Beauharnois (; ) is a city located in the Beauharnois-Salaberry Regional County Municipality of southwestern

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, Canada, and is part of the Greater Montreal Area. The city's population as of the

Canada 2021 Census The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canada, 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%, whic ...

was 13,638. It is home to the Beauharnois Hydroelectric Power Station, as well as the Beauharnois Lock of the

Saint Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway () is a system of rivers, locks, canals and channels in Eastern Canada and Northern United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North America, as far inland ...

History

During the

Lower Canada Rebellion The Lower Canada Rebellion (), commonly referred to as the Patriots' Rebellion () in French, is the name given to the armed conflict in 1837–38 between rebels and the colonial government of Lower Canada (now southern Quebec). Together wit ...

, the Battle of Beauharnois was fought in 1838, between Lower Canada loyalists and Patriote rebels. After Edward Ellice and his family were taken prisoner by rebels, the townspeople rebelled. The British were able to quash the rebellion and captured over a hundred Patriote rebels. The Beauharnois Canal was dug between 1842 and 1845 to connect the lakes Saint-Louis and Saint-Francois as part of a larger project that included the expansion of the

Lachine canal The Lachine Canal (, ) is a canal passing through the southwestern part of the Island of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, running 14.5 kilometres (9 miles) from the Old Port of Montreal to Lake Saint-Louis, through the boroughs of Lachine (borough), L ...

. During these years, however, a series of labor conflicts emerged during the canal's construction. On June 3, 1843, a strike began at the canal's construction site. A battle ensued between the striking workers and employers, resulting in the death of five workers and 50 additional injured. The violence unleashed during the strike represented the bloodiest repression against workers in Canadian history. As part of the

2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec The 2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec resulted in large-scale amalgamation of smaller municipality (Quebec), municipalities in Quebec into larger cities. It was undertaken by one administration, but was modified and partially undone ...

, the neighbouring towns of Maple Grove and Melocheville were amalgamated into Beauharnois on January 1, 2002.

Geography

Communities

In addition to the main population centre of Beauharnois, the following locations are within the municipality's boundaries: *Domaine-de-la-Pointe-des-Érables () – a

residential area A residential area is a land used in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas. Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single-family housing, multi-family residen ...

north of Maple Grove * Maple Grove () – a former municipality that makes up the northeast boundary of Beauharnois *Melocheville () – a former municipality that makes up the western boundary of Beauharnois, located on the west shore of the Beauharnois Canal *Parc-Tisseur () – a

in southern Beauharnois *Rivière-Nord () – a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

in southern Beauharnois *Saint-Paul () – a

located on Route 205

Lakes & rivers

The following waterways pass through or are situated within the municipality's boundaries: *Rivière Saint-Louis () – runs south to north through the city centre, down Chute de la Rivière Saint Louis, emptying into the

Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawrenc ...

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), 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 culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Beauharnois 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.

Economy

In 2012, OVH started construction of its first Canadian data centre in Beauharnois, one of the largest in the world.

References

External links

Beauharnois official website
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Quebec Incorporated places in Beauharnois-Salaberry Regional County Municipality Quebec populated places on the Saint Lawrence River Greater Montreal