Rivière-au-Tonnerre is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the

Côte-Nord Côte-Nord (, ; ; land area ) is the second-largest administrative region by land area in Quebec, Canada, after Nord-du-Québec. It covers much of the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River estuary and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence past Tadous ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

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 ...

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 ...

. In addition to Riviere-au-Tonnerre itself, the communities within the municipality include Rivière-Pigou, Rivière-aux-Graines, and Sheldrake, all located along the

Gulf of Saint Lawrence , image = Baie de la Tour.jpg , alt = , caption = Gulf of St. Lawrence from Anticosti National Park, Quebec , image_bathymetry = Golfe Saint-Laurent Depths fr.svg , alt_bathymetry = Bathymetry ...

and accessible via

Quebec Route 138 Route 138 is a major highway in the Canadian province of Quebec, following the entire north shore of the Saint Lawrence River past Montreal to the temporary eastern terminus in Kegashka on the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The western terminus is in El ...

. The main and almost exclusive local economic activity is crab fishing. A factory which processes the crab meat sustains the bulk of the population. The eponymous Thunder River (French: ''Riviere au Tonnerre''), which flows through the municipality, has a large series of waterfalls at from its mouth in the Saint Lawrence. These falls with a total drop of about have a roar that reminds one of the noise caused by thunder. The Manitou River, not far west, also has dramatic falls near its mouth.*

History

The first permanent settlers arrived circa 1853 or 1854, and founded Sheldrake and Riviere-au-Tonnerre as fishing settlements. In 1875, more pioneers followed, originating notably from

Paspébiac Paspébiac is a city on Baie des Chaleurs in the Gaspésie region of eastern Quebec, Canada. The population was 3,033 as of the Canada 2021 Census. The town is noted for the ''Banc de Pêche de Paspébiac'', a large sandbar jutting out into the b ...

in the Gaspésie region. At the same time, the first chapel was built and the Parish of Saint-Hippolyte was formed. However it was commonly called Rivière-au-Tonnerre, like the settlement. In 1890, the post office opened under the English equivalent name of "Thunder River" (Frenchized in 1933). By 1908, there were 70 families engaged in agriculture. In 1925, the Municipality of Riviere-au-Tonnerre was formed.

Demographics

Population

Language

Climate

Rivière-au-Tonnerre has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...

( Dfc) with mild summers, rainy autumns and long, cold and snowy winters with annual snowfall averaging 99 inches (251 cm). Winter typically starts in late October or early November and lasts through most of, if not all of April.

References

External links

Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riviere-Au-Tonnerre, Quebec Municipalities in Quebec Incorporated places in Côte-Nord