Beebe Plain is an unincorporated geographically-contiguous settlement, split politically between

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. An unincorporated village partially in Stanstead and partially in Derby Line, it is divided by the

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 ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

border. This settlement was begun by David and Calvin Beebe in 1798. The

Beebe Plain–Beebe Border Crossing The Beebe Plain–Beebe Border Crossing is a border crossing station on the Canada–United States border. It connects Rue Principale (Quebec Route 247) in Beebe Plain, Quebec (a former municipality, since 1995 part of the town of Stanstead) w ...

, a road international border crossing, is located in this settlement.

History

This was once a single village, established soon after the

Treaty of Paris (1783) The Treaty of Paris, signed in Paris by representatives of George III, King George III of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and representatives of the United States, United States of America on September 3, 1783, officially ended the Ame ...

had provided for 45⁰N to be Vermont's northern boundary, but well before surveyors had determined the border's location. The original

International Boundary Commission The International Boundary Commission (french: Commission de la frontière internationale) is a bi-national organization responsible for surveying and mapping the Canada–United States border. The commission was created in 1908 and made permanen ...

charged with surveying and mapping the boundary was a creation of later treaties. Its survey, completed in the post- 1812 era, missed the 45⁰N line by anywhere from a kilometre to a mile through much of the region, dividing the village in two instead of placing it primarily in Canada. A saw mill was established as the town's first industry in 1863. The first post office was established in 1864, directly on the international boundary. Until the early 1900s the Canadian and US post offices were in opposite sides of the same building - a former store built in the 1820s. Both were served by the same postmaster, but a letter from one side of the building to the other took a path by rail through both

White River Junction, Vermont White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the New England town, town of Hartford, Vermont, Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2 ...

and

Sherbrooke, Quebec Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...

. By 1869, Beebe Plain had a church, two stores, a post office, a customs post and some houses.

Geography

Border Patrol at Canadian border in Beebe Plain, Vermont

Canusa Street Canusa Street (french: rue Canusa) is the only part of the Canada–United States border that runs down the middle of a street. The street separates Beebe Plain, Vermont, in the United States, from the Beebe Plain area of Stanstead, Quebec, i ...

(

Quebec Route 247 Route 247 is a north/south highway on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in the Estrie region of Quebec. Its northern terminus is in Magog at the junction of Route 112 and its southern terminus is in Stanstead, at the junction of Auto ...

), the border between the two countries, runs through the middle of the village. Homes on the south side of Canusa Street are in the

; their residents must obtain passports and report to Customs to leave their driveways. The Canadian portion of this divided village held the status of incorporated municipality (in Quebec) prior to its annexation to

Stanstead, Quebec Stanstead is a town in the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, located on the Canada–United States border across from Derby Line, Vermont. The Town of Stanstead was created in 1995 by the merger of the ...

in 1995. As of 1991, the last census before municipal amalgamation, Beebe Plain housed 975 Canadians. While the US side of the village is at most comparable in size, it was not incorporated as a municipality and is therefore not broken out from the rest of

Derby Line, Vermont Derby Line is an incorporated village in the town of Derby in Orleans County, Vermont, United States, slightly north of the 45th parallel, the nominal U.S.-Canada boundary. The population was 687 at the 2020 census. The village is located o ...

for census purposes.

Transport

Beebe Plain was the border crossing for the

Massawippi Valley Railway The Massawippi Valley Railway was a short line railway established in 1870 between Lennoxville, Quebec, and the Vermont border. Part of the Quebec Central Railway from 1926, the line was abandoned in 1990 and removed in 1992. Most of the former ra ...

, a short line railway established 1870 between

Lennoxville, Quebec Lennoxville is an ''arrondissement'', or borough, of the city of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Lennoxville is located at the confluence of the St. Francis and Massawippi Rivers approximately five kilometres south of downtown Sherbrooke. Lennoxvi ...

and an 1867 Connecticut and Passumpsic Rivers Railroad line which ran through Newport, Vermont to the border. Part of the

Quebec Central Railway The Quebec Central Railway was a railway in the Canadian province of Quebec, that served the Eastern Townships region south of the St. Lawrence River. Its headquarters was in Sherbrooke. It was originally incorporated in 1869 as the Sherbrooke, E ...

from 1926, the line was abandoned by CP in 1990 and removed in 1992. Much of the former railway's path is now bicycle or nature trails. The railway's

international boundary Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders ca ...

crossing has been closed, leaving a gap in the trail between Main Street (rue Principale) and the US border. The old rail station and the original post office still stand, used as private homes.

Economy

The granite industry is the major force in the area's economic history; the stone has been transported to distant cities both for memorials and for architectural use. Landmarks such as the Sun Life Building in Montréal contain Beebe granite or Stanstead grey granite. Rock of Ages, a local manufacturer of granite monuments and tombstones, is in Canada near the international boundary and the main street. It is the principal local industry, owned by New England's Swenson Granite Works. Many residents of Beebe worked at Butterfield, a tool-and-die maker whose Rock Island factory was literally on the border with Derby Line with eight hundred workers in two nations; that facility closed in 1982.

References

External links