Cap-Rouge () is a former city in central

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, since 2002 within the borough Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

. The site of the first attempted permanent French settlement in North America,

Charlesbourg-Royal Fort Charlesbourg Royal (1541—1543) is a National Historic Site in the Cap-Rouge neighbourhood of Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. Established by Jacques Cartier in 1541, it was France's first attempt at a colony in North America, and was abando ...

, is located at the confluence of the

Rivière du Cap Rouge The Cap-Rouge river () is a river flowing on the north shore of the Saint-Laurent river at the height of the Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge borough of Quebec City and in the city of Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, both cities in the administrativ ...

and 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 ...

. Its population was 13,153 as of the

Canada 2011 Census The 2011 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population on May 10, 2011. Statistics Canada, an agency of the Canadian government, conducts a nationwide census every five years. In 2011, it consisted of a mandatory short for ...

First permanent establishments

In 1635, the first seigneurie was granted on the territory of Cape-Rouge, but revoked the following year by the Company of One Hundred Associates. However, by 1638 Paul Le Jeune, a missionary Jesuit, had noted in '' The Jesuit Relations'' the presence of some families in the valley.Banque de noms de lieux du Québec, entrée ''Cap-Rouge''
/ref> Between 1647 and 1652, the seigneuries of Maur, on the west, and Gaudarville, in the east, were established on the territory. From that moment, based on taxable citizens, the settlement on the lands of Cap-Rouge are established. The village formed is served by the parishes of Ancienne-Lorette in (1678) to the north; of Saint-Augustin in (1691) on the west; and of Sainte-Foy (1698) in the east.Banque de noms de lieux du Québec, entrée ''Cap-Rouge'' p.3

Geography

The name of Cap-Rouge, meaning "red cape", comes from its cliffs facing the Saint-Lawrence river and made of

schist Schist ( ) is a medium-grained metamorphic rock generally derived from fine-grained sedimentary rock, like shale. It shows pronounced ''schistosity'' (named for the rock). This means that the rock is composed of mineral grains easily seen with a l ...

rock bearing a reddish tint. The other main topographic feature of Cap-Rouge is the

valley where are concentrated some historic buildings as well the archeological remains of a

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

workshop active from 1860 to 1892. It is believed that until the end of its operations the workshop mainly used imported

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

rather than the local one, which has a rather red hue. The Cap-Rouge area is located to the south of the Canadian Shield and

Laurentian Mountains The Laurentian Mountains, also known as the Laurentians or Laurentides, are a mountain range in Canada. The range is long and ranges in height from with peaks over . The Laurentian Mountains extend across Labrador and Quebec within the Laurent ...

, at the confluence of the geological regions of the Saint Lawrence Lowlands and of the northern

Appalachians The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a mountain range in eastern to northeastern North America. The term "Appalachian" refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range, and its surrounding terrain ...

. It mostly sits at the western foot of the Quebec promontory, in the way of the Logan's Line - an inactive fracture in the Earth's crust first documented by

William Edmond Logan Sir William Edmond Logan, FRSE FRS FGS (20 April 1798 – 22 June 1875), was a Canadian-born geologist and the founder and first director of the Geological Survey of Canada. Life William Edmond Logan was born into a well-to-do Montreal family ...

Attractions

In addition to its long history, the main attraction of Cap-Rouge is the towering

Cap-Rouge trestle Cap-Rouge () can refer to: *Cap-Rouge, Quebec City, a borough in Quebec City *Cap-Rouge, Nova Scotia *Cap-Rouge trestle, a bridge in the borough in Quebec City *Rivière du Cap Rouge, a river that passes through Quebec City See also

* * Roug ...

() rail-road bridge. Built in 1907-1908, the steel trestle was constructed under the authority of the National Transcontinental as part of the National Transcontinental Railway. It spans 3,335 feet at an average of 172 feet above ground and is still in use today.

Notable people

* Laurent Torregrossa (born in 1964), painter * Marie Philippe, singer * Jonathan Marchessault,

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

player,

Conn Smythe trophy The Conn Smythe Trophy () is awarded annually to the most valuable player (MVP) of his team during the National Hockey League's (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs. It is named after Conn Smythe, the longtime owner, general manager, and head coach of the ...

winner

References

{{Coord, 46, 45, N, 71, 21, W, region:CA-QC_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title Neighbourhoods in Quebec City Former municipalities in Quebec 1635 establishments in the French colonial empire Populated places disestablished in 2002