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Baie-Comeau

Coordinates: 49°13′N 68°09′W / 49.217°N 68.150°W / 49.217; -68.150[1]
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For the Great Lakes freighter, see Baie Comeau (2013 ship).

Baie-Comeau
City
Hotel Le Manoir
Hotel Le Manoir
Map of RCM with Baie-Comeau highlighted
Map of RCM with Baie-Comeau highlighted
Baie-Comeau is located in Côte-Nord region, Quebec
Baie-Comeau
Baie-Comeau
Location in Côte-Nord region of Quebec
Coordinates: 49°13′N 68°09′W / 49.217°N 68.150°W / 49.217; -68.150[1][2]
CountryCanada
ProvinceQuebec
RegionCôte-Nord
RCMManicouagan
Founded1936
ConstitutedJune 23, 1982
Government
[3]
 • MayorMichel Desbiens
 • Federal ridingManicouagan
 • Prov. ridingRené-Lévesque
Area
[3][4]
 • Total
434.54 km2 (167.78 sq mi)
 • Land334.83 km2 (129.28 sq mi)
 • Urban
[4]
11.28 km2 (4.36 sq mi)
 • Metro
[5]
682.89 km2 (263.67 sq mi)
 Urban area is for Baie-Comeau proper
Elevation
[6]
21.60 m (70.87 ft)
Population
 (2021)[4]
 • Total
20,687
 • Density61.8/km2 (160/sq mi)
 • Urban
[4]
9,100
 • Urban density806.5/km2 (2,089/sq mi)
 • Metro
[4]
26,643
 • Metro density39/km2 (100/sq mi)
 • Change (2016-21)
Decrease 3.9%
 • Dwellings
10,163
 Urban population is for Baie-Comeau proper
Time zoneUTC−05:00 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−04:00 (EDT)
Postal code(s)
G4Z, G5C
Area codes418 and 581
Highways R-138 R-389
Websitewww.ville.baie-comeau.qc.ca

Baie-Comeau (French pronunciation: [bɛ kɔmo]) is a city in the Côte-Nord region of the province of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the shores of the St. Lawrence River, and is the seat of Manicouagan Regional County Municipality. It is near the mouth of the Manicouagan River, named after the adjacent Comeau Bay.[2] It has a population of 20,687 in the 2021 Canadian census, and the census agglomeration population is 26,643.[4]

Baie-Comeau is the birthplace of Brian Mulroney, former Prime Minister of Canada.

Toponymy

Although the city is officially named in honour of Napoléon-Alexandre Comeau, the origin of the name actually comes from his father Antoine-Alexandre Comeau, who was an employee of the Hudson's Bay Company and had a camp there. Travelers would spontaneously think of “the bay of the Comeau camp”, perpetuated by word of mouth until the employees of the Geography Commission wrote Anse à Comeau (Comeau Cove) on plans. When Baie-Comeau was founded however, the authorities were unaware of the origin of this name, and specified that it honored Napoléon-Alexandre Comeau (1848-1923).[7]

History

The oldest part of Baie-Comeau is the area known as Vieux-Poste (Old Post) near the mouth of the Amédée River where in 1889, the Saint-Eugène-de-Manicouagan Mission was founded by Eudists. In 1898, the first sawmill in the Côte-Nord region was built there by the brothers Damase and Henri Jalbert, but it closed in 1907 after their timber stock was swept into the St. Lawrence. In 1916, Route 138 was extended to Saint-Eugène-de-Manicouagan and in 1929, its post office opened with the English name of Comeau Bay (francized in 1936).[2][8]

Baie-Comeau itself (the eastern part of the current town) was founded in 1936 when a paper mill was constructed by Colonel Robert R. McCormick, publisher of the Chicago Tribune. Arthur A. Schmon oversaw the project, which included a power station and housing. Experiencing remarkable growth, the Town of Baie-Comeau was incorporated on May 20, 1937. Coinciding with the completion of the mill, the Hudson's Bay Company opened a store on September 15 of that same year. It was the first HBC small department store in Quebec.[9] The area continued to see economic development with the establishment of the hydro-electric power stations on the Manicouagan and Outardes Rivers beginning with the Chutes-aux-Outardes Station in 1952, an aluminum smelter in 1958, and grain warehouses (the largest in Canada) in 1959.[2][8]

In 1950, the village of Saint-Eugène-de-Manicouagan was incorporated as the Municipality of Hauterive. In June 1982, Hauterive was merged into Baie-Comeau, taking effect on January 1, 1983.[2][8] The HBC closed its Baie-Comeau store in 1986.[9]

Baie-Comeau is the seat of the judicial district of Baie-Comeau.[10]

Geography

Baie-Comeau is located on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, about 400 kilometres (250 mi) northeast of Quebec City and 230 kilometres (140 mi) southwest of Sept-Îles.

There are two urban area population centres within the city limits: Baie-Comeau proper, with a population of 9,100,[4] and Hauterive, with a population of 11,147, in an area of 8.67 km2 (3.35 sq mi) and a density of 1,285.5/km2 (3,329/sq mi), as of the 2021 Canadian census. [11]

Baie-Comeau is crossed by five rivers: the Manicouagan River, the Amédée River, the Petit-Bras River, the Chasse River, and the English River. These rivers are fed by around thirty lakes.

Climate

Although at the same latitude as Vancouver or Paris, Baie-Comeau has a borderline humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb), just above the subarctic climate. The cold Labrador Current makes the Gulf of St. Lawrence very cold and tends to cool the weather during summer much more than the marginal warming of the winters resulting from its maritime location. With the moist northeasterly winds coming in from the Icelandic Low, snowfall is very heavy, averaging around 342.9 cm (135.00 in) per year with a greatest average depth of around 56 cm (22 in) in March. The extreme snow depth was 226 cm (89 in) on January 10, 1969.

Climate data for Baie-Comeau (Baie-Comeau Airport)
Climate ID: 7040440; coordinates 49°08′N 68°12′W / 49.133°N 68.200°W / 49.133; -68.200 (Baie-Comeau Airport); elevation: 21.6 m (71 ft); WMO ID: 71890; 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1947–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high humidex 8.8 8.4 15.3 21.7 30.4 39.1 39.2 46.3 33.2 31.8 20.2 11.6 46.3
Record high °C (°F) 11.4
(52.5) 		8.2
(46.8) 		11.4
(52.5) 		21.8
(71.2) 		30.0
(86.0) 		31.8
(89.2) 		32.8
(91.0) 		31.1
(88.0) 		28.6
(83.5) 		22.6
(72.7) 		18.1
(64.6) 		11.1
(52.0) 		32.8
(91.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) −8.0
(17.6) 		−6.7
(19.9) 		−1.6
(29.1) 		4.6
(40.3) 		12.3
(54.1) 		18.3
(64.9) 		21.3
(70.3) 		20.7
(69.3) 		15.8
(60.4) 		9.0
(48.2) 		2.5
(36.5) 		−4.0
(24.8) 		7.0
(44.6)
Daily mean °C (°F) −13.4
(7.9) 		−12.4
(9.7) 		−6.7
(19.9) 		0.6
(33.1) 		7.2
(45.0) 		12.8
(55.0) 		16.0
(60.8) 		15.3
(59.5) 		10.6
(51.1) 		4.8
(40.6) 		−1.2
(29.8) 		−8.6
(16.5) 		2.1
(35.8)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −18.8
(−1.8) 		−18.1
(−0.6) 		−11.7
(10.9) 		−3.4
(25.9) 		2.0
(35.6) 		7.3
(45.1) 		10.7
(51.3) 		9.9
(49.8) 		5.4
(41.7) 		0.6
(33.1) 		−4.9
(23.2) 		−13.0
(8.6) 		−2.8
(27.0)
Record low °C (°F) −47.2
(−53.0) 		−44.4
(−47.9) 		−35.6
(−32.1) 		−21.0
(−5.8) 		−8.3
(17.1) 		−3.2
(26.2) 		0.6
(33.1) 		−0.7
(30.7) 		−6.1
(21.0) 		−11.0
(12.2) 		−22.8
(−9.0) 		−37.8
(−36.0) 		−47.2
(−53.0)
Record low wind chill −53.0 −56.9 −48.3 −29.5 −19.0 −4.8 0.0 −2.7 −8.4 −15.1 −31.1 −51.5 −56.9
Average precipitation mm (inches) 64.9
(2.56) 		60.5
(2.38) 		64.2
(2.53) 		71.8
(2.83) 		76.2
(3.00) 		82.7
(3.26) 		110.8
(4.36) 		81.9
(3.22) 		92.6
(3.65) 		96.3
(3.79) 		86.6
(3.41) 		77.7
(3.06) 		966.1
(38.04)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 12.3
(0.48) 		14.4
(0.57) 		23.7
(0.93) 		50.7
(2.00) 		88.3
(3.48) 		88.7
(3.49) 		93.1
(3.67) 		75.4
(2.97) 		86.3
(3.40) 		90.0
(3.54) 		57.7
(2.27) 		17.0
(0.67) 		697.6
(27.46)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 83.8
(33.0) 		59.1
(23.3) 		48.2
(19.0) 		30.3
(11.9) 		2.7
(1.1) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.01
(0.00) 		5.4
(2.1) 		40.2
(15.8) 		73.2
(28.8) 		342.9
(135.0)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) 16.4 13.6 14.4 12.7 14.2 13.5 15.7 13.1 13.4 14.6 14.6 16.1 172.2
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm) 1.6 1.8 3.7 8.3 14.1 13.5 14.6 13.5 13.5 14.8 8.7 2.6 110.9
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm) 16.8 11.8 10.7 6.2 0.89 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.05 1.7 8.6 14.3 71.1
Average relative humidity (%) (at 1500 LST) 64.9 63.5 64.4 66.4 62.4 63.6 68.1 67.2 68.9 70.9 72.6 71.0 67.0
Mean monthly sunshine hours 112.5 134.4 163.5 181.7 217.3 237.1 244.0 238.4 163.8 123.4 90.7 94.7 2,001.5
Percent possible sunshine 41.6 47.0 44.4 44.2 45.8 49.0 49.9 53.5 43.2 36.8 32.9 36.8 43.8
Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada[12] (rain/rain days, snow/snow days and sun 1981–2010)[6]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Baie-Comeau had a population of 20,687 living in 9,554 of its 10,163 total private dwellings, a change of -3.9% from its 2016 population of 21,536. With a land area of 334.83 km2 (129.28 sq mi), it had a population density of 61.8/km2 (160.0/sq mi) in 2021.[4]

Canada census – Baie-Comeau community profile
202120162011
Population20,687 (-3.9% from 2016)21,536 (-2.6% from 2011)22,113 (-2.0% from 2006)
Land area334.83 km2 (129.28 sq mi)336.59 km2 (129.96 sq mi)338.99 km2 (130.88 sq mi)
Population density61.8/km2 (160/sq mi)64.0/km2 (166/sq mi)65.2/km2 (169/sq mi)
Median age48.4 (M: 48.0, F: 49.2)46.5 (M: 46.0, F: 46.9)45.2 (M: 44.9, F: 45.6)
Private dwellings10,163 (total)  9,554 (occupied)10,190 (total)  10,222 (total) 
Median household income$75,500$68,393$62,180
Notes: Population in 1996: 25,554[13] (-1.8% from 1991) - Population in 1991: 26,012[13]
References: 2021[14] 2016[15] 2011[16] earlier[17][18]
Historical census populations – Baie-Comeau
YearPop.±%
19411,548—    
19513,972+156.6%
19564,332+9.1%
19617,956+83.7%
198112,866+61.7%
198626,244+104.0%
199126,012−0.9%
YearPop.±%
199625,554−1.8%
200123,079−9.7%
200622,554−2.3%
201122,113−2.0%
201621,536−2.6%
202120,687−3.9%
Population amounts are not adjusted for boundary changes or merger.
Source: Statistics Canada[19][20][21][22][23][4]

Knowledge of official languages from 2016 (multiple answers were possible):[4]

  • English: 4,415
  • French: 20,840
  • Other languages: 550
Visible minority and Aboriginal population (Canada 2006 Census)
Population group Population % of total population
White 21,665 97.6%
Visible minority group
Source:[24]		 South Asian 0 0%
Chinese 25 0.1%
Black 50 0.2%
Filipino 0 0%
Latin American 0 0%
Arab 15 0.1%
Southeast Asian 10 0%
West Asian 0 0%
Korean 0 0%
Japanese 0 0%
Visible minority, n.i.e. 0 0%
Multiple visible minority 0 0%
Total visible minority population 110 0.5%
Aboriginal group
Source:[25]		 First Nations 230 1%
Métis 165 0.7%
Inuit 35 0.2%
Aboriginal, n.i.e. 0 0%
Multiple Aboriginal identity 0 0%
Total Aboriginal population 430 1.9%
Total population 22,205 100%

Economy

The region is a major forestry centre for the pulp and paper industry, owned by Abitibi Consolidated as of October 2006. Alongside hydro-electricity and the paper industry, an aluminum plant has fed employment for decades. Cargill has a large elevator there that is used to transfer grain from Great Lakes boats to ocean-going ships.

Local government

The Baie-Comeau city council consists of the mayor of Baie-Comeau and eight elected city councillors, four from each of the two sectors of town. One recent mayor of Baie-Comeau was Yves Montigny, who was elected to the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2022 Quebec general election; Michel Desbiens became mayor in 2023.

List of former mayors:

  • Ivo Di Piazza (...–2009)
  • Christine Brisson (2009–2013)
  • Claude Martel (2013–2017)
  • Yves Montigny {2017–2022)
  • Serge Deschenes (interim, 2022)
  • Carole Deschênes (deputy mayor, 2022)
  • Michel Desbiens (2023–present)

Sports

Para-Cyclists at the 2019 UCI Para-Cycling Road World Cup in Baie-Comeau, Canada. Left to right: Carla Shibley, Hassan Dia, Meghan Brown.

The 1993 Quebec Winter Games were played in Baie-Comeau.

Many different sports are played in Baie-Comeau:

Hockey

Baie-Comeau is home to the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, an ice hockey team playing in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League since 1997. The team plays in the Centre Henry-Leonard located in the eastern sector of the town.

Skiing

The Centre de ski du Mont-Tibasse is an alpine ski centre located a few kilometers north of the town where it offers twelve slopes. Cross-country skiing is also popular. Students often frequent Mont-Tibasse as part of their school programs.

Golf

An 18-hole golf course is available in the western sector of the town. It is a semi-private golf club and is open for most of the summer.

Swimming

The two major high schools of the city each offer an indoor swimming pool and are open to the public year-round. Two outdoor swimming pools are also available to the public. These are open from the end of June until the middle of August each summer.

Some beaches are also available in the summer. There are other beaches are along the shore of the St. Lawrence river such as the Plage Champlain and the Plage Pointe-Lebel, among others.

Tennis

Several outdoor tennis courts are available to the public in the different parks across town. They are open for most of the summer.

Football

The Baie-Comeau Vikings represent the Polyvalente des Baies in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean League. The team won championships in the eastern Quebec circuit in 2003, 2004 and 2006, and were finalists in 2005.

Transportation

MV Georges-Alexandre-Lebel rail ferry

The town is along Route 138 about 100 km (62 mi) east of Forestville and about 230 km (140 mi) west of Sept-Îles. A ferry service of the Société des traversiers du Québec and rail ferry service[26] of the COGEMA[27] also links the town to Matane on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River. The town is the southern terminus of Route 389, which leads to the Daniel-Johnson Dam, the town of Fermont, and the Labrador region of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Baie-Comeau Airport, located in neighbouring Pointe-Lebel, has scheduled flights from Air Liaison and Pascan Aviation.

Education

Baie-Comeau is home to several French-language public elementary schools, two French-language public high schools and one English-language public school that includes both the elementary and high school levels of education.

The town is also home to one French-language CEGEP called the Cégep de Baie-Comeau.

List of schools in Baie-Comeau:

School name Level Sector
École Bois-Du-Nord Elementary Western
École Boisvert Elementary Eastern
École Leventoux Elementary Eastern
École Mgr-Bélanger Elementary Western
École Saint-Cœur-de-Marie Elementary Western
École Serge-Bouchard [1] High School Western
École Trudel Elementary Western
Polyvalente des Baies High School Eastern
Baie-Comeau High School [2] Elementary and high school Eastern
  1. ^ Formerly known as Polyvalente des Rives
  2. ^ Only English language school in Baie-Comeau

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ "Baie-Comeau". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Fiche descriptive - Baie-Comeau" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved July 7, 2010.
  3. ^ a b "Répertoire des municipalités: Geographic code 96020". www.mamh.gouv.qc.ca (in French). Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Census Profile, 2021 Census Baie-Comeau, Ville [Census subdivision], Baie-Comeau [Census agglomeration], and Baie-Comeau [Population centre]". Statistics Canada. 9 February 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  5. ^ "Baie-Comeau (census agglomeration) census profile". 2021 Census of Population. Statistics Canada. 2012-02-08. Retrieved 2012-05-11. The census agglomeration consists of Baie-Comeau, Chute-aux-Outardes, Pointe-Lebel, Pointe-aux-Outardes and Ragueneau.
  6. ^ a b "Baie-Comeau A". Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010. Environment and Climate Change Canada. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  7. ^ "Banque de noms de lieux du Québec: Baie Comeau". toponymie.gouv.qc.ca (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
  8. ^ a b c "Baie-Comeau (municipalité de ville)" (in French). Mémoire du Québec. Retrieved 2010-07-07.
  9. ^ a b "Hudson's Bay Company: Baie Comeau". pam.minisisinc.com. Archives of Manitoba - Keystone Archives Descriptive Database. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
  10. ^ Territorial Division Act. Revised Statutes of Quebec D-11.
  11. ^ "Census Profile, 2021 Census: Hauterive [Population centre], Quebec". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  12. ^ "Baie-Comeau Quebec". Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020. Environment and Climate Change Canada. Archived from the original on July 10, 2024. Retrieved July 10, 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Electronic Area Profiles". Canada 1996 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
  14. ^ "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  15. ^ "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. August 12, 2021. Retrieved 2019-12-02.
  16. ^ "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
  17. ^ "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
  18. ^ "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian census. Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.
  19. ^ 1981, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016, 2021 census
  20. ^ http://www66.statcan.gc.ca/eng/acyb_c1955-eng.aspx?opt=/eng/1955/195501670141_p. 141.pdf
  21. ^ 127.pdf, Canada Year Book 1957-58
  22. ^ "Canada Year Book (CYB) Historical Collection" (PDF). 2008-03-31. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-23. Retrieved 2014-08-30.
  23. ^ [1][permanent dead link‍], E-STAT Table
  24. ^ [2], Community Profiles from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada - Census Subdivision
  25. ^ [3], Aboriginal Population Profile from the 2006 Census, Statistics Canada - Census Subdivision
  26. ^ Train ferry Archived 2012-04-26 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^ Trains February 2009 p9

Further reading

  • Lloyd Duhaime (1986). Les Éditions Nordiques (ed.). De puissance comblée: Baie-Comeau : 50 ans d'histoire (in French). Éditions Nordiques. p. 192. ISBN 2-9800519-1-8.
  • Chênevert, Marie-ève; Pellerin, Catherine; Landry, Pierre-Philippe (2012). Société Historique de la Côte-Nord (ed.). Baie-Comeau au fil du temps, 1937-2012 (in French). Baie-Comeau. p. 208. ISBN 978-2-921931-08-3. BC2012.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Paul-Émile Jean (1998). Éditions Jean (ed.). Baie-Comeau: du Mont Sec à la rivière Amédée 1936-1982 (in French). Hauterive. p. 574. ISBN 2-9800739-1-1. BC36-82.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Pierre Frénette; Daniel Chevrier; Jean-Marie M. Dubois; Pierre Dufour; Jean-Charles Fortin; André Lepage; José Mailhot; Françoise Niellon; Normand Perron (1996). Institut québécois de recherche sur la culture (ed.). Histoire de la Côte-Nord (in French). p. 667. HistoireCN.
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