Portneuf, Quebec
Portneuf | |
|---|---|
Location within Portneuf RCM | |
Portneuf Location in central Quebec | |
| Coordinates: 46°42′N 71°53′W / 46.700°N 71.883°W[1] | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Quebec |
| Region | Capitale-Nationale |
| RCM | Portneuf |
| Settled | 1640 |
| Constituted | July 4, 2002 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Mario Alain |
| • Fed. riding | Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier |
| • Prov. riding | Portneuf |
| Area | |
• Total | 117.16 km2 (45.24 sq mi) |
| • Land | 109.10 km2 (42.12 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[3] | |
• Total | 3,329 |
| • Density | 30.5/km2 (79/sq mi) |
| • Pop (2016-21) | 4.5% |
| • Dwellings | 1,696 |
| Demonym | Portneuvien(ienne) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Postal code(s) | |
| Area codes | 418 and 581 |
| Highways A-40 | R-138 |
| Website | villedeportneuf |
Portneuf (French pronunciation: [pɔʁnœf]) is a municipality in the Portneuf Regional County Municipality, in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the St. Lawrence River, between Quebec City and Trois-Rivières. The Portneuf River runs on the east side of the town centre.
The town of Portneuf is named after a seignory that was founded in 1636, and first settled in 1640.
The municipal territory consists of 2 non-contiguous areas, separated by the municipality of Sainte-Christine-d'Auvergne. The smaller northern portion is undeveloped, whereas the southern piece is the main inhabited part with the population centres of Portneuf (south of Autoroute 40), and the adjacent Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf, north of A-40. The present-day municipality was created in 2002, when the old city of Portneuf merged with the town of Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf.[4]
The town is located on the Chemin du Roy, a historic segment of Quebec Route 138 that stretches from near Montreal to Quebec City. The town is also close by to A-40, where Provencher Street connects to the town at Exit 261.
One of Portneuf's major employers is a local paper mill owned by Metro Paper Industries, a Toronto-based paper company.[5] Paper had been a major part of Portneuf's development since the first paper mill opened in 1839.[6]
History
In 1636, the area was granted by the Compagnie de la Nouvelle-France as a seignory to Jacques Leneuf de La Poterie (1606-after 1685), who arrived in Quebec only some months later and became substitute governor of Trois-Rivières from 1645 to 1662. The first colonizers came around 1640 and settled at the mouth of the "Port Neuf" River (meaning new harbour).[1][7]
In 1817, the Portneuf post office opened. In 1861, the Parish of Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf was formed, and two years later in 1863, it was incorporated as a parish municipality. In 1896, it lost a large portion of its territory when the Parish Municipality of Sainte-Christine was formed.[1]
In 1914, the village centre itself separated from the Parish Municipality of Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf and was incorporated as the Village Municipality of Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf. In 1961, this latter one changed status and abbreviated its name, becoming the City of Portneuf. On July 4, 2002, the parish municipality was amalgamated into the new City of Portneuf.[1][7]
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Portneuf had a population of 3,329 living in 1,609 of its 1,696 total private dwellings, a change of 4.5% from its 2016 population of 3,187. With a land area of 109.1 km2 (42.1 sq mi), it had a population density of 30.5/km2 (79.0/sq mi) in 2021.[3]
Historical census populations – Portneuf, Quebec | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Population counts are not adjusted for boundary changes and merger. Source: Statistics Canada[3][8] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mother tongue (2021):[3]
- English as first language: 1.5%
- French as first language: 96.5%
- English and French as first languages: 0.5%
- Other as first language: 1.4%
Local government
List of former mayors:
- Michel Gauthier (...–2005)
- Pierre De Savoye (2005–2009)
- Nelson Bédard (2009–2017)
- Mario Alain (2017–present)
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Portneuf (ville)" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ a b "Répertoire des municipalités: Geographic code 34048". www.quebec.ca (in French). Gouvernement du Québec. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
- ^ a b c d e "Portneuf, Quebec (Code 2434048) Census Profile". 2021 census. Government of Canada - Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). stat.gouv.qc.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 December 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Web page for MPI's Portneuf plant
- ^ University of Western Ontario: "Business and History - J. Ford & Co. Limited" Archived 2010-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b "Notre-Dame-de-Portneuf (Municipalité de paroisse)" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
- ^ "1971 Census of Canada - Population Census Subdivisions (Historical)". Catalogue 92-702 Vol I, Part 1 (Bulletin 1.1-2). Statistics Canada. July 1973.
External links
- Municipality of Portneuf (in French)
- Portneuf RCM: Info about Portneuf (in French)
- photo-portneuf.com: Photos of Portneuf and nearby communities (in French)