Danville, Quebec

Danville
City
Downtown Danville
Location within Les Sources RCM.
Danville Location in southern Quebec.
Coordinates: 45°47′N 72°01′W
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Estrie
RCM	Les Sources
Constituted	March 17, 1999
Government
• Mayor	Michel Plourde
• Federal riding	Richmond—Arthabaska
• Prov. riding	Richmond
Area
• Total	153.60 km2 (59.31 sq mi)
• Land	152.29 km2 (58.80 sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	4,070
• Density	26.7/km2 (69/sq mi)
• Pop 2006-2011	0.7%
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	J0A 1A0
Area code	819
Highways	R-116 R-249 R-255
Website	www.villededanville.com

Danville is a city in the administrative region of Estrie, in the Canadian province of Quebec. As of the 2011 Canadian Census, the population was 4,070.

History

Danville is on a stretch of the Chemin Craig, a road built in the 19th century connecting Quebec to New England. The town is about 70 miles (110 km) north of the Vermont border. American loyalists from New England began arriving in 1783 and gave the town its name in memory of their hometown in Vermont of the same name: Danville, Vermont. The founder of Danville is Simeon Flint, and he was a resident from Danville, Vermont.

Until ±1971, the population of Danville was in majority Anglo-Protestant. This proportion was reversed during the mid-1970s when part of the younger generation migrated to English Canada, Montreal region or New England.

The city has many heritage buildings, including three Protestant churches (Christian Adventist, Presbyterian and United Church of Canada), two Anglican churches, an Evangelical Baptist church and a Roman Catholic church. The Presbyterian church as been retrofitted into a 4 stars restaurant and the Christian Advent church is now a private residence since 2007, following is closing in 2006. The actual catholic church was erected in 2003, following the burning of the former one in 2001 which was erected in 1891. The actual United church is a construction completed in 1875 for a Congregational parish, and is the oldest church of the town. One of the two Anglican Church of England churches is located on a historic site on the country side, near the border of the Shipton Township, Denison Mills.

Danville has two primary schools: a French language school, École Masson; and an English-speaking school known as ADS (Asbestos-Shipton-Danville).

At the centre of the city is a square formed by the enlargement of an intersection. A memorial for soldiers killed in the First World War, Second World War and Korea War stands in the centre of this square. Another memorial, to Private Timothy O'Hea, is erected in front of the former City Hall.

Once a busy town inhabited by workers of the nearby Johns Manville asbestos mine, the town has quieted down considerably since the mine's closing. A magnesium smelter called Magnola, part of Noranda (using mine tailings from local asbestos mine) set up a facility in the town not long ago, but ended up closing it due to increasing foreign competition. Rolling fields in the area make for good farming, many farms having been around for over a century. Both dairy and beef cattle are raised in the area, although other livestock is common.

Each year the town has an art symposium, where artists from the area gather in the towns many churches, to display their artwork.

Notable historical residents

• Daniel Johnson, Sr - Premier of Quebec from 1966 until his death in 1968
• Mack Sennett - slapstick comedian in film
• Seth Penn Leet - lawyer

External links

• City of Danville official site. Template:Fr icon
• Danville-Shipton Historical Society Template:En icon
• Townships Heritage: Danville Walking Tour. Template:En icon
• Danville-Shipton Chamber of Commerce Template:Fr icon
• International Arts Symposium of Danville Template:Fr icon