Havre-Saint-Pierre

Havre-Saint-Pierre
Municipality
Motto:  Terre digne de richesses
Havre-Saint-Pierre Location in Côte-Nord region of Quebec.
Coordinates: 50°14′N 63°36′W
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Côte-Nord
RCM	Minganie
Settled	1857
Constituted	January 1, 1873
Government
• Mayor	Berchmans Boudreau
• Federal riding	Manicouagan
• Prov. riding	Duplessis
Area
• Total	3,896.30 km2 (1,504.37 sq mi)
• Land	2,817.92 km2 (1,088.00 sq mi)
Population  (2016)
• Total	3,460
• Density	1.2/km2 (3/sq mi)
• Pop 2011-2016	1.2%
• Dwellings	1,641
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	G0G 1P0
Area code(s)	418 and 581
Highways	R-138
Website	www.havresaintpierre.com

Havre-Saint-Pierre is a town situated on Pointe-aux-Esquimaux, which is on the Quebec north shore (Côte-Nord) of the Saint Lawrence River in Canada. Located along Route 138 some 200 kilometres (120 mi) east of Sept-Îles, it is the largest town and seat of the Minganie RCM, and home to many government, municipal, and regional services.

Historically, the town's first inhabitants came from the Magdalen Islands in the nineteenth century. As a result, the people of the town speak a dialect much more closely related to Acadian French than to Quebec French.

Other important geological features near the town include the Romaine River to the north and west, les Chutes Manitou, on the Manitou River to the west, l'Ile du Havre, less than a kilometre offshore from the town, and Anticosti Island, which on clear days can be seen to the south of the town.

History

In 1857, a group of Acadian families from the Magdalen Islands, who had previously been deported from Savannah (Georgia, USA), settled on Eskimo Point (Pointe aux Esquimaux). The first mass was held on June 29, 1857, day of the feast of Saint Peter. In 1872, the Parish of Saint-Pierre-de-la-Pointe-aux-Esquimaux was officially established, the same year its post office opened under the name Esquimaux Point.

In 1873, the place was incorporated as a municipality. In 1924, the post office changed its name to Havre-Saint-Pierre, followed by the town in 1927, in order to focus on the harbor, which characterizes the area, while retaining the original parish name. It remained the largest town on the North Shore until 1936 when it was overtaken by Baie-Comeau.

Climate

In spite of its maritime position just above the 50th parallel, Havre-Saint-Pierre has a relatively harsh subarctic climate, with cold winters and cool summers, although the fourth-warmest month of September is relatively close to the 10 °C (50 °F) isotherm to be cold humid continental. The high precitipation brings a lot of snowfall in winter.

Climate data for Havre-Saint-Pierre
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	−9.9 (14.2)	−8.3 (17.1)	−2.4 (27.7)	3.9 (39.0)	10.8 (51.4)	16.0 (60.8)	19.6 (67.3)	19.2 (66.6)	14.0 (57.2)	7.5 (45.5)	0.7 (33.3)	−6.4 (20.5)	5.4 (41.7)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−15.5 (4.1)	−14.2 (6.4)	−8.0 (17.6)	−0.3 (31.5)	5.9 (42.6)	11.0 (51.8)	14.6 (58.3)	14.4 (57.9)	9.5 (49.1)	3.6 (38.5)	−3.3 (26.1)	−11.4 (11.5)	0.5 (32.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−21.1 (−6.0)	−20.1 (−4.2)	−13.6 (7.5)	−4.5 (23.9)	0.9 (33.6)	5.9 (42.6)	9.5 (49.1)	9.5 (49.1)	4.9 (40.8)	−0.3 (31.5)	−7.2 (19.0)	−16.4 (2.5)	−4.4 (24.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	77.4 (3.05)	46 (1.8)	60.5 (2.38)	63.7 (2.51)	87 (3.4)	105.7 (4.16)	99.9 (3.93)	108.6 (4.28)	96.6 (3.80)	118.6 (4.67)	99.4 (3.91)	94.7 (3.73)	1,058 (41.7)
Source: Weatherbase

Demographics

Population

Canada census – Havre-Saint-Pierre community profile

	2011
Population	3,418 (+8.5% from 2006)
Land area	2,821.65 km2 (1,089.45 sq mi)
Population density	1.2/km2 (3.1/sq mi)
Median age	44.2 (M: 43.5, F: 44.5)
Private dwellings	1,484 (total)
Median household income	$.N/A

Notes: 2011 income data for this area has been suppressed for data quality or confidentiality reasons.
References: 2011 earlier

Historical Census Data - Havre-Saint-Pierre, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1991 3,502 —     1996 3,450 −1.5%

Year Pop. ±% 2001 3,291 −4.6% 2006 3,150 −4.3%

Year Pop. ±% 2011 3,418 +8.5%

Language

Canada Census Mother Tongue - Havre-Saint-Pierre, Quebec
Census		Total		French				English				French & English				Other
Year		Responses		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %
2011		3,315		3,270	7.8%	98.64%		25	40.0%	0.75%		15	n/a%	0.45%		5	85.7%	0.15%
2006		3,065		3,015	4.9%	98.37%		15	50.0%	0.49%		0	100.0%	0.00%		35	n/a%	1.14%
2001		3,210		3,170	5.1%	98.75%		30	16.7%	0.93%		10	0.0%	0.31%		0	0.0%	0.00%
1996		3,375		3,340	n/a	98.96%		25	n/a	0.74%		10	n/a	0.30%		0	n/a	0.00%

Economy

Hospital

The city hospital is the major employer in the region. Havre-Saint-Pierre is also located near Canada's only titanium mine, for which the town serves as a port. Since 1948, the Quebec Iron and Titanium Company mines deposits of ilmenite, a mineral composed of iron and titanium, at a site some 40 kilometres (25 mi) north. The Chemin de fer de la Rivière Romaine brings it by rail cars to Havre-Saint-Pierre.

Tourism contributes significantly to the local economy due to the town's position near the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve, a park encompassing a large number of islands in Mingan Archipelago of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and noted for the unique variety of flora and fauna to be found there, such as puffins and the rare Mingan Thistle, as well as the unique geological features on many of the islands referred to as monoliths.

The town is also noted for the excellent fishing, being made up largely of snow crab, scallops, and lobster, with excellent salmon and trout to be found in the numerous rivers and lakes.

Notable residents

• Roland-Benoît Jomphe, CM CQ, poet

See also

• List of municipalities in Quebec