Atholville is an unincorporated community in
Restigouche County, New Brunswick
Restigouche County (2016 population 30,955) is located in north-central New Brunswick, Canada. The county is named for the Restigouche River which flows through the county and is famous for its salmon pools, which have attracted wealthy American ...
, Canada. It held village status prior to 2023.
The first inhabitants of the area were the ''
Mi'kmaq
The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the northe ...
'' who settled there in the 6th century BC and were then called ''Tjikog''. With 400 people, it was their biggest village and the only one permanently inhabited in the region. The
Acadians
The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the des ...
arrived in 1750. It was at this time that the Mi'kmaq left the area and went to
Listuguj in
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
. The French defeat at the
Battle of Restigouche
The Battle of Restigouche was a naval battle fought in 1760 during the Seven Years' War (known as the French and Indian War in the United States) on the Restigouche River between the British Royal Navy and the small flotilla of vessels of the F ...
on July 8, 1760, was damaging to the development of the settlement. The
Intercolonial Railway
The Intercolonial Railway of Canada , also referred to as the Intercolonial Railway (ICR), was a historic Canadian railway that operated from 1872 to 1918, when it became part of Canadian National Railways. As the railway was also completely ow ...
, however, was inaugurated in 1876 and Anglophone merchants developed the forestry industry in the early 20th century. The village then experienced significant growth and was incorporated as a municipality in 1966. A shopping centre frequented by people from the whole region was established there from 1974. The forestry industry still plays an important role in the local economy.
History
Prehistory
![Les Micmacs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Les_Micmacs.png)
Covered with ice during the
Wisconsin glaciation
The Wisconsin Glacial Episode, also called the Wisconsin glaciation, was the most recent glacial period of the North American ice sheet complex. This advance included the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which nucleated in the northern North American Cor ...
, the Atholville district was probably released from the glaciers in about 13,000 BC.
[''General geological map of shallow sediments in New Brunswick''](_blank)
AA. Seaman, 2002, Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy, consulted on 7 August 2009 The
Goldthwait Sea
The Goldthwait Sea was a sea that emerged during the last deglaciation, starting around 13,000 years ago, covering what is now the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and surrounding areas.
At that time, the land had been depressed under the weight of the Laur ...
subsequently covered the coastal area,
then gradually receded until around 8,000 BC. due to
Post-glacial rebound
Post-glacial rebound (also called isostatic rebound or crustal rebound) is the rise of land masses after the removal of the huge weight of ice sheets during the last glacial period, which had caused isostatic depression. Post-glacial rebound a ...
.
The village ''Tjikog'' has been permanently inhabited since at least the 6th century BC. by the
Mi'kmaq
The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the northe ...
s.
Tjikog was fortified by a
piled wall and also had a cemetery.
Tjikog was located in the district of ''Gespegeoag'' which included the coastline of
Chaleur Bay
frame, Satellite image of Chaleur Bay (NASA). Chaleur Bay is the large bay in the centre of the image; the Gaspé Peninsula is to the north and the Gulf of St. Lawrence is seen to the east.">Gulf_of_St._Lawrence.html" ;"title="Gaspé Peninsula ...
:
[Philip K. Bock and William C. Sturtevant, ''Handbook of North American Indians'', 13 Volumes, Vol. 1, Government Printing Office, 1978, pp. 109-110, 777 pages] it was the only permanently inhabited village in the whole district.
Before the arrival of Europeans the village had a population of between 400 and 500,
making Tjikog the largest Mi'kmaq village.
Mi'kmaq lifestyle was based on hunting
seals
Seals may refer to:
* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly:
** Earless seal, or "true seal"
** Fur seal
* Seal (emblem), a device to impress an emblem, used as a means of a ...
and
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s,
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
with
harpoon
A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument and tool used in fishing, whaling, seal hunting, sealing, and other marine hunting to catch and injure large fish or marine mammals such as seals and whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the t ...
s, and collecting
shellfish
Shellfish is a colloquial and fisheries term for exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates used as food, including various species of molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish are harvested from saltwater envir ...
. The population lived along the river nearly all year.
The
emblem
An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint.
Emblems vs. symbols
Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...
of Tjikog is the
salmon
Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...
.
The French period
In July 1534
Jacques Cartier
Jacques Cartier ( , also , , ; br, Jakez Karter; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French-Breton maritime explorer for France. Jacques Cartier was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of th ...
entered Chaleur Bay up to the mouth of the
Restigouche River
The Restigouche River (french: Rivière Ristigouche) is a river that flows across the northwestern part of the province of New Brunswick and the southeastern part of Quebec.
The river flows in a northeasterly direction from its source in the App ...
.
[Ristigouche River](_blank)
Toponymy Commission of Québec, consulted on 29 November 2012 The French founded
Acadia
Acadia (french: link=no, Acadie) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. During much of the 17th and early ...
in 1604. Father Sebastian, a
Recollect
The Recollects (french: Récollets) were a French reform branch of the Friars Minor, a Franciscan order. Denoted by their gray habits and pointed hoods, the Recollects took vows of poverty and devoted their lives to prayer, penance, and spirit ...
, was the first missionary to visit Tjikog in 1619 and he found a cross planted in front of a "hut of prayer".
[Canadian Historical society of the Catholic church, ''Study Sessions'', Société canadienne d'histoire de l'Église catholique, 1978, p. 88 .] The
Capuchins
Capuchin can refer to:
*Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, an order of Roman Catholic friars
*Capuchin Poor Clares, an order of Roman Catholic contemplative religious sisters
*Capuchin monkey, primates of the genus ''Cebus'' and ''Sapajus'', named af ...
replaced the Recollects in 1624 and the
Jesuits
The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
followed in the same year then the Recollects returned in 1661.
[''The French at the Athol house Site''](_blank)
, Restigouche Gallery website, consulted on 21 August 2012 The efforts of missionaries were initially focused on
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada.
The island accounts for 18. ...
- where the capital of the Mi'kmaq was - then moved to Tjikog, which was regarded as the centre of
Saint Anne
According to Christian apocryphal and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the canonical gospels. In writing, Anne's name and that of her husband Joachim come o ...
worship in Mi'kmaq and Acadia.
In 1642 Father André Richard lived in the village for six months.
Chief Nepsuget was baptised in 1644 then 40 others in 1647.
Increasingly frequent contacts with Europeans allowed the Mi'kmaqs to acquire things, especially those made from metal, in exchange for furs.
[Bock and Sturtevant (1978), opcit, p. 117.] However, diseases brought in by Europeans decimated much of the population from the 17th century.
Gespegeoag was first claimed by the
Iroquois
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
and then later only by the
Mohawks
The Mohawk people ( moh, Kanienʼkehá꞉ka) are the most easterly section of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous people of North America ...
.
Oral tradition maintains, however, that in 1639 at the beginning of the
Beaver Wars
The Beaver Wars ( moh, Tsianì kayonkwere), also known as the Iroquois Wars or the French and Iroquois Wars (french: Guerres franco-iroquoises) were a series of conflicts fought intermittently during the 17th century in North America throughout t ...
, a group of Mohawks from
Kahnawake
The Kahnawake Mohawk Territory (french: Territoire Mohawk de Kahnawake, in the Mohawk language, ''Kahnawáˀkye'' in Tuscarora) is a First Nations reserve of the Mohawks of Kahnawá:ke on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, C ...
met Mi'kmaq fishermen in Long Island
[Long Island is located in the Restigouche river in Tide Head, 7 kilometres west of Atholville.] and, despite the warnings of his father, the son of the Mohawk Chief massacred the Mi'kmaqs sparing none but Chief Tonel.
[Tonel means "thunder".] After his recovery Chief Tonel went to Kahnawake. Before executing the leaders of the attack, he exclaimed: ''Gotj Listo!'' meaning "disobey your father!".
From this the village was renamed ''Listo Gotj'' on his return.
Nicolas Denys
Nicolas Denys (1598? – 1688) was a French-born merchant, governor, author, and settler in New France. He founded settlements at St. Pierre (now St. Peter's, Nova Scotia), Ste. Anne (Englishtown, Nova Scotia) and Nepisiquit (Bathurst, New Bru ...
established a store at Listo Gotj in 1647
but had to abandon it in 1650.
[''Denys, Nicolas''](_blank)
George MacBeath, 2000, Online biographical dictionary of Canada website, University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
, consulted on 21 August 2012 Richard Denys, the son of Nicolas, obtained control of the land on the departure of his father to France in 1671.
[Denys, Richard](_blank)
George MacBeath, 2000, Online biographical dictionary of Canada, University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
, consulted on 21 August 2012 The missionary
Chrétien Le Clercq
Chrestien Le Clercq, O.M.R., (born 1641) was a Recollect Franciscan friar and missionary to the Mi'kmaq on the Gaspé peninsula of Canada in the mid-17th century. He was a chronicler of New France, who wrote two early histories, and translator of ...
lived in Listo Gotj in 1676
[''Le Clercq, Chrestien''](_blank)
G.-M. Dumas, 2000, Online biographical dictionary of Canada, University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
, consulted on 21 August 2012 where he wrote his main texts on the Mi'kmaqs.
Richard found a new occupation at Listo Gotj in 1679 or 1680 fishing and drying fish as well as the fur trade.
In 1685 he gave land to the Recollects to open a mission.
[William Gagnong, ''A Monograph of historic sites in the province of New Brunswick'', J. Hope, Ottawa, 1899, p. 300]
Read online
consulted on 15 August 2012 In 1688 there was a total of 17 Europeans living at Listo Gotj
including 8 employees of Richard Denys.
The French then maintained a trading post probably on the coast of
Canada (New France)
The colony of Canada was a French colony within the larger territory of New France. It was claimed by France in 1535 during the second voyage of Jacques Cartier, in the name of the French king, Francis I. The colony remained a French territory u ...
.
[Not to be confused with modern Canada. Canada was a province of New France corresponding roughly with ]Québec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...
.[''Visitor Guide and maps''](_blank)
Campbellton website, consulted on 20 August 2012
The Denys family did not meet the conditions of their concession and it became crown land.
The ''Lordship of Restigouche'', 12
leagues long and 10 leagues wide,
[About 46.8 km by 39 km, comprising the territory along the coast between Tide Head to the west and ]Belledune
Belledune (2011 population: 1,548) is a Canadian village that straddles both Restigouche County and Gloucester County, New Brunswick.
The community of Belledune was created through the amalgamation of Jacquet River, Armstrong Brook, and Bell ...
to the east. was given to
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1706) or Sieur d'Iberville was a French soldier, explorer, colonial administrator, and trader. He is noted for founding the colony of Louisiana in New France. He was born in Montreal to French ...
in 1690.
[Ganong (1899), opcit, p. 344.] The Recollect concession was also revoked in 1690.
Richard Denys bought the lordship in 1691
but died in the same year.
Françoise Cailleteau, the widow of Denys, then married Pierre Ray-Gaillard and settled in
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
. They rented part of the lordship
but the area became abandoned and, apart from the Micmacs, there was no more than one Frenchman, one Canadian, and some half-caste children at Listo Gotj in 1724.
The
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
obtained control of
Acadia
Acadia (french: link=no, Acadie) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. During much of the 17th and early ...
in 1713 through the
Treaty of Utrecht
The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne o ...
. The treaty was vague: the French thought they retained the territory now corresponding to New Brunswick while the British believed they had control. The Mi'kmaq left Listo Gotj for
Listuguj on the north bank of the river in Quebec. Several sources place this event in 1745
[Department of Indian and Northern Affairs, ''Tawow, Volumes 1 to 6'', Ottawa, 1970, p. 41] while others mention 1759 and even 1770.
The decision by the Mi'kmaq was related to the intrusion of Europeans into the heart of their village
and their desire to move the Mi'kmaqs from a Protestant colony to a Catholic colony
or rather to ensure that they remained faithful to the King of France.
![Dessin du Machault (1791)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Dessin_du_Machault_%281791%29.jpg)
The Acadians settled in Pointe-aux-Sauvages on the present site of
Campbellton between 1750 and 1755 - the year of the start of the
Expulsion of the Acadians
The Expulsion of the Acadians, also known as the Great Upheaval, the Great Expulsion, the Great Deportation, and the Deportation of the Acadians (french: Le Grand Dérangement or ), was the forced removal, by the British, of the Acadian pe ...
.
In 1753 the daughter of Françoise Cailleteau sold the lordship of Restigouche to one ''Bonfils'' from Quebec.
In 1759, after the
fall of Quebec
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...
, the colony begged France to send reinforcements.
[W.J. Eccles, ''Battle of Restigouche''](_blank)
The Canadian Encyclopedia. On 19 April 1760 six ships, under the command of ''François Chenard de la Giraudais'', left
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
carrying 400 men and food.
Giraudais, on learning that a British fleet had penetrated into the
Saint Lawrence River
The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...
, decided to take refuge in the Restigouche River and set up batteries on its banks.
The
Battle of Restigouche
The Battle of Restigouche was a naval battle fought in 1760 during the Seven Years' War (known as the French and Indian War in the United States) on the Restigouche River between the British Royal Navy and the small flotilla of vessels of the F ...
took place east of the village from 3 to 8 July 1760. The British fleet outnumbered the French.
Without reinforcements,
Montreal surrendered on 8 September to the troops of
Jeffery Amherst
Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, (29 January 1717 – 3 August 1797) was a British Army officer and Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the British Army. Amherst is credited as the architect of Britain's successful campaign ...
. The French troops at Restigouche surrendered on 23 October and were repatriated to France. The
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
officially took possession of New France in 1763 by signing the
Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France:
Treaties
1200s and 1300s
* Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade
* Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France
* Trea ...
. In 1764 Bonfils tried to gain recognition of his ownership of the lordship of Restigouche but it was refused under an Act of 1759 canceling all the concessions made under the French regime.
Under British rule until the constitution
After the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
British traders established
pickling
Pickling is the process of preserving or extending the shelf life of food by either anaerobic fermentation in brine or immersion in vinegar. The pickling procedure typically affects the food's texture and flavor. The resulting food is called a ...
plants for
salmon
Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...
.
Meanwhile, George Walker, from
Bathurst, established a branch of his business in Walker Creek in 1768, on the site of Campbellton.
Hugh Baillie obtained the first concession which he sold to Englishman John Shoolbred.
Colonization was not, however, a priority and Shoolbred, not having built a school or street, lost his concession to an employee.
The
Loyalists
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...
arrived in New Brunswick from 1783 but did not get concessions in the county.
The Listo Gotj concession was granted to
Samuel Lee in 1788 and since then the village became more developed than Campbellton.
Samuel Lee also opened a sawmill at Walker Creek which was the first step towards the directing of the economy to logging.
The Scotsman Robert Ferguson arrived in the area in 1796 and inherited the business of his brother Alexander.
[''Ferguson, Robert''](_blank)
William A. Spray, 2000, Online biographical dictionary of Canada, University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
/Laval University
Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of:
People
* House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne
* Laval (surname)
Places Belgium
* Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxemb ...
, consulted on 29 NOvember 2012. His thriving business contributed to the immigration of other Scots to the region. A chapel was built in 1810 in the old cemetery: it closed its doors in 1834.
[''Notre-Dame de Lourdes parish''](_blank)
Irene Doyle, 1998, Irene's genealogy and history website, consulted on 20 August 2012 Around 1812 Robert Ferguson built boats at Listo Gotj.
Part of the fleet, which had Ferguson aboard, was captured by American
pirates
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
during the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
.
After leaving his confinement Robert Ferguson built a store and a house named ''Athol House''
from which the village derives its modern name of Atholville.
The
1825 Miramichi Fire destroyed much of the New Brunswick forests.
The logging industry then moved northward and sawmills and shipyards were opened in Atholville and also in Campbellton
from 1828.
Meanwhile, in 1826 Atholville and several other places in the area were grouped into
Addington Parish in
Gloucester County from a portion of
Beresford Parish.
[In New Brunswick, a parish is a territorial sub-division which lost administrative significance in 1966 but has always been used for census purposes.][''Genealogical guide to the county of Restigouche''](_blank)
2006, Archives provinciales du Nouveau-Brunswick website, consulted on 24 November 2012 Restigouche County, comprising the parishes of Addington and
Eldon was separated from Gloucester County in 1837.
Robert Ferguson was granted the concession for the territory in 1850.
A school was opened at that time on Roseberry Street in Campbellton which served Atholville. This building sparked the development of the urban area towards Atholville in the west.
The stocks of quality trees were exhausted in 1855 but fish canning and shingle factories opened.
The
Intercolonial Railway
The Intercolonial Railway of Canada , also referred to as the Intercolonial Railway (ICR), was a historic Canadian railway that operated from 1872 to 1918, when it became part of Canadian National Railways. As the railway was also completely ow ...
passed through the village in 1876 which represented a significant economic opportunity.
Athol House was used as a weather station
[Adrian Room, ''Dictionary of World Place Names Derived from British Names'', Taylor & Francis, 1989, 221 pages, p. 9, .] but was destroyed in a fire in 1894.
The Shives company inaugurated the largest shingle works in the Maritime Provinces in 1901.
The Mowatt and WH Miller mills became operational in 1902 and 1905 respectively.
The first school was founded in 1905.
The post office was founded in 1906.
[''Place names of New Brunswick - Atholville''](_blank)
Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, consulted on 1 November 2011 . The church opened in 1909 - Atholville was then a mission of Campbellton.
The parish of Our Lady of Lourdes was set up in 1913.
[Notre-Dame de Lourdes parish](_blank)
, Diocese of Bathurst, consulted on 20 August 2012 The construction of the Fraser mill by the Restigouche Company began in 1919.
The plant was inaugurated in 1928
[Nicolas Landry and Nicole Lang, ''History of Acadia'', Éditions du Septentrion, Québec, 2001, p. 259 .] and became the third largest paper producer in the north of the province in 1929.
[Donald J. Savoie and Maurice Beaudin, ''The struggle for development, the north-east case'', Presses de l'Université du Québec/Institut canadien de recherche sur le développement régional, Sillery/Moncton, 1988, 282 pages, p. 32, ] Atholville high school opened its doors in 1930.
The Daughters of Mary of the Assumption settled in 1934.
The credit union was founded in 1938. The local improvement committee was founded in 1947.
A waterworks and sewer were inaugurated in 1950.
The Versant-Nord school was inaugurated in 1951
[''Francophone North-East''](_blank)
Ministry of Education of New Brunswick], consulted on 2 November 2012 in the same year as the fire station.
The Brothers of the Sacred Heart settled in the village in 1956.
The
J. C. Van Horne Bridge was inaugurated in 1961 in Campbellton which enabled faster travel to Quebec and contributed much to the economy.
Radio Engineering Products opened a factory around 1963.
From the Constitution to the present day
On 9 November 1966 the Municipality of the County of Restigouche was dissolved
[''Framework of local government and viable regions: plan of action for the future of local governance in New Brunswick'', Jean-Guy Finn, Fredericton, November 2008, 83 pages, p. 30, ]
Read online
and Atholville was incorporated as a village.
[Quadrennial municipal elections](_blank)
, 14 May 2012, Report of the Director-general on the municipal elections
Read online
, consulted on 24 December 2013 The rest of Addington Parish became a
local service district A local service district is a type of designated place in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. In the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, a local service district is a defined area led by an elected committee responsible for the deliv ...
in 1967.
The municipal library opened its doors in the same year.
A merger of Atholville with Richardsville and
Campbellton was studied in 1971. but only the latter two were merged. Mayor Raymond Lagacé, who was elected in the same year, was one of the main opponents of municipal mergers.
[Jean-François Boisvert, ''The doyen of municipal politics demands respect'', L'Acadie Nouvelle, 4 April 2012 ] The
Sugarloaf Provincial Park was opened for winter sports in 1971 and officially opened the following year.
The province then saw a "golden age" of tourist development.
[John Leroux, ''Building New Brunswick, An Architectural History'', Goose Lane Editions, Fredericton, 2008, p. 239, .] The ''Restigouche Centre'', a shopping centre, was built in 1974.
A Community pool, offered by the
Royal Canadian Legion
The Royal Canadian Legion is a non-profit Canadian ex-service organization (veterans' organization) founded in 1925. Membership includes people who have served as military, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, provincial and municipal police, Royal ...
, opened in 1975.
Residential development in Saint-Louis street started in 1976.
The Royal Canadian Legion got a new hall in 1977.
The Fraser factory in Atholville and the NBIP Dalhousie plant each received $30 million in 1980 for modernization works.
[Savoie and Baudin (1988), opcit, p. 160.] In total $170 million was invested in Atholville to convert the plant processes from bisulphate to
magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...
.
[Graeme Rodden, ''Atholville Receives a New Lease on Life as Av Cell'', Pulp & Paper Canada, 1 April 1999]
Read online
, consulted on 23 August 2012.
The Northeast Pine company, a furniture manufacturer, closed its plant in the early 1980s
[Savoie and Baudin (1988), opcit, p. 96.] and the municipality obtained ownership of the plant in 1987 to create an industrial mall.
The paper industry was in crisis in the same year and Fraser separated the Atholville mill into an independent company: Atholville Pulp. The factory achieved profit in subsequent years.
In 1988 the Atholville industrial park was the most used in the north of the province.
The Atholville Pulp plant however closed in 1991.
A pumping station was built in 1993.
The Fraser company sold the Atholville Pulp factory to Repap in 1994. Repap wanted to produce
methanol
Methanol (also called methyl alcohol and wood spirit, amongst other names) is an organic chemical and the simplest aliphatic alcohol, with the formula C H3 O H (a methyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, often abbreviated as MeOH). It is a ...
but market conditions forced it to abandon its plans and to close the plant in 1996 after producing pulp for only six months.
Atholville Manor opened in 1998.
The Fils Atlantique textile spinning mill (Atlantic Yarns) opened in the industry mall in the late 1990s.
[Radio-Canada, ''The future does not have yarn'', 15 January 2009, Radio-Canada News]
See online
consulted on 27 November 2012 .
Miller Brae park was inaugurated in 2000.
A new public library was built in 2002.
A new reservoir was installed in 2005.
Fills Atlantique closed for 10 months in 2008 mainly because of the global recession and large debts.
A recovery plan was accepted during the same year but the company finally declared bankruptcy in 2009.
The Atholville Credit Union merged with the
Campbellton,
Balmoral,
Val-d'Amour,
Charlo,
Eel River Crossing, and
Kedgwick Credit Unions in 2009 to form the Restigouche Credit Union.
[Restigouche Credit Union](_blank)
, Acadian Credit Unions website, consulted on 30 December 2010. From October 2010 to January 2012 the Versant-Nord school has some students from the Roland-Pépin Universal school in Campbellton during some emergency work being done on their school as the structure was dangerous. Mayor Raymond Lagacé retired from municipal politics in 2012 after 43 years, including 41 at the town hall: he was the longest-serving mayor in New Brunswick.
The disused textile mill was purchased in 2014 by the
Zenabis
Zenabis Global Inc. is a Canadian medical and recreational marijuana producer.
History
Zenabis was originally known by the name of International Herbs Medical Marijuana Ltd. and was co-founded by Monty Sikka & Mark Catroppa. Originally setup as ...
company to produce
medical marijuana
Medical cannabis, or medical marijuana (MMJ), is cannabis and cannabinoids that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has not been rigorously tested due to production and governmental restrictions ...
.
[Jean-François Boisvert, ''Marijuana: Zenabis chooses Atholville'', L'Acadie Nouvelle, 11 March 2014]
Read online
On 1 January 2023, Atholville became part of the city of
Campbellton. The community's name remains in official use.
Toponymy
The village originally had the name ''Tjikog''
[Vincent F. Zelazny, ''Our Country Heritage, The history of ecological classification of the lands of New-Brunswick'', 2nd edition, Ministry of Natural Resources of New-Brunswick, Fredericton, 2007, 404 pages, p. 144–145, ]
Read online
, consulted on 7 August 2009 but the spellings ''Tjigog''
[Listuguj](_blank)
Toponymy Commission of Québec, consulted on 29 November 2012 . ''Jugugw, Tchigouk'',
Restigouche Gallery website, consulted on 21 August 2012 and ''Tzigog''
[Margerite Michaud, ''The Acadians of the Maritime provinces, historical and tourist guide'', Imprimerie acadienne, Moncton, 1968, 165 pages, p. 61 .] also exist. ''Tjikog'' means "a place of superior men" in
Mi'kmaq
The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the northe ...
.
According to oral tradition in 1639 the village was renamed ''Listo Gotj'' by Chief Tonel.
The exact meaning of the place name is unknown although Father ''Pacifique de Valigny'' suggested the meaning "disobey your father!".
There are many other translations: "a river dividing like a hand", "a fun place in spring", "river of the long war", "small forest", "small tree", "theatre of the great squirrel quarrel", "good river for canoeing", "beautiful river like five fingers", "five branches", or "many branches".
In 1642
Barthélemy Vimont
Barthélemy Vimont (January 1, 1594 – July 13, 1667) was a French Jesuit missionary in New France, North America.
Biography
Born at Lisieux, he entered the Society of Jesus at Rouen in 1613. After his novitiate, he studied philosophy at ...
was the first to make a written record of the name ''Restigouche'' in reference to
Chaleur Bay
frame, Satellite image of Chaleur Bay (NASA). Chaleur Bay is the large bay in the centre of the image; the Gaspé Peninsula is to the north and the Gulf of St. Lawrence is seen to the east.">Gulf_of_St._Lawrence.html" ;"title="Gaspé Peninsula ...
.
In 1672
Nicolas Denys
Nicolas Denys (1598? – 1688) was a French-born merchant, governor, author, and settler in New France. He founded settlements at St. Pierre (now St. Peter's, Nova Scotia), Ste. Anne (Englishtown, Nova Scotia) and Nepisiquit (Bathurst, New Bru ...
was the first to mention the use of the name in connection with the village, in his ''Geographical and historical description of the coasts of North America, with the natural history of this country''. According to Father Pacifique the names ''Listuguj'' and ''
Ristigouche'' or ''
Restigouche''
[The spelling Ristigouche is more common in French while Restigouche is official in English. ''Listuguj'' is the modern Mi'kmaq name.] derived from ''Listo Gotj''.
Moreover, the toponym ''Restigouche'' applies, especially in a historical context, to all the settlements along the river.
[William Gagnong, ''A Monograph of the Origins of the Settlements in New Brunswick'', J. Hope, Ottawa, 1904, 185 pages, p. 168-169]
The village was called ''Sainte-Anne-de-Restigouche'' in the 17th century.
[''A self-sufficient municipality...and more too''](_blank)
, consulted on 8 December 2011 [Denise Lamontagne, ''Religion at Sainte-Anne in Acadia'', Presses de l'Université Laval, Québec, 2011, pp. 151-152, ] This name applied to the Listuguj Catholic mission in the early 20th century.
The entrepreneur Robert Ferguson (1768-1851) arrived in the area in 1796 from
Logierait
Logierait ( gd, Lag an Ratha - 'Hollow of the arth-Walled Fort/Enclosure') is a village and parish in Atholl, Scotland. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Tay and Tummel, west of the A9 road in Perth and Kinross.
Nearby was an anc ...
near
Blair Atholl
Blair Atholl (from the Scottish Gaelic: ''Blàr Athall'', originally ''Blàr Ath Fhodla'') is a village in Perthshire, Scotland, built about the confluence of the Rivers Tilt and Garry in one of the few areas of flat land in the midst of the Gr ...
in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
and built a house called ''Athol House'': this was actually one of many Scottish names in the North of the county.
[William Baillie Hamilton, ''Place Names of Atlantic Canada'', University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 1996, 502 pages, p. 45] Robert Ferguson was nicknamed the "father and founder of Restigouche".
There is a village called ''Blair Athol'' 18 km by road south-east of Atholville,
while Point Ferguson in Atholville is named after him.
At the beginning of the 20th century the village was known under four names at the same time: Soiot Athol, Shives Athol, Athol House, and Ferguson Manor.
[L'Évangéline, 15 June 1922, 5 pages, ] One post office had ''Ferguson Manor'' on its door from 1916 to 1923 and another had ''Shives Athol'' from 1907 to 1931.
[Alan Rayburn, ''Geographical Names of New Brunswick'', Energy, Mines, and Resources Canada, Ottawa, 1975, p. 40] Following a petition the village was officially named ''Atholville'' in June 1922.
The Ferguson Manor post office was renamed Atholville in the following year.
Geography
Related article:
Geography of New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick) is one of Canada's three Maritimes, Maritime provinces. While New Brunswick is one of Canada's Maritime Provinces, it differs from its neighbours both ethnoculturally and physiographically. Both Nova Scot ...
Location
![Plan Atholville](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Plan_Atholville.svg)
Atholville is located four kilometres west of downtown
Campbellton. The village is generally considered part of
Acadia
Acadia (french: link=no, Acadie) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. During much of the 17th and early ...
. Atholville is bordered to the north by the
Restigouche River
The Restigouche River (french: Rivière Ristigouche) is a river that flows across the northwestern part of the province of New Brunswick and the southeastern part of Quebec.
The river flows in a northeasterly direction from its source in the App ...
and has an area of 119.60 square kilometres, after an annexation that took place in 2015.
Apart from Campbellton, the village is adjacent to
Val-d'Amours to the south and
Tide Head to the west. The Quebec side extends, from west to east, from
Restigouche-Partie-Sud-Est to
Pointe-à-la-Croix and
Listuguj.
''Walker Creek'' rises in the south-east of the territory. It has a few tributaries in the area with the main one continuing east parallel to Highway 11. Walker Creek flows into the Restigouche River in Campbellton. There are also a few streams flowing directly into the Restigouche River. The site of the stockade (''Booming Grounds'') is a
salt marsh
A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is dominated ...
. The
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...
cover most of the territory of the municipality. ''Butte Sugar'', with a height of about 200 m, also extends into the territory of
Tide Head and lies directly south of the built-up area of the town. South of Butte Sugar there is a valley and another mountain which extends into
Val-d'Amours and
Tide Head, whose height exceeds 230 metres in the Atholville portion. Only a small part of the west side of Sugarloaf (281 m) is included in the territory of Atholville.
New Brunswick Route 11
Route 11 is a provincial highway in northeastern New Brunswick, Canada. The road runs from Moncton to the Quebec border, near Campbellton, at the Matapédia Bridge, following the province's eastern and northern coastlines.
Between Shediac Bri ...
passes through the centre of the municipality south of the town from east to west: this road goes from Quebec in the west to
Shediac
Shediac (official in both languages; ''Shédiac'' is colloquial French) is a heavily Acadian town in Westmorland County, New Brunswick. The town is home to the famous Parlee Beach and is known as the "Lobster Capital of the World". It hosts a ...
in the southeast. The Val-D'Amour Road (Road 270) provides access from the village to Route 11. The village itself is crossed from east to west by
New Brunswick Route 134
Route 134 is a -long north–south secondary highway in eastern New Brunswick, Canada. The highway is divided by into a northern and southern section by a gap in Northumberland County connected by Route 11 and Route 8.
History
Route 134, for ...
which provides access to Tide Head and Campbellton: this road is called Notre-Dame Street in the village. Val-d'Amour Road continues south to Val-d'Amour. The
New Brunswick East Coast Railway
The New Brunswick East Coast Railway was a railway that operated in the Canadian province of New Brunswick.
It included of track of which were mainline between Campbellton and Pacific Junction near Moncton. Important spurs connected Dalh ...
, the former
Intercolonial Railway
The Intercolonial Railway of Canada , also referred to as the Intercolonial Railway (ICR), was a historic Canadian railway that operated from 1872 to 1918, when it became part of Canadian National Railways. As the railway was also completely ow ...
, passes through the village from east to west, north of Notre-Dame Street. The river is navigable but the nearest port is
Dalhousie.
Campbellton railway station and
Charlo Airport
Charlo Airport is located south-southeast of Charlo, New Brunswick, Canada.
The airport is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). CBSA officers at this airport can handle ge ...
complete the means of transport in the region. There are taxis in Campbellton. The ''Cormier taxi'' connects
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
to the Acadian Peninsula and has a stop in the village.
In 2015, the province of New Brunswick issued regulations that expanded the boundaries of Atholville by annexation of the service district of St. Arthur, the local service district of Val D’Amours, a portion of the Village of Tide Head and a portion of the local service district of Blair Athol. The effective date of the order was July 1, 2015. The land area of the village grew from 10.25 km
2 to 119.60 km
2, according to census data.
Geology
![Mont Sugarloaf en hiver](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/Mont_Sugarloaf_en_hiver.JPG)
The geological base of Atholville is composed of several rock types. North of Notre-Dame Street in the lowest area there are
Clastic rock
Clastic rocks are composed of fragments, or clasts, of pre-existing minerals and rock. A clast is a fragment of geological detritus,Essentials of Geology, 3rd Ed, Stephen Marshak, p. G-3 chunks, and smaller grains of rock broken off other rocks ...
s from the Campbellton formation.
[''Bedrock Geology of New Brunswick'']
New Brunswick government, consulted on August 19, 2012 Between this street and Highway 11 are
Felsic
In geology, felsic is a modifier describing igneous rocks that are relatively rich in elements that form feldspar and quartz.Marshak, Stephen, 2009, ''Essentials of Geology,'' W. W. Norton & Company, 3rd ed. It is contrasted with mafic rocks, whi ...
rocks from the Dalhousie group.
Both types of rocks are
Lower Devonian
The Early Devonian is the first of three epochs comprising the Devonian period, corresponding to the Lower Devonian series. It lasted from and began with the Lochkovian Stage , which was followed by the Pragian from and then by the Emsian, w ...
(394 to 418 million years old).
South of Highway 11 rather there are
carbonates
A carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid (H2CO3), characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, a polyatomic ion with the formula . The word ''carbonate'' may also refer to a carbonate ester, an organic compound containing the carbonate g ...
and
evaporites
An evaporite () is a water-soluble sedimentary mineral deposit that results from concentration and crystallization by evaporation from an aqueous solution. There are two types of evaporite deposits: marine, which can also be described as ocean ...
from the Chaleur formation dating from the
Upper Silurian
The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, Mya. The Silurian is the shortest period of the Paleozo ...
period (418-424 million years ago).
Environment
The ''Booming Grounds'' on the border with Tide Head is an area coming under the ''Joint Plan of Eastern Habitats''.
[Zelazny (2007), opcit, p. 143-144.] They are home to migratory aquatic birds and breeding grounds for birds such as the
Great blue heron
The great blue heron (''Ardea herodias'') is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North America and Central America, as well as the Caribbean and the Galápagos ...
, the
Osprey
The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...
, and various mammals. In addition, up to 2,000
snow geese
The snow goose (''Anser caerulescens'') is a species of goose native to North America. Both white and dark morphs exist, the latter often known as blue goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage. The species was previously placed ...
can be observed between mid-April and late May. There are many rare plants growing here including the
western waterweed, the ''jonc délié'', and the
Sanicula gregaria.
Fourteen species of fish have been recorded in the river, the most common being the
Atlantic salmon
The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlantic salmon are ...
and the
Slimy sculpin
The slimy sculpin (''Cottus cognatus'') is a freshwater species of fish belonging to the family Cottidae, which is the largest sculpin family. They usually inhabit cold rocky streams or lakes across North America, ranging from the Great Lakes, so ...
.
[, New-Brunswick government, online 2007, consulted on 29 November 2012 .]
Although considered a threatened species, the
wood turtle
The wood turtle (''Glyptemys insculpta'') is a species of turtle endemic to North America. It is in the genus ''Glyptemys'', a genus which contains only one other species of turtle: the bog turtle (''Glyptemys muhlenbergii'' ). The wood turtle ...
is common in the region.
Despite the imposition of environmental controls, the AV Cell works emitted
sulphur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic activ ...
and ash into the atmosphere in 2007 several times for which they were fined in 2009.
Demographics
In the
2021 Census of Population conducted by
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...
, Atholville had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Atholville's population is mostly Acadian but there is also a substantial anglophone minority.
Housing
According to
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...
the village had 1,584 private dwellings in 2016 including 1,539 occupied by residents.
Language
Economy
Employment and income
The 2006 Census by
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultur ...
also provided data on the economy. For people over 15 years old the
Labour force
The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic regio ...
rate was then 63.1%, the
Employment-to-population ratio
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development defines the employment rate as the employment-to-population ratio. This is a statistical ratio that measures the proportion of a country's working age population (statistics are often gi ...
was 59.0%, and the
unemployment
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for Work (human activity), w ...
rate was 7.1%. For comparison, those for the whole province were respectively 63.7%, 57.3% and 10.0%.
[Profiles of communities of 2006 - Atholville - Work](_blank)
Statistics Canada website, consulted on 20 November 2012.
Nearly 1,500 people work in Atholville which is more than the total population of the village.
Evolution of unemployment in Atholville
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BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo
BarData=
bar:1995
bar:1996 text:1996
bar:1997
bar:1998
bar:1999
bar:2000
bar:2001 text:2001
bar:2002
bar:2003
bar:2004
bar:2005
bar:2006 text:2006
bar:2007
bar:2008
bar:2009
bar:2010
bar:2011 text:2011
PlotData=
color:barra width:15 align:left
bar:1996 from:0 till: 20 text:19,7 shift:(15,0)
bar:2001 from:0 till: 16 text:16,3 shift:(15,0)
bar:2006 from:0 till: 7 text:7,1 shift:(15,0)
bar:2011 from:0 till: 0 text:n.d. shift:(0,15)
;Sources:
Profiles of communities in 1996 - Atholville - Income and Work Statistics Canada website
Profiles of communities in 2001 - Atholville - Work Statistics Canada website
Profiles of communities of 2006 - Atholville - Work Statistics Canada website
Of those aged 15 years and over, 785 people reported profits and 1,085 reported income in 2005.
[Profiles of communities in 2006 - Atholville - Income and profits](_blank)
Statistics Canada website, consulted on 20 November 2012. 86.5% also reported hours of unpaid work.
The median income then stood at $20,393 before tax and $18,692 after tax compared to the provincial average of $22,000 before tax and $20,063 after tax. Women earned on average $8,330 less than men after tax with an average income of $15,533.
On average 72.3% of income came from earnings, 21.1% from government benefits, and 6.4% from other sources.
6.3% of all
household
A household consists of two or more persons who live in the same dwelling. It may be of a single family or another type of person group. The household is the basic unit of analysis in many social, microeconomic and government models, and is im ...
s were below the
Poverty threshold
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
after tax which increased to 7.8% for those under 18 years old.
Among the working population, 2.3% of people worked at home, none worked outside the country, 5.3% had no fixed place of work, and 92.4% had a fixed place of work.
[Profiles of communities in 2006 - Atholville - Place of work](_blank)
Statistics Canada website, consulted on 20 November 2012. Of workers with a fixed place of work, 37.2% worked in the village, 57.9% worked elsewhere in the county, 1.7% worked in another county, and 3.3% worked in another province.
Main economic sectors
1.4% of jobs were in the agricultural, fisheries and other resources sector, 4.3% were in Construction, 10.7% in manufacturing, 1.4% in wholesale, 21.4% in retail, 1.4% in finance and real estate, 17.1% in health and social services, 7.1% in education, 4.3% in trade services, and 30.0% in other services.
The AV Cell Inc. factory, owned by the
Aditya Birla Group
Aditya Birla Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate, headquartered in Mumbai. It operates in 100 countries with more than 1,40,000 employees directly and indirectly. The group was founded by Seth Shiv Narayan Birla in 1857. The group ha ...
, produces chemical pulp for
Viscose
Rayon is a semi-synthetic fiber, made from natural sources of regenerated cellulose, such as wood and related agricultural products. It has the same molecular structure as cellulose. It is also called viscose. Many types and grades of viscose ...
factories in Asia. It has more than 280 employees. The industrial mall houses six industrial companies with a total of one hundred employees in 2011.
[Renovations in the industrial mall in Atholville](_blank)
New Brunswick government website, consulted on 9 November 2011 Atholville has several other large employers, such as manufacturers of playground equipment, tyres, wood panelling, toys, and windows, as well as a bakery.
The Restigouche Centre is the main commercial centre of the region.
The village has several other shops including three car dealerships and a grocery store.
Many other products and services are available in Campbellton which has, among others, financial institutions and a NB Liquor store. ''Enterprise Restigouche'' is responsible for economic development.
[Regional services district 2](_blank)
, Foundation of local governments and viable regions (Finn Report)], on the New Brunswick government website, consulted on 25 July 2011.
File:Usine Av Cell Atholville.JPG, The Av Cell factory.
File:Mail industriel Atholville.JPG, The Industrial Mall.
File:Chemin Val-d'Amours.JPG, Shops on Val-d'Amour road.
File:Caisse populaire Atholville.JPG, The Credit Union.
Arts and culture
Architecture and monuments
![Monument aux morts Atholville 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Monument_aux_morts_Atholville_2.JPG)
The buildings in the Provincial Park were designed by architect Leon R. Kentridge, from the Marshall Macklin Monaghan Limited firm of
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
. The coverings and roof are in
Shingle with a gentle slope typical of a ski resort.
A War memorial is located east of the Town Hall. The old Athol House Cemetery is the oldest in Restigouche County.
There is a monument to the memory of Athol House Chapel.
It is located in the river behind the AV Cell factory.
The ruins of the landing stage that allowed the supply of wood for the pulp and paper mill until the 1960s are still visible in to the west of the Village.
Languages
According to the ''Official Languages Act'', Atholville is bilingual as English and French are both spoken by more than 20% of the population. In 2011 Atholville became the third municipality in New Brunswick (after
Dieppe
Dieppe (; Norman: ''Dgieppe'') is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France.
Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to Newha ...
and
Petit-Rocher
Petit-Rocher is a formerly incorporated Canadian village in Gloucester County, New Brunswick. Sitting on both Chaleur Bay and Nepisiguit Bay 20 km northwest of Bathurst, Petit-Rocher's residents are 89% Francophone.
On 1 January 2023, Peti ...
) to adopt an ordinance on outdoor advertising language requiring bilingual display in English and French. Until then, most of the signage was in English.
File:Affiche anglophone Atholville.jpg, An English sign photographed in 2011.
File:Affiche bilingue Atholville.jpg, A French sign also photographed in 2011.
Culture
Atholville is briefly mentioned in several novels including ''Le Feu du mauvais temps'' (Fire in bad weather) (1989) by Claude Le Bouthillier. The village is also mentioned in the biographies: ''Ma's Cow: Growing Up in the Canadian Countryside During the Cold War'' (2006) by Patrick Flanagan, ''David Adams Richards of the Miramichi: A Biographical Introduction'' (2010) by Michael Anthony Tremblay and Tony Tremblay, and ''Think Good Thoughts'' (2010) by J.P. (Pat) Lynch.
The history, culture and geography of the region are featured at the ''Museum of the Restigouche River'' at
Dalhousie. The ''National Historic site of the Battle of Restigouche'' at
Pointe-à-la-Croix commemorates this battle.
Attractions
The village has several community services and facilities, including
Sugarloaf Provincial Park.
Sports
The village has two football fields, a skating rink, a public pool, Miller Brae Millennium Park, and the
Sugarloaf Provincial Park.
In summer this park offers a camping area, a bicycle park, slopes for mountain biking, cycle touring, 25 kilometres of hiking trails, a picnic site, and tennis courts.
[Things to do in Summer](_blank)
, Sugarloaf Park website, consulted on 27 November 2012. The park is also equipped for
Geocaching
Geocaching is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific l ...
.
In winter the park has twelve slopes for
downhill skiing
Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel Ski binding, bindings, unlike other types of skiing (Cross-country skiing, cross-country, Telemark skiing, Telemark, or ski jumping), w ...
and
snowboarding
Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympic Games and Winter Paralympi ...
,
Snowshoe
Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footwe ...
trails, a naturally illuminated
skating rink, and a tubular ice slope.
[Things to do in Winter](_blank)
, Sugarloaf Park website, consulted on 27 November 2012.
Atholville contributes to the funding of Campbellton Civic Centre with Tide Head.
A trail passes through the village towards Tide Head where it joins the
International Appalachian Trail
The International Appalachian Trail (IAT; french: Sentier international des Appalaches, SIA) was originally a hiking trail which ran from Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, in Maine, through New Brunswick, to the Gaspé Peninsula of Q ...
. A gazebo was built at the top of the Old Mission. There are several unmarked viewing points such as that at boulevard Beauvista.
File:Ski Sugarloaf.JPG, The Ski resort on Sugarloaf
File:Piscine Atholville.JPG, Public pool
File:Contre communautaire Alma d'Atholville.JPG, The Alma Community Centre
File:Memorial Civic Center.jpg, Campbellton Civic Centre
Government
The former village is split among Wards 1, 2, and 3 of the city of Campbellton.
The municipality has six to eight employees on average, plus seasonal employees.
Budget and taxation
![Hôtel de ville Atholville](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/H%C3%B4tel_de_ville_Atholville.JPG)
The annual expenditure of Atholville village amounted to 2,936,943 dollars in 2011. Of this amount:
[Annual report on municipal statistics for New Brunswick - 2012, Fredericton, 2012]
Read online
*18.4% was spent on administration,
* 7.5% on town planning,
* 7.2% on the police,
* 6.3% on protection against fire,
* 7.1% on the distribution of water,
* 0.2% on emergency services,
* 0.1% on other protection services,
* 22.6% on transport,
* 4.1% on sanitation,
* 0.0% on public health,
* 7.2% on management,
*12.4% on recreation and culture,
*12.7% on debt costs, and
* 1.7% on signage
Regional services commission
Atholville is part of ''Region 2'',
The communities in each of 12 Regional Services Commissions (CSR), New Brunswick government website
consulted on 9 November 2012. a regional services commission (CSR) which officially started operations on 1 January 2013.
New Brunswick government, consulted on 1 November 2012. Atholville is represented on the council by the Mayor.
/ref> Mandatory services offered by the CSR are: regional planning, management of solid waste, emergency planning measures, and collaboration on police, planning, and cost sharing of regional infrastructure for sport, recreation and culture. Other services could be added to this list.
New Brunswick government website, consulted on 9 November 2012.
Representation and political trends
Related articles: Politics of Canada
The politics of Canada function within a framework of parliamentary democracy and a federal system of parliamentary government with strong democratic traditions. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, in which the monarch is head of state. In pr ...
and Politics of New Brunswick
New Brunswick has had, since the Legislative Council was abolished by an act passed on 16 April 1891,
a unicameral legislature called the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick with 49 seats. The legislature functions according to the Westminste ...
.
In New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
Atholville is part of the provincial electoral district of Campbellton-Restigouche Centre
Campbellton-Restigouche Centre was a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, Canada.
The riding was created as Campbellton in the 1967 redistribution when cities were removed from county districts and is m ...
which is represented in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick
A legislature is an deliberative assembly, assembly with the authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country or city. They are often contrasted with the Executive (government), executive and Judiciary, ...
by Greg Davis of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick
The Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick is a centre-right, conservative political party in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The party has its origins in the pre-Canadian confederation Conservative Party that opposed the granti ...
. He was elected in 2010. For the Canadian Federal Parliament, Atholville is part of the federal electoral district of Madawaska-Restigouche which is represented in the House of Commons of Canada
The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada.
The House of Common ...
by Bernard Valcourt of the Conservative Party of Canada. He was elected at the 41st general election in 2011.
Atholville is a member of the ''Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick'' and the ''Francophone Association of Municipalities of New Brunswick''.
Education
Versant-Nord school teaches children from kindergarten to 8th year. It is a French public school within sub-district 1 of the Francophone Nord-Est School District. Campbellton also has the Community College of New Brunswick (CCNB) of Campbellton which is also French language while the closest English-speaking community college is the New Brunswick Community College (NBCC) at Miramichi, New Brunswick, Miramichi. The nearest francophone university campus is that of the Université de Moncton in Edmundston. Fredericton has several English language universities. A library service is also available.
For over 15 years 42.8% of the population had no certificate, diploma or degree, 22.1% had only a diploma of secondary education or equivalent, and 34.7% of them also held a certificate, diploma or a post-secondary degree. By comparison the rates were 29.4%, 26.0% and 44.6% respectively for the province.[Profiles of communities in 2006 - Atholville - Education](_blank)
Statistics Canada website, consulted on 20 November 2012. In the same age group 9.0% had graduated from a short NBCC program or equivalent, 15.8% had graduated from a long program at NBCC or equivalent, 1.8% had a diploma or a university certificate below a bachelor's degree, and 8.1% had a certificate, diploma or higher degree. From the graduates, 6.4% were trained in education, 2.6% in humanities, 3.8% in social sciences or law, 29.5% in commerce, management or administration, 2.6% science and technology, 15.4% in architecture, engineering or related areas, 2.6% in agriculture, natural resources and conservation, 28.2% in health, parks, recreation and fitness, and 10.3% in personal services, protection or transportation. There were no graduates in arts or communications, mathematics or computer science, nor in areas classified as "other". Post-secondary graduates completed their studies outside the country in 5.1% of cases.
Infrastructure
Atholville, Campbellton, and Tide Head cooperate in emergency measures. Atholville bought the 9-1-1, 911 emergency service from Campbellton. The nearest detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is in Campbellton.
Campbellton has the French-speaking Restigouche Hospital Centre and the English-speaking Campbellton Regional Hospital. New Brunswick hospitals are bilingual overall but unilingual in their jurisdictions. Campbellton also has an ''Ambulance New Brunswick'' station.
The village is connected to the NB Power network and also has an industrial-sized generator at the Town Hall. Atholville has a water and sewerage network with a sewerage treatment plant. The village of Val-d'Amour is connected to the Atholville water system. Atholville also has an agreement with Campbellton and Tide Head for water supply.
Many publications are available but French-speakers have primarily the daily '' L'Acadie Nouvelle'', published in Caraquet, and the weekly ''L'Étoile'', published in Dieppe
Dieppe (; Norman: ''Dgieppe'') is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France.
Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to Newha ...
. There is also the weekly ''L'Aviron'' published in Campbellton. English-speakers in turn have the daily ''Telegraph-Journal'', published in Saint John, New Brunswick, Saint John, and the weekly ''Campbellton Tribune''. There is no television station in the region but CBAFT-DT, Radio-Canada Acadie (CBAFT-DT), Ici RDI, Rogers TV, and CHAU-DT are the main French television networks. The main French radio stations are the Ici Radio-Canada Première and CIMS-FM from Balmoral. English-speakers have CBC Television, CBC News Network, Global Television Network, and CTV Television Network. English radio stations include CBC Radio and CKNB in Campbellton.
Atholville has a Canada Post, post office. The population also has access to the cell phone network and high-speed internet. The main provider is Bell Aliant. The nearest offices of Service New Brunswick and Service Canada are in Campbellton.
Religion
Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes is a Roman Catholic church which is part of the Diocese of Bathurst. The priest is Father Claude Benoit. There is also a gospel chapel. The region is part of the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton and Campbellton has several other places of worship for Protestants. The parish cemetery is located between the church and Saint-Louis street.
Notable people
*Lewis Charles Ayles (1927-), lawyer and politician, born in Atholville;
*Edmond Blanchard (1954-), politician, born in Atholville;
*Joseph Claude (died in 1796), Chief of Listuguj;
*Robert Ferguson (Logierait
Logierait ( gd, Lag an Ratha - 'Hollow of the arth-Walled Fort/Enclosure') is a village and parish in Atholl, Scotland. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Tay and Tummel, west of the A9 road in Perth and Kinross.
Nearby was an anc ...
(Scotland) 1768 - Campbellton 1851), businessman, justice, judge, official and militia officer;
*Bobby Hachey (1932-2006), artist, born in Atholville;
* Samuel Lee (Concord, Massachusetts, Concord (Massachusetts) 1756 - Shediac 1805), official, judge, businessman and politician.
See also
*List of communities in New Brunswick
Bibliography
*Irene Doyle, ''Atholville Photo Album'', Campbellton, Irene Doyle, 2006
*Étienne Fallu, ''The Credit Union at Atholville: 1938-1988'', Atholville, 1988
*Hélène Desrosiers-Godin, ''The marvelous Mount Sugarloaf: collection of anecdotes and historical facts'', Atholville, Anne Gauvin, 2006, 23 p. ()
Notes and references
Notes
References
External links
Atholville website
{{coord, 47, 59, 22, N, 66, 42, 45, W, name=Atholville, New Brunswick, display=title, region:CA-NB_type:city_scale:100000
Communities in Restigouche County, New Brunswick
Former villages in New Brunswick