From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gaspé is a town at the tip of the Gaspé Peninsula in eastern Quebec, Canada. As of the 2006 census, the town had a total population of 14,819.[1]
Gaspé is where Jacques Cartier took possession of Nouvelle-France (now Canada) in the name of Francis I of France on July 24, 1534.
Gaspé is accessible by automobile, passenger train (Via Rail's Chaleur), and by airplane via Gaspé Airport.
[edit] History
"Gaspé" may come from the Micmac word "Gespeg" which means "Land's end". However, according to the "Commission de toponymie of Quebec", Gaspe may be a mutation of the Basque word "Gerizpe" which means "Shelter". This may be how Jacques Cartier saw it; he actually halted in the Bay after losing an anchor during a storm. On the 24th of July 1534, he officially took possession of the area by planting a wooden cross with the king's coat of arms and the sentence "Vive le Roi de France"(meaning: Hail to the King of France), designating François 1st. This is why Gaspé claims the title of "French-Canada's Cradle".
[edit] Nearby towns
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses - 100% data". Statistics Canada, 2006 Census of Population. 2007-03-13. http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/popdwell/Table.cfm?T=302&SR=201&S=1&O=A&RPP=25&PR=24&CMA=0. Retrieved 2007-08-09.
Canada
Quebec
Gaspé 
