or older and the median age was 42.0 years old (compared to Quebec's 86.1% and 43.2).
In 2021,[32] there were 7,075 households, of which 2,865 were couples (married or otherwise) with children, 3,155 were childless couples, and 2,920 were one-person households, with the balance being multiple-family households, one-parent family households and non-standard households. The average size of the Beloeil census family was 2.8 members.
In 2021, 6.3% of the population were first generation Canadians, while 5.6% were second generation. 4.5% of residents were visible minorities, 0.9% were Indigenous, and the remaining 94.6% were white/European. The largest visible minority groups were Black (1.9%) and Latin American (0.9%).
67.1% of residents were Christian,[32] down from 86.7% in 2011.[33] 60.4% were Catholic, 4.3% were Christian n.o.s, and 0.7% were Protestant. All other Christian denominations and Christian-related traditions made up 1.5% of the population. 31.5% of the population was non-religious or secular, up from 12.8% in 2011. The only named non-Christian religions with followers in Beloeil were Islam (0.9%) and Buddhism (0.3%). Only 0.1% of the population were believers in other religions or spiritual traditions.
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
2021 | 24,104 | +7.3% |
Mother tongue language (2021)[32]
Language | Population | Pct (%) |
---|---|---|
French only | 22,090 | 92.6 |
English only | 495 | 2.1 |
Both English and French | 1,145 | 4.8 |
Other languages | 795 | 3.3 |
Economy
Beloeil, in 2021, had an unemployment rate of 5.0% (the provincial average is 7.6%). The median income in 2020 was $48,800 (the provincial median was $40,800). In 2021, 12 230 inhabitants reported being employed, of whom 5,785 worked outside Beloeil or 71.7%. Beloeil today is primarily a commuter town for people working in Montreal.[31][34]
The primary industries in terms of employment are the health care and social assistance (13.6%), retail trade (12.8%), manufacturing (9.9%), and construction (9.4%). Other significant fields included professional, scientific and technical services (7.7%) and educational services (7.7%), while public administration (6.3%), finance and insurance (4.8%), accommodation and food services (4.4%) and other services (4.4%) employs much smaller portions of the population.[34]
In February 2005, Beloeil adopted a
Infrastructure
The major road connections to Beloeil are route 116, built in 1940, and autoroute 20, built in 1964. Both of these roads connect Montreal to Quebec by way of Beloeil and Saint-Hyacinthe.[9] The route 116 serves as the primary commercial street of Beloeil.[36]
There is no longer any local train station in Beloeil. Instead, people wishing to take the Montreal
However, the vast majority of the population of Beloeil prefer to use the road to commute to work. In 2006, among the local population that worked outside their home, 81% reported driving to work, and 5% reported going in someone else's car, whereas only 7.5% reported using public transit. Among other methods of transportation, 5.9% reported walking or using a bicycle.[34]
Education
In 2021, of the population 15 and older, 64.4% reported having a post-secondary diploma of some form (vocational,
Locally, Beloeil has five French-language public
The South Shore Protestant Regional School Board previously served the municipality.[40]
Notable people
Several artists, sportsmen and politicians were born, lived, or died in Beloeil:[31]
- Hockey hall of fame[citation needed]
- Béatrice La Palme, Early twentieth century opera singer, who performed before king Edward VII[41]
- Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec
- Blessed Mother Marie Rose Durocher, founder of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary[42]
- Philippe-Auguste Choquette, Lawyer, judge, Liberal MP and Senator.
- Chantal Benoit, wheelchair basketball player.[43]
- Attorney-General of Ontario, member of the Order of Canada.[44]
- Charles Jourdain, Canadian mixed martial arts competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
See also
References
- ^ a b "Belœil". Quebec: Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ^ a b c "Répertoire des municipalités: Geographic code 57040". www.mamh.gouv.qc.ca (in French). Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation.
- ^ Parliament of Canada Federal Riding History: CHAMBLY--BORDUAS (Quebec)[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?LANG=E&GENDERlist=1&STATISTIClist=1,4&DGUIDlist=2021A00052457040,2021S05100063&HEADERlist=0&SearchText=Beloeil
- ^ a b c https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?LANG=E&GENDERlist=1&STATISTIClist=1,4&DGUIDlist=2021A00052457040,2021S05100063&HEADERlist=0&SearchText=Beloeil
- ^ The Canadian Press (2017), The Canadian Press Stylebook (18th ed.), Toronto: The Canadian Press
- ^ Official website
- ^ Beloeil in the Canadian Encyclopedia Archived October 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c Attraits Touristiques, Ville de Beloeil Archived 2012-08-14 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ a b c Lambert, Pierre; Le nom de Belœil a 300 ans!; Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved on 2012-03-11
- ^ a b c La Petite histoire de la ville de Beloeil, Ville de Beloeil[permanent dead link], retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ Fortin, Réal. Les Amérindiens et le Richelieu, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Musée régional du Haut-Richelieu, 1983.
- ^ a b Lambert, Pierre; Les premiers habitants de Belœil, Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved 2008-12-13
- ^ a b Lambert, Pierre; Le premier seigneur de Belœil, Joseph Hertel; Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved 2008-12-13
- ^ a b c d Lambert, Pierre; Guide Patrimonial de Beloeil et de Saint-Mathieu-de-Beloeil; Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, 1994
- ^ a b c Cardinal, Armand, Les Fondateurs de Saint-Hilaire, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Éditions Mille Roches, 1983
- ^ a b Desnoyers, Isidore; La Petite Histoire — Paroisse Saint-Mathieu-de-Beloeil, Beloeil, Comité des fête du deuxième centennaire de la paroisse, 1875/1972.
- ^ Lambert, Pierre; François Noiseux, un curé hors de l'ordinaire, Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved 2008-12-13
- ^ Lambert, Pierre; La naissance du vieux village de Belœil, Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ Timeline of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, the virtual museum of Canada, retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ Disasters, The Canadian Encyclopedia Archived February 22, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ Saint-Jacques, Roger; Il y a 150 ans, tragédie du pont de Belœil; Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ Côté, Alain; Enfin ! Le train arrive à Belœil - Saint-Hilaire, Société d'histoire de Belœil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire, retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ a b Filion, Fortin et al.;Histoire du Richelieu-Yamaska-Rive-Sud, La Montérégie; Quebec City, Presses de l'Université Laval, 2001
- ^ 1911 Census of Canada indexing project
- ^ "Quelques événements historique ayant marqué la région, Ville de Beloeil". Archived from the original on 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2019-01-30.
- ^ Cloutier, J-Roger; Le voyage de Belœil à Montréal en 1927
- ^ COPA Places to Fly Archived 2012-05-29 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2008-12-13
- ^ Statistics Canada, 2006 Agriculture Community Profile Archived February 13, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ Ville de Beloeil, Plan de zonage Archived 2011-10-05 at the Wayback Machine (Zoning plan), retrieved 2008-12-15
- ^ a b c Cloutier, J-Roger et al.; Dictionnaire historique concernant Belœil, McMasterville, Saint-Mathieu-de-Belœil, Mont-Saint-Hilaire et Otterburn Park; Société d'Histoire de Beloeil-Mont-Saint-Hilaire retrieved 2012-03-11
- ^ a b c Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-02-09). "Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Beloeil, Ville (V) [Census subdivision], Quebec". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
- ^ Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2013-05-08). "2011 National Household Survey Profile - Census subdivision". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2023-01-14.
- ^ a b c d Statistics Canada, Retrieved on 2024-05-11
- ^ Roy, Michel, Quelques jalons d'une tendance commerciale: le mégacentre Centre de Développement Local et Communautaire Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, 2005 Archived March 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Une ville a dimensions humaines, Ville de Beloeil Archived 2011-10-04 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ Plan de la ligne Montréal-Saint-Hilaire, Agence Métropolitaine de Transport Archived December 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ Liste des Circuits, CITVR Archived 2008-09-14 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ Situation Géographique, Commission Scolaire des Patriotes Archived 2008-12-20 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2008-12-14
- ^ King, M.J. (Chairperson of the board). "South Shore Protestant Regional School Board" (St. Johns, PQ). The News and Eastern Townships Advocate. Volume 119, No. 5. Thursday December 16, 1965. p. 2. Retrieved from Google News on November 23, 2014.
- ^ "Béatrice La Palme". The Canadian Encyclopedia (2010 ed.). Archived from the original on January 11, 2005. Retrieved 2010-07-04.
(Marie Alice) Béatrice (Béatrix) La Palme. Soprano, violinist, teacher, b Beloeil, near Montreal, 27 Jul 1878, d Montreal 8 Jan 1921; ARCM 1900. She studied violin with Frantz Jehin-Prume and performed successfully in public in 1894. She left for London in 1895, as first winner of the Lord Strathcona scholarship to the RCM, and studied there with Enrique Fernandez Arbos. Shortly thereafter she began studying voice with Gustave Garcia and sang at an RCM concert in July 1898. In Montreal she appeared as both singer and violinist in Karn Hall in October 1898 under the patronage of Lord Strathcona. ...
- ^ Jean, Marguerite (2000). "Durocher, Eulalie". Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
- ^ "Benoit, Chantal".
- ^ Who's Who 1997, University of Toronto[permanent dead link]
External links