The historic downtown is a major touristic centre for the area.
Due to the presence of Lake St. Francis on the St. Lawrence River, St. Francis Bay in downtown, and of numerous rivers and canals all over the town, the city is nicknamed "The Venice of Quebec".[citation needed]
History
The actual city was founded in 1874, the first mayor was Moise Plante. The first settlers arrived in 1798. At that moment, the settlement was named Pointe-du-Lac (Lake Point). The colony was then renamed Saranac, then Sainte-Cécile. Salaberry-de-Valleyfield was officially named in 1874 after Colonel Charles de Salaberry who served with the British army during the War of 1812. "Valleyfield" came from the Valleyfield Mills, a paper mill south of Edinburgh in Scotland.
Historical census data - Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec
Year
Pop.
±%
1921
9,215
—
1931
11,411
+23.8%
1941
17,052
+49.4%
1951
22,414
+31.4%
1956
23,584
+5.2%
1961
27,297
+15.7%
Year
Pop.
±%
1966
29,111
+6.6%
1971
30,173
+3.6%
1976
29,716
−1.5%
1981
29,574
−0.5%
1986
27,875
−5.7%
1991
27,598
−1.0%
Year
Pop.
±%
1996
26,600
−3.6%
2001
26,170
−1.6%
2006
39,672
+51.6%
2011
40,077
+1.0%
2016
40,745
+1.7%
2021
42,787
+5.0%
Amalgamated with Saint-Timothée and Grande-Île in 2002. Source: Statistics Canada[10]
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield had a population of 42,787 living in 20,073 of its 20,962 total private dwellings, a change of 5% from its 2016 population of 40,745. With a land area of 108.56 km2 (41.92 sq mi), it had a population density of 394.1/km2 (1,020.8/sq mi) in 2021.[4]
Canada census – Salaberry-de-Valleyfield community profile
Notes: Amalgamated with Saint-Timothée and Grande-Île in 2002. References: 2021[11] 2016[12] 2011[13]
Canada Census mother tongue - Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec[10] Amalgamated with Saint-Timothée and Grande-Île in 2002.
Census
Total
French
English
French & English
Other
Year
Responses
Count
Trend
Pop %
Count
Trend
Pop %
Count
Trend
Pop %
Count
Trend
Pop %
2016
39,670
37,480
0.01%
94.48%
1,160
5.0%
2.92%
395
13.2%
1.00%
570
46.2%
1.44%
2011
39,425
37,475
1.7%
95.05%
1,105
6.8%
2.80%
455
89.6%
1.15%
390
12.4%
0.99%
2006
38,565
36,845
51.9%
95.54%
1,035
40.8%
2.68%
240
20.0%
0.62%
445
74.5%
1.15%
2001
25,450
24,260
2.4%
95.32%
735
11.4%
2.89%
200
14.9%
0.79%
255
4.1%
1.00%
1996
25,995
24,855
n/a
95.61%
660
n/a
2.54%
235
n/a
0.90%
245
n/a
0.94%
Government
Nicholson Street with city hall in the centre
The city council is composed of the mayor and eight city councillors. The municipal elections are held every four years. Each councillor stands for his/her district.
Marie Blanche Alberta Marcelle Besner-Trépanier (1975–1983)
Martinus Maria Petrus Mooijekind (1983–1987)
Joseph Eugène Gaetan Rousse (1987–1995)
Denis Lapointe (1995–2017)
Miguel Lemieux (2017–present)
Attractions
The Musée de Société des Deux-Rives (MUSO), which covers the economic and cultural history of the region, is located in the city.
The city houses one of the 10 minor basilicas in Quebec. Cathedral-Basilica of Saint Cecilia, built in 1934–1935, is one of the largest churches in the country.
The city has been the site of the Valleyfield Regattas since 1938. The event takes place every year at the beginning of July over a three-day period in the heart of the city on Bay Saint-François. It is an international hydroplane competition, in which power boats achieve speeds of up to 225 km/h. Attracting over 130,000 visitors per year, it also includes other cultural activities.[16]
Education
9 daycare facilities
3 pre-kindergarten centres
12 elementary schools (some with daycare services), of which one is English-language.
The Gault Institute was created by Andrew Frederick Gault. He created this school during the time that the Gault Cotton Mills were up and running. To heat the school at one time he used underground pipes connecting from the school to the Cotton Mills since at the time there was no electricity.
^"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)
^"Salaberry-de-Valleyfield Climate". Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010 (in English and French). Environment Canada. 31 October 2011. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
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