Chicoutimi () is the most populous
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle ...
(
arrondissement
An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands.
Europe
France
The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements'' ...
) of the city of
Saguenay in
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, 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 ...
, Canada.
It is situated at the
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river ( main stem); ...
of the
Saguenay and
Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and commercial centre of the
Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region. In 2002 it merged into the new city of
Saguenay and forms the heart of the 5th-largest urban area of the province of Quebec. At the 2021 census, its population was 69,004.
History

What was ultimately to become the centre of the borough of Chicoutimi was first settled by French colonists in 1676 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 ...
in the
fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the mo ...
. At that time, the Saguenay and the Chicoutimi rivers had been used as waterways by the
Montagnais tribes for centuries. The name ''Chicoutimi'' means ''the end of the deep water'' in the
Innu language. After the British seized Lower Canada, the Chicoutimi trading post continued to operate only until 1782, as the fur trade had moved further west of the Great Lakes.
The city of Chicoutimi was officially incorporated in 1845 as a municipality by Peter McLeod, a
Métis
The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which deri ...
timber contractor who built a sawmill there in 1842. The town was designated in 1855 as the seat of Chicoutimi County and the seat of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Chicoutimi
The Diocese of Chicoutimi ( la, Dioecesis Chicoutimiensis) is a Roman Catholic diocese in Quebec, centred on the borough of Chicoutimi in the city of Saguenay. It is part of the ecclesiastical province of Quebec.
On 18 November 2017, Pope ...
in 1878.
The arrival of the
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...
in 1893 stimulated the growth of Chicoutimi's
pulp and paper industries, particularly mechanical pulp production. The railway also built
Chicoutimi station
Chicoutimi station is a former Canadian National Railway Company railway station in the Chicoutimi borough of the city of Saguenay in Quebec's Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean
Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean (, ) is a region in Quebec, Canada. It contains ...
, which served the city until 1988. The Chicoutimi Pulp Co. was founded in 1896 backed by
French-Canadian investors. The Chicoutimi Pulp Mill became the biggest producer of mechanical pulp in Canada by 1910.
Since the
Great Depression, the city has become an administrative and commercial centre. New centres of education and culture were established: in 1967, the
Conservatoire de musique de Saguenay; and in 1969, the
Université du Québec à Chicoutimi. The city also played host to the Quebec Summer Games in 1972.
In the municipal amalgamations of 1976, Chicoutimi annexed the neighbouring towns of Chicoutimi-Nord and Rivière-du-Moulin. In a much larger round of
Municipal reorganization in Quebec in 2002, the cities of Chicoutimi,
Jonquière
Jonquière (; ; 2021 population: 60,250) is a borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the Saguenay River, near the borough of Chicoutimi.
History
Jonquiè ...
,
La Baie
La Baie (French pronunciation: / la bÉ›/, Quebec French pronunciation: / la be/) is one of three boroughs in the city of Saguenay, Quebec, Canada. It was created during Quebec's municipal reorganization in 2002. From 1976 to 2001, it was know ...
, Lac-Kénogami,
Laterrière, Shipshaw and part of
Tremblay merged to form the new city of
Saguenay.
ISQ – Redirection
/ref> Chicoutimi became a borough of Saguenay.
During the summer of 1996, a record rainfall in the region caused major flooding in the downtown, as well as outlying areas. Dams were overrun, many bridges were destroyed throughout the region. The total cost of the disaster was recorded as 1.5 billion Canadian dollars. The flood also killed seven people.
Chicoutimi's sister city
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
is Camrose, Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
.
Geography and cityscape
Chicoutimi is located in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region on the western end of the Saguenay Fjord; most of the borough, including the downtown section, is on the south shore of the Saguenay River. It is the geographical centre of the city of Saguenay; the Jonquière
Jonquière (; ; 2021 population: 60,250) is a borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada. It is located on the Saguenay River, near the borough of Chicoutimi.
History
Jonquiè ...
and La Baie boroughs adjoin on the west and east sides. Chicoutimi is about north of Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), 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 Communauté métrop ...
and northwest upriver from Tadoussac, at the confluence of the St. Lawrence River. The former cities of Chicoutimi borough are Chicoutimi, Laterrière, Canton-Tremblay, Chicoutimi-Nord and Rivière-du-Moulin. They have maintained their names as wards in the amalgamated city.
The landscape of Chicoutimi consists of hills, valleys and plains, with the terrain becoming steeper near the Saguenay River. Its two major physical features are the Saguenay Graben, a rift valley of the Laurentian Highlands
The Laurentian Upland (or Laurentian Highlands) is a physiographic region which, when referred to as the "Laurentian Region" or the Grenville geological province, is recognized by Natural Resources Canada as one of five provinces of the larger ...
in which the city spreads, and the Saguenay Fjord, the glacier-carved steep shores of the Saguenay River. Mount Valin at is the tallest mountain of the region, and overlooks Chicoutimi north-east. The Chicoutimi, Du Moulin and Valin rivers all empty in the Saguenay river in Chicoutimi.
Culture
Sports
The city has been home to the QMJHL's Chicoutimi Saguenéens since 1973. They play at the Centre Georges-Vézina.
Cycles Devinci started here in 1987.
Professional hockey players from Chicoutimi
* Luc Dufour
* Johnny Gagnon
* Leo Gaudreault
* Sylvain Locas
* John Smrke
* Georges Vezina Georges may refer to:
Places
*Georges River, New South Wales, Australia
*Georges Quay (Dublin)
* Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania
Other uses
* Georges (name)
* ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas
* "Georges" (song), a 19 ...
Law and government
Residents of Chicoutimi are represented by three tiers of government. The first are the city councillors elected from single-member district
A single-member district is an electoral district represented by a single officeholder. It contrasts with a multi-member district, which is represented by multiple officeholders. Single-member districts are also sometimes called single-winner v ...
s and the mayor elected at-large
At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...
for the city of Saguenay. At the provincial tier, two elected members serve in the National Assembly of Quebec for the provincial ridings of Chicoutimi and Dubuc. The federal representation consists of a members of parliament serving in the Parliament of Canada for the federal riding of Chicoutimi—Le Fjord
Chicoutimi—Le Fjord (formerly known as Chicoutimi) is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1925. The riding consists of the northern part of the Chicoutimi borough o ...
.
Education
International relations
Twin towns – sister cities
Chicoutimi is twinned
Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to:
* In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so;
* Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning
* Twinning inst ...
with:
* Angoulême, France
Notable people
* Marilyn Bergeron
On the morning of February 17, 2008, Marilyn Bergeron (born December 21, 1983) left her family's home in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, for what she said was a walk. She did not return. An automated teller machine (ATM) security camera in Loret ...
* Johnny Gagnon
* John Kricfalusi
* Kevin Lambert
Kevin Lambert (born 1992) is a Canadian writer from Quebec.Christopher DiRaddo"A thrilling debut novel takes revenge on smalltown homophobia" ''Xtra!'', September 28, 2020. He is most noted for his novel ''Querelle de Roberval'', which won the Pr ...
, writer
* René Simard
* Charles Sirois
* Georges Vézina
Joseph Georges Gonzague Vézina (; ; , 1887 – , 1926) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played seven seasons in the National Hockey Association (NHA) and nine in the National Hockey League (NHL), all with the Montr ...
* Arthur Villeneuve
Arthur Villeneuve, (January 4, 1910, Chicoutimi, Quebec - May 24, 1990, Montreal, Quebec) was a Québécois painter and member of the Order of Canada.
Life before painting
Villeneuve was raised in a working-class family in Chicoutimi. His fath ...
* Élisabeth Vonarburg, author
* Jeanick Fournier, singer and winner of Canada's Got Talent (season 2)
The second season of '' Canada's Got Talent'', a reality television series, premiered on March 22, 2022 on Citytv. Unlike ''America's Got Talent'', the show only had the audition round, semi-finals and then the finale.
The season was won by J ...
References
External links
*
Borough Council of Chicoutimi
*
Municipality of Chicoutimi
(Archive)
{{Authority control
Populated places established in 1676
Populated places disestablished in 2002
Boroughs of Saguenay, Quebec
Former cities in Quebec
Hudson's Bay Company trading posts
1676 establishments in French colonial empire