Sainte-Martine-de-Courcelles - Beauce - Eastern Township, Quebec, Canada

Sainte-Martine of Courcelles

Population 1,000

Geographical and its history, we make little mundane discoveries and even unique region.

Church of Sainte-Martine de Courcelles

Located 350 meters above sea level on the plateau of Upper Beauce granitic pluton at the foot of Mount St. Sebastian, which dominates the landscape from its height of 820 meters.

 

Morne flanks spring the sources of the Bluets River running through the village of Courcelles before going to throw in a bay of Grand Lac St-François (Massanbesek in Abenaki) Today Courcelles is the gateway the tourist region of the Eastern Townships on National Highway 108 connecting the Beauce L'Estrie. But more significantly, our village is the center of the triangle formed by the three cities that services are Thedford-Mines on the north, St. George to the east and south Lac-Mégantic.Courcelles is roughly 50 kilometers away from the centers.

Mont Morne

Rémy de Courcelle

Daniel Rémy de Courcelles (1626-1698) Governor of New France (1665-1672)

Rémy de Courcelle (Courcelles), Daniel, M. Montigny, La Fresnaye and Courcelle, Lord of Rouvray and Du Bourg; born in 1626; single death, perhaps in Toulon, France, 24 October 1698.

Courcelle succeeded Saffray Mézy for governor of New France in 1665 and, together with Prouville Tracy, largely responsible for bringing the Iroquois who ravaged Periodically the colony since the time of Champlain. Before his appointment as governor general of New France March 23, 1665, he was governor of Thionville, in Lorraine.

He arrived in Quebec with the intendant Jean Talon on 12 September.Tracy, lieutenant general of all the French possessions in North America, had arrived in the previous June with the Carignan-Salt, sent to crush the Iroquois. Upon landing, Courcelle, "breathing out war" took care to build and garnish with the strong forces that Tracy had ordered the construction along the Richelieu River invasion route which the Mohawks themselves used to attack the institutions French.

At that time, the Iroquois Confederacy suffered repeated attacks of his Indian enemies and had been decimated by a smallpox epidemic.

Mont Morne

When the tribes who composed heard that the French had received large reinforcements of troops and settlers, their leaders hastened to inquire missionary opportunities of a peace agreement. However, Tracy, Courcelle, and Talon were convinced that we could hope to enjoy lasting peace until the Iroquois were not soundly defeated. They decided to invade the country of the Mohawks during the winter so that the enemy would expect the least.

On 9 January 1666, Courcelle left Quebec at the head of 600 men. When they got to the strong Richelieu, several of the men suffered severe frostbite to members and the figure. There were a party of Algonquins to guide the army, but he did not appear, and on 29 January Courcelle ordered to walk without the Indians. The men, carrying their weapons and supplies on the back and not used to walking with snowshoes in deep snow, found themselves quickly.

The intense cold deepened their embarrassment. Because of the lack of guides, they followed several false leads, so they often had to retrace their steps. On 15 February, hardly knowing where they were going, they led the Dutch settlement near Schenectady, three days walk Mohawk villages. Until then, the only Mohawks they had met had ambushed the detachment sent in pursuit, killing an officer and ten men.

When the Albany authorities learned that a large troop of French was in the vicinity, They sent a delegation asked why the French had led an army into the territory of the king of England without first informing the governor of the province of New York. (It was probably fortunate for all concerned that neither Courcelle nor the Albany authorities  know that England and France were at war for a fortnight.)

Morne Mountain Trail

In reality, Courcelle was surprised to learn that the Dutch had surrendered New Amsterdam (New York) in English and he remarked wryly that "the King of England had a hand in all of America."

He assured delegates that n Albany had no intention of molesting the subjects of His Majesty, or to invade its territory. He bought food in Schenectady, but when invited his men to enjoy the hospitality of this town, he declined the offer, fearing that if his men approached a chimney corner, it would be difficult to tear them. They carried wounded seven to Albany, where the Dutch settlers were careful.

A sudden thaw and heavy rains forced Courcelle to abandon the countryside. On February 21, he took the long walk back, harassed by Mohawk war parties. More than 60 men, weakened by cold and hunger, perished on the way.

This campaign had grazed the complete disaster. Courcelle would blame the Jesuits responsibility for this sad result, claiming it was because of them that Algonquin guides had not joined the expedition. Deprived of these guides, the French had been able to reach the villages of the Mohawks.

Mont Mégantic Valleys

The Marquess colonel of the regiment of Carignan-Salt, with whom Rémy de Courcelle had already been in trouble, clearly placed the blame on the latter, arguing that the governor had failed to provide his men equipment and winter clothing needed for such an expedition.

What that were responsible, the expedition had not reached his goal. The Mohawks had more reason to fear the French. Another campaign was required to restore the prestige of French and stop the Iroquois attacks against the colony.

At the end of September 1666, Tracy and Courcelle, at the head of 1,400men,along with 100 Hurons and Algonquins,left Fort Sainte-Anne, at the foot of Lake Champlain to invade the territory of the Mohawks. They fled before the army, the largest that we had ever seen in this part of the world, who advanced, fearless, banners flying and drums beating. They put the torch to the four villages of the Mohawks and they destroyed all the food supplies.

They planted a large cross and a pole bearing the arms of France on the location of the main village. Then took possession of the land the Mohawks on behalf of Louis XIV by right of conquest, and the army returned to his quarters.The Iroquois then accepted the peace terms of the French, and this time, they respected them. However, it was obvious that they would remain at peace as long as the French could hold them "in a state of fear." Maintaining that peace should be the main task of Courcelle for six years.

On December 6, 1666, Courcelle, and Talon Tracy reconstituted the Sovereign Council. Previously, the Intendant Talon made ​​himself justice. Following the rapid increase in population, the number of cases submitted to the Board increased substantially.

Courcelles Dam

In August 1667, wanting to hurry things, the Board agreed that Talon would review all prior disputes, and would distribute them to its consent between the Sovereign Council and the Court of provost, or retain them to settle itself in an expeditious manner. Courcelle refused to approve this edict as a violation to the authority vested in him as governor, and he was not in the public interest.

In January, he again rejected this proposal. He apparently thought that he had, in his capacity as governor, not the steward, to hold the reins of power in the colony. He was always on good terms with the lieutenant general, but Tracy left the colony in August 1667 and, from that moment, relations with Talon and Courcelle Boutroue, which replaced the Talon intendant position for two years, went worse and worse. In 1669, Colbert was sternly observed that a man in his position should be tolerant to the faults of others and make the best use of their good qualities to achieve the King's intentions with regard to the colony.

In 1670 at Talon returned to New France, its relations with Courcelle became strong tense. In November that year, Talon informed Colbert that the governor seemed very jealous of the influence that he, Talon, had with the Minister and showed great irritation every time the steward did not share his opinion. The following year, Talon complained that Courcelle treat him as inferior, almost valet, and acts to hinder the realization of its plans for the colony. Unfortunately, correspondence Courcelle is not reached us, and dispatches to the Minister of Talon do not, of course that its interpretation of the dispute.

In an area that was within him properly, that is to say, that of its relations with Indian nations, Courcelle showed great skill and attracted respect both French as Indians. When, in 1669, three soldiers of the Montreal garrison murdered a Seneca chief, Courcelle acts quickly, lest the Iroquois consider the incident as a casus belli. The three soldiers were quickly arrested, tried and executed before the arrival of a strong group of Iroquois who were coming to, Montreal for milking. The Iroquois were very impressed with what the French had sentenced to death three of them for the murder of one Iroquois and peace was maintained. However, the following year, the Iroquois resumed the war against the Algonquins, killing several and taking captive some.

Algonquins The response was not long in coming. It seemed that the hostilities extend to all the tribes allied to the French and, ultimately, the French themselves. Courcelle ordered the two sides to stop fighting and make them prisoners. The Iroquois showing reluctant to comply, the court threatened to lead an army in their country. The western Iroquois challenged, confident that their villages were too far away for a French army could reach. They replied haughtily: "Governor threatens to ruin our country? We'll see if it will have arms long enough to remove skin & hair of our heads.

"The following year, the governor built in Montreal a large flat boat capable of carrying a larger amount of supplies that boats; it brings together 56 volunteers and on June 2, launched into the turbulent rapids of the St. Lawrence to demonstrate to western Iroquois that their country was not out of reach. Ten days later, his company came to Lake Ontario, much to the dismay of the Iroquois they met on their way. Courcelle told them that if they wanted to continue to fight against the Algonquins and attack the French, as some had threatened them, they were perfectly free to do so; However, if they were acting, he added, it would take an army to Lake Ontario in large boats to destroy them.

This bold move so much impressed the Iroquois they stopped talking of war and made ​​peace with Algonquins.

Courcelles

While he was at the scene, Courcelle explored the eastern end of Lake Ontario in order to find a suitable location for a fort and trading post for the Iroquois furs they met on the north shore of the lake and they traded with the Dutch in Albany. He proposed to establish a fort near the mouth of Lake Ontario, but Colbert rejected this proposal.

Talon also proposed to establish two trading posts on Lake Ontario, one on the north side and the other to the south. Courcelle wanted a strong military, but his successor, Buade Frontenac, two years later, established a trading post at the mouth of the Cataraqui, where now stands the city of Kingston. When Louis XIV eventually see a map of the area, he was surprised we could have had the idea of placing a "strong" instead of Frontenac was chosen because, from a military point of view, the location that was needed was to command the St. Lawrence.

Courcelle was also concerned that attempts were the Ottawas, the main suppliers of furs of the French, to deal with the Dutch and the English, or even in Albany, or through the Iroquois. He managed to sow suspicion in the mind and the Iroquois and the Outaouais, stating that each nation intended to use this trade as a bait to lure the other into a trap and destroy it. It sauvegarda this way the fur to which the French were engaged in the West.

Courcelle actively promoted the exploration of the West by La Salle, Daumont St. Lusson, Peré Jolliet, Casson and Dollier Bréhant Galinée. Vast areas, previously unknown, were now claimed for France and commercial relations with Indian nations in these regions. It is also under Courcelle, acting on the orders of Louis XIV, which were instituted militias of New France that allowed to exercise in weapons bodied men 16 to 60 years. This militia was to support the weight of the fight in future wars the colony.

In 1671 Courcelle, eager to return to France, demanded his recall on the grounds of his ill health. The following year, he made ​​right at his request. One of his last acts in the colony was to donate to # 1000 Dollier de Casson, superior of the seminary of Montreal, for a little Iroquois six years he had adopted and entrusted to the care of the Sisters of Congregation. In late November 1672, he sailed for France, where he was given command of the Arras citadel. We think he was governor of Toulon at his death on October 24, 1698.

As governor of New France, Courcelle had with some of his subordinates relationships that maybe sometimes left to be desired, if his correspondence had been preserved, it could prove them wrong as much as him. Certainly, the administration of the colony did not suffer from these disputes, as was the case under his predecessor and his successor.

Courcelle Moulin Bernier

As commander of the troops, his winter expedition against the Mohawks hardly served its reputation, but it was the first campaign ever conducted by the French and they drew useful lessons. His most notable achievement, which is greatly to his credit is that he jammed Iroquois attacks against Indian allies of the French. He turned to attack the French settlements and he reached his goal without bloodshed. When he returned to France, he left the peace settlement and the enhanced prestige of France in the eyes of many as well as the Indian allies of the Iroquois.

Courcelles is a rural municipality of about a thousand inhabitants. By studying the situation

long inhabited in winter by itinerant hunters of the Abenaki Nation, wait for 1851 to see established along the Grand Rang (the 108), the first permanent inhabitants of Courcelles. Around 1865, Pierre Morin had the idea of blocking a jump from the river by a dam logs in order to power a sawmill and flour.

 

Thirty years later, after much discussion and tracks, the railway Central Quebec chooses to connect the Lac-Mégantic region Beauce crossing the Bluets River by an iron bridge built next to the mill. In less than eight years, the station called Lambton-Station will be flanked by a dozen houses. This hamlet become Courcelles in 1903. As the church will be built a little back from the main street, life in Courcelles radiates around two central places: the station square and the church square.

 

In 1995, a group for the development of the environment and heritage, the MAP committee undertook the restoration of the Moulin Bernier to make it a tourist entertainment center where one has exhibits. It has also built a park on the site of the old station. It has also erected a gazebo that can contemplate the fall, the dam and the little river canyon Bluets. Each year in the retention basin upstream of the dam, organizes the Festival of Fishing.

With this heritage site and two central squares, Courcelles is a village where it is interesting to wander on foot or by bike away from traffic intense Highway 108 2 kilometers further north. In the four ranks of Courcelles that stretch from north to south, have found agricultural companies cows and oxen, maple and Christmas tree plantations which led to the presence of a workforce of Mexican origin. Finally, the forestry groups and workers have begun to reforest with conifer most abandoned fields and fallow land.

In the 6th, the Andromeda hostel is recognized for the quality of its food and the rustic idyll its horse riding. The neighboring house is also home to an inn: the Nightjar.

 

Founded in 1947, the company Perfection Shirt remains the largest employer. Many other industries are located there since and Economic Development Committee oversees the running of the sector. In short, to live and work in Courcelles. The air is clean. And we still love visiting

From:.Baron Guy

Bernier Mill Manager

 

In the village of Courcelles, there is a dam logs, which was erected in 1865 on the river Blueberry. This small village also has two public squares, one on each side of the river. Stop also at the Moulin Bernier, flour mill and sawmill, which dates from 1888 and was completely restored in 2003. Every summer, a new exhibition is presented inside.

The permanent exhibitions "of yesteryear Meuniers "and" La Chemise Perfection Inc. "will make you discover the history and process of molding through the ages and the development of the cantons. A park was also built on the site of the old station and you'll also have access to a gateway that will allow you to contemplate the fall, the dam and the little river canyon Blueberry. Each year in the retention basin upstream of the dam, a fishing town is organized and attracts the entire population.

 

The Member for Beauce-Sud and Minister of Revenue, Mr. Robert Dutil, and the Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Member of Parliament for Mégantic-in the House of Commons, Mr. Christian Paradis, announced yesterday at Courcelles , government funding of $ 73,278 to the Parish of Courcelles to restore Bernier mill.

 

Courcelles

More specifically, the work includes the construction of two rooms adjacent to the multipurpose room for holding meetings and conferences, significant clogging the leaks in the water supply channel extending from the dam existing river Blueberry until Bernier mill and, for the bridge, reconstruction of the irrigation canal, rehabilitation of foundations and repaving. This funding is drawn from the Fund Municipal Rural Infrastructure, aims to modernize the mill and its facilities, in addition to improving service delivery so to ensure its sustainability.

 

"For over fifteen years, the Bernier mill this interpretation activities highly appreciated by tourists and users. The mill and its facilities are an important part of the regional tourism offer. Thus, we formalized today will improve the quality of services provided and presented in the framework of educational tourism while developing the mill into a major tourist attraction for our region, "the Deputy Minister said, Robert Dutil.

Note that the flour mill and sawfamily Bernier occupies the territory since 1888. In 1991 he was designated historic monument by the Parish of Courcelles for his development of the six municipalities included in the river basin Blueberry and its interpretation center of cultural history and heritage of the region. These improvements will make it more attractive multipurpose room for holding conventions and meetings and contributing to the financing of the center's interpretive activities. Bernier mill will be more accessible to a greater number of visitors, who can experience the operation and traditional skills of the millers.

The realization of this project will necessitate an overall eligible investment of $ 109,918 under component 3 of the MRIF. The governments of Quebec and Canada will each contribute up to $ 36,639, for total government assistance of $ 73,278, while the Parish of Courcelles involved in the project for an amount of

$ 36,640.

For its part, the mayor Courcelles, Mr. Mario Quirion, is delighted at the positive impact this work will have greater functionality of the facilities, in addition to strengthening the power of attraction of the municipality and contribute to economic development and tourism in the region.

Fishing

The program, which runs until 31 March 2010, is managed by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Regions and Land Occupancy of Quebec. Government of Canada's responsibility for the program was entrusted to Canada Economic Development

 

On the banks of the Bluets River, in the municipality of Courcelles, hides a gem: the old flour mill and saw the Bernier family. Completely restored in 2003 this building, erected in 1888, is the oldest of the village. Interpretation Centre of rural life, the Moulin Bernier aims to showcase the heritage of the six municipalities included in the basin of the Bluets River.

 

Inside one can grind flour and see exhibitions:

Meunieryesteryear:part museum makes you discover the process of molding through the ages and the development of our townships to the last millers Courcelles were the only father and son BernierAlso:.

Courcelles - riding

La Chemise Perfection Inc .: local industry in the field of making, history and the role the company has played in the development of the villageexhibition.

by a temporary  . professional artist in the arts field and a collection of paintings "Spring artists"

Outside the site includes a gazebo facing the dam logs, the valve and the water intake channel, the viaduct Railway Central Quebec, our Egyptian wheel and a rest area.

  

On the other side of the street: the Park of the old station, with its caboose and train Expo, becomes a place of animation and interpretation of history for this station became the town in 1903.

 

MoulinInterpretation Centre Bernier has three types of objects in its collection. There was first the tool of moulange cereals. Dam to the valve, the turbine gears, grinding wheels bluteau

Then all objects related to Railway Central Quebec that the mill Flour is the cause of the foundation of the village. Finally we have objects related to the environment and local historyBeauce.