Senneterre is a town in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of northwestern

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. It is in the Vallée-de-l'Or Regional County Municipality. The town's territory includes a vast undeveloped area stretching from the Bell River to the Mauricie region. The town centre itself () is about northeast of

Val-d'Or Val-d'Or (, , ; "Golden Valley" or "Valley of Gold") is a city in Quebec, Canada with a population of 32,752 inhabitants according to the Canada 2021 Census. The city is located in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region near La Vérendrye Wildlife ...

on the banks of the Bell River, at the intersection of the Canadian National Railway and Quebec Route 113. There are three schools in this city: St-Paul elementary school, Chanoine-Delisle elementary school and La Concorde High school. This town centre is mainly surrounded by

Parent Lake Parent Lake is an enlargement of the Bell River, flowing north-west into the Matagami Lake. It is located in a swampy area of Abitibi Regional County Municipality, a short distance north-east of Senneterre and about northeast of Val-d'Or. Re ...

and Tiblemont Lake. The main street of this city is called Avenue 10e (10th Avenue). The arena is named Centre sportif André Dubé. The economy of this city is mainly based on forestry.

History

While the site first served as a

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

, real colonization began in 1904 when the first permanent settlers arrived. It was first identified as Rivière-Nottaway, then Rivière-Bell. Over the next 10 years, there were only a few residents who were joined by people fleeing conscription. Between 1911 and 1913 when the National Transcontinental Railway was being constructed, the area was surveyed and the geographic township of Senneterre was formed, named in honour of a captain of the

Régiment de Languedoc The Régiment de Languedoc was a French Army regiment active in the 18th century. It is principally known for its role in the Seven Years' War, when it served in the North American theatre. History The regiment arrived in Quebec City June 19, ...

that fought in the

Battle of Sainte-Foy The Battle of Sainte-Foy (french: Bataille de Sainte-Foy) sometimes called the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille du Quebec), was fought on April 28, 1760 near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Y ...

. The completion of the railway accelerated the development of the place. In 1914, the Parish of Saint-Paul-de-Senneterre was founded, and in 1919, the place was incorporated as the Township Municipality of Senneterre-Partie-Ouest, named after the township and its relative position therein. It developed into a center for forestry, commerce and tourism. In 1948, it shortened its name to Senneterre and changed status to village municipality, while gaining town status in 1956. In 1953,

CFS Senneterre CFS Senneterre, initially called RCAF Station Senneterre prior to 1967, was a long-range radar and Ground Control Intercept station, part of the Pinetree Line radar defence network, situated north of Val D'Or, Quebec, Val-d'Or, Quebec. Situated ...

opened, home to the No. 34 Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron and part of the

Pinetree Line The Pinetree Line was a series of radar stations located across the northern United States and southern Canada at about the 50th parallel north, along with a number of other stations located on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Run by North Ame ...

chain of radar stations. After the closure of CFS Val-d'Or in 1976, the base also served as the Search and Rescue centre for north-western Quebec. In 1988, CFS Senneterre was closed. On July 6, 1996, the Town of Senneterre was greatly expanded from to when the unorganized territories of Lac-Quentin and Lac-Mingo and almost all of the unorganized territories of Matchi-Manitou and Lac-Bricault were added to its jurisdiction. From that day until

La Tuque La Tuque (; ) is a city located in north-central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. The population was 11,227 at the Canada 2011 Census, most of which live within the urban area. At over 28,000 ...

's amalgamation in 2002, it was in terms of area the second largest incorporated entity in Quebec after

Baie-James The Municipality of Baie-James (french: Municipalité de Baie-James) was a municipality in northern Quebec, Canada, which existed from 1971 to 2012. Located to the east of James Bay, Baie-James covered of land, making it the largest incorporat ...

and the largest with town status in Quebec.

City council

* Mayor: Nathalie-Ann Pelchat * Councillors: Louise Allaire-Boucher, Carole Chantal, Sylvie Des Roberts, André Lévesque, René Paquin, Simon Roy

Communities

In addition to Senneterre centre, the town's territory includes the following hamlets or rail stops, all located along the Canadian National Railway: * Forsyth () * Gagnon-Siding () * Langlade () * Monet () * Paradis () * Press ()

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, Senneterre 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. According to the 2016 Canadian Census: *Mother tongue: ** English as first language: 0.5% ** French as first language: 95.2% ** English and French as first language: 0.9% ** Other as first language: 3.4% Population trend:Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census * Population in 2011: 2953 (2006 to 2011 population change: -1.3%) * Population in 2006: 2993 * Population in 2001: 3275 * Population total in 1996: 3535 ** Senneterre (ville): 3488 ** Matchi-Manitou (Unorganized): 241 * Population in 1991: ** Senneterre (ville): 3563 ** Matchi-Manitou (Unorganized): 240

Transportation

The town is served by

Via Rail Canada Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via, is a Canadian Crown corporation that is mandated to operate intercity passenger rail service in Canada. It receives an annual subsidy from Transport Canada to offset the cost of operating ...

’s Montreal–Senneterre route, with Senneterre station being the terminal. The train leaves

Montreal Central Station Montreal Central Station (french: Gare centrale de Montréal) is the major inter-city rail station and a major commuter rail hub in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Nearly 11 million rail passengers use the station every year, making it the second-bu ...

toward Senneterre every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and returns to Montreal on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Two highways, Route 113 and Route 386, connects the town with the rest of Quebec, with the former connecting to the

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean on ...

( Route 117 in Quebec).

References

External links

Ville de Senneterre
{{authority control Cities and towns in Quebec Incorporated places in Abitibi-Témiscamingue Hudson's Bay Company trading posts