Lamèque () is a former town in Gloucester County,

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, Canada. It held town status prior to 2023 and is now part of the town of Île-de-Lamèque. Of Amerindian rather than French origin, "Lamèque" comes from the Micmac Elmugwadasik, a descriptive reference to the fact that "the head of the tidal river is turned to one side". The name of the island approved by the Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names in 1974, the result of a local petition replaced the earlier Shippegan.

History

Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

community, it is situated on

Lamèque Island Lamèque Island (), (formerly ''Shippegan Island'' or ''Shippigan Island''), is a Canadian island in the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the northeastern tip of Gloucester County, New Brunswick. The island has an area of . It is separated from mainlan ...

, off the northeastern tip of the

Acadian Peninsula The Acadian Peninsula () is situated in the northeastern corner of New Brunswick, Canada, encompassing portions of Gloucester and Northumberland Counties. It derives its name from the large Acadian population located there. Two major islands o ...

. Lamèque has hosted an annual

baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...

festival every summer since 1975. On 1 January 2023, Lamèque amalgamated with the village of Sainte-Marie-Saint-Raphaël and annexed the

local service district Local service district may refer to these administrative units in Canada: * Local service district (New Brunswick) A local service district (LSD) was a provincial administrative unit for the provision of local services in the Canadian province o ...

s making up the remainder of

to form the new town of Île-de-Lamèque. Lamèque's name remains in official use as a community.

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 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 ...

, Lamèque 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.

Language

Economy

Lamèque's economy is tied to the

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

and

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

industries. Ecological Park of the Acadian Peninsula

Attractions

The Lamèque Eco-Parc offers numerous flora and fauna features representative of the Acadian Peninsula.

Notable people

References

External links

*
Ville de Lameque
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lameque Communities in Gloucester County, New Brunswick Former towns in New Brunswick 2023 disestablishments in New Brunswick Populated coastal places in Canada