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French River, also known as Rivière-des-Français, is a municipality in the Canadian province of
Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, in the Sudbury District. The municipality had a population of 2,662 in the
Canada 2016 Census The 2016 Canadian census was an enumeration of Canadian residents, which counted a population of 35,151,728, a change from its 2011 population of 33,476,688. The census, conducted by Statistics Canada, was Canada's seventh quinquennial census ...
. It was formed in 1999 through the merger of the Township of Cosby, Mason and Martland and surrounding unincorporated portions of the Unorganized North Sudbury District. It was named after the French River, which flows through the municipality. The borders of the municipality are composed of
Highway 69 Route 69, or Highway 69, may refer to: International * European route E69 Australia * Appin Road Canada * Alberta Highway 69 * Ontario Highway 69 China * G69 Expressway Finland * Finnish national road 69 India * National Highway 69 (In ...
to the west (the French River Trading Post and French River Inn properties are also included within the municipal boundary), West Arm to the north on Highway 535 (just east of Shaw Rd.), the end of Wolseley Bay Rd to the east ( Highway 528) and the community of Monetville to the northeast. Along with the municipalities of St. Charles,
Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross ...
, and Markstay-Warren, it is part of the region known as Sudbury East. These communities partner together on several ventures, including the Sudbury East Planning Board, Sudbury East Municipal Association, Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board (MSDSB) and Sudbury East Board of Trade.


Communities

The municipality comprises the communities of Alban, Bigwood, Chartrand Corner, Delamere, Dokis First Nation, French River Station, Happy Landing, Jamot, Monetville, Noëlville, North Monetville, Ouellette, Rutter, Sucker Creek Landing and Wolseley Bay.


Alban

The community of Alban was originally established in 1907 as Rutter, named for the nearby railway station in 1907, but in 1937 the community was renamed for Rev. J. Alban Filiatrault. In 1934, the Parish of Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes was created. Jean-Baptiste Rochon donated several acres of land to the people of Alban to erect a church. During the night of February 6, 1953, the church burned to the ground. The following Sunday, Father Oliva Campeau proposed the immediate reconstruction of the church. This time, it was to be constructed with brick and the walls of plaster instead of wood.


Monetville

Originally known as Martland, the community was first settled in 1895 by Cyrille Monette (né Alexandre Boisvert) and four other pioneers. It became a municipality in 1906 and adopted the name Monetville. Monetville is divided into two areas; North Monetville and Monetville. "South" Monetville is generally from Dokis Road south to Bear Lake and Shanty Bay (Baie des Chantiers) of Lake Nipissing. North Monetville extends generally from Dokis Road north to the West Arm of Lake Nipissing and Chapel Island, which Highway 64 crosses on the West Arm. North Monetville was settled by the Douglas Family, the Mercer Family and the Purcell family in the early 1900s. On August 27, 2020, the West Nipissing Historical Society held an unveiling ceremony for the erection of a stone cairn monument in recognition of Cyrille Monette as the founder of Monetville and the first pioneer to the area. The monument bears two plaques, one in English, one in French, briefly describing M. Monette's contributions to the development of the area. This project was funded by the Society and several sponsors and donors who helped to make it possible. Cyrille Monette's original and real name was apparently 'Alexandre Boisvert', a name which he would have relinquished between 1863 and 187
(Le lien entre Louis Riel et le Nord de l'Ontario)
after participating in the Red River uprising with
Louis Riel Louis Riel (; ; 22 October 1844 – 16 November 1885) was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first ...
. Approximately 80 people attended the unveiling, about half of whom were descendants of the Monette family. Mayor Gisele Pageau of the Municipality of French River and Mayor Joanne Savage of West Nipissing were among the presenters. Elder Richard Meilleur of the Metis Nipissing Families shared a tobacco ceremony to honour the ancestors. The Monette Monument is located at 5690 Highway 64 in Monetville (Municipality of French River) Facebook: West Nipissing Historical Society


Noëlville

Noëlville, originally known as Cosby, was founded in 1905 with the arrival of settlers in the region. Noëlville families travelled by boat, to the south-west end of Lake Nipissing, to establish themselves between Lake Nipissing and the French River. To pay homage to Noël Desmarais, the village's first merchant and the first businessman of the region, the town of Cosby became Noëlville in 1911. Desmarais is a grandfather of businessman Paul Desmarais. Noël Desmarais was one of the first to start his family business in Noëlville.


North Monetville

The North Monetville area straddles the municipal boundary between French River and West Nipissing. Designated in the 1970s to aid the delivery of supplies to the Monetville Public School, which was located several kilometers north on Highway 64 from the signposts designating the town of Monetville. Sucker Creek Landing and Chapel Island are both considered to be part of North Monetville, with Highway 64 crossing Chapel Island and bridging the West Arm Narrows of Lake Nipissing at both ends of the island. Most residents of North Monetville simply state their address as "Monetville" even if they do live in the north end of the village. The Community of Christ cemetery, 339 East Road, has a Canadian
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
hero buried there. Sgt. Wallace Edmond Firlotte, who served with the
Lincoln and Welland Regiment , colors = , identification_symbol_2 = , identification_symbol_2_label = Tartan , identification_symbol_4 = , identification_symbol_4_label = Abbreviation , march = "The Lincolnshi ...
during the war, was bestowed six war decorations. Firlotte was one of only a very few Canadians that was bestowed the
Order of the Bronze Lion The Bronze Lion ( nl, Bronzen Leeuw) is a high Royal Dutch award, intended for servicemen who have shown extreme bravery and leadership in battle favouring The Netherlands; in some special cases it can be awarded to Dutch or foreign civilians. It ...
for heroism from the Crown of the Netherlands. This award is presented for "Deeds of extreme bravery and leadership in battle favouring the Netherlands". The Prince personally presented this Order to Sgt. Firlotte by
Royal Decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used f ...
on December 8, 1945.


Community events

Each February, Noëlville hosts the largest and longest running family hockey tournament in Canada. Five years after the Noëlville Community Centre was built in 1972, the Noëlville Family Hockey Tournament was founded in 1977 by Claude Mayer, Gerry Gratton, and Dan Pitre. There were 17 teams. The first game was played on New Year's night when the Carrière family played against the Mayer family. The Pitre family won the inaugural tournament. This tournament survives to this day and has become a much anticipated event in this small town where families reunite when friends and members of the extended family return 'home' to compete in this event which now hosts between 32 and 36 teams and families every year. Over the years, this tournament raised over $150,000 for local charities. In August, the Club Richelieu Rivière-des-Français hosts the family softball tournament, which regularly hosts over 100 teams and provides numerous economic benefits to the region. August 5-6-7, 2016 was the 32nd year of this tournament and had 103 teams registered. Over the years, this tournament has raised over $221,330 to help fund various cultural, educational and community activities.


Government

The municipal office is located at 44 St-Christophe St in Noëlville. The council is composed of the mayor and six councillors. The current mayor is Gisèle Pageau. French River utilizes the mail-in balloting system for municipal elections rather than polling stations. Voter turnout in the 2010 elections was 62%.http://www.frenchriver.ca/_assets/2010%20Election%20Results%20Stats.pdf The 2019 operating budget for French River was approximately $8 million. The municipality employs approximately 30 staff and has 20 volunteer firefighters.


Demographics

In the
2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by Statistics Canada, French River 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.


See also

*
List of townships in Ontario This is a list of townships in the Canadian province of Ontario. Townships are listed by census division. Northern Ontario Northeastern Ontario Algoma District Historical/Geographic Townships *Abbott *Aberdeen Additional *Abigo *Abotoss ...
* List of francophone communities in Ontario


References


External links

* {{Authority control Municipalities in Sudbury District Single-tier municipalities in Ontario French River (Ontario)