Ville Jacques-Cartier (French pronunciation: [vil ʒak kaʁtje]) was a city located on the south shore of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, now a defunct municipality. It was named after Jacques Cartier, the founder of New France. Its former territory now makes up about a quarter of the current city of Longueuil and 80% of Le Vieux-Longueuil borough.
History
editCreated at the same time as Mackayville in 1947, the land of Jacques-Cartier corresponded to what had been left of the St-Antoine de Longueuil parish after Longueuil, Saint-Lambert, Saint-Hubert, Montréal-Sud, Greenfield Park and Mackayville seceded from the parish. In 1948, a distant section of Jacques-Cartier (disconnected from the rest of the town) went on to form an independent municipality under the name of Préville. In 1949, Jacques-Cartier lost another portion of its territory which became Ville LeMoyne.
Originally incorporated as a town, Jacques-Cartier gained the status of city in 1952.[1] Jacques-Cartier grew extremely quickly, over-stretching its existing infrastructure. It lacked a sewer system and paved roads,[2] and it was not uncommon to see free-ranging dogs in the city.[2] Houses were built as soon as the owner had the materials required to make one.[2] This led to a mishmash of buildings along its streets.[2] It was known as the Wild West of Quebec.[2]
Jacques-Cartier merged with the city of Longueuil in 1969.[2] Although Jacques-Cartier was at least four times larger and had twice the population of Longueuil, it was the latter's name that was retained because Longueuil was a much older city than Jacques-Cartier.
The South Shore Protestant Regional School Board previously served the municipality.[3]
During its 22 years of existence, Jacques-Cartier gave birth to some of the most well-known establishments of Le Vieux-Longueuil borough, notably Collège Édouard-Montpetit in 1967, a secondary school named after Gérard Filion in 1963, and the current location of Pratt & Whitney Canada in 1951.
Mayors
edit| Mayor[2] | Term Began | Term Ended |
|---|---|---|
| Joseph-Rémi Goyette | 1947 | 1949 |
| René Prévost | 1949 | 1954 |
| Hector Desmarchais | 1954 | 1955 |
| Julien Lord | 1955 | 1957 |
| Joseph-Louis Chamberland | 1957 | 1960 |
| Léo-Aldéo Rémillard | 1960 | 1963 |
| Jean-Paul Tousignant (interim) | 1963 | 1963 |
| Charles Labrecque (interim) | 1963 | 1963 |
| Jean-Paul Vincent | 1963 | 1966 |
| Roland Therrien | 1966 | 1969 |
The area today
editToday, the western part of what used to be Jacques-Cartier is primarily low-income, highly populated, retail-oriented and completely built-up. The architecture in this area can be defined as a mishmash and non-uniform, as buildings were usually constructed when the property owners had enough money to build them. The eastern part, on the other hand, tends to be the opposite. It is by far less densely populated than its western counterpart and contains the industrial section of Longueuil. Recently-built designer mansions and condominiums are plentiful (notably in the Collectivité-Nouvelle and Parcours du Cerf neighbourhoods), and the area is becoming increasing built up. The Fatima neighbourhood (which borders the city of Boucherville) is similar to the western part, with many houses and apartment buildings dating from Jacques-Cartier.
The city hall, police station and fire station of Jacques-Cartier were all located together in a building at the corner on Curé-Poirier boulevard and Brebeuf street.[4] This site still serves as an office building for the modern city of Longueuil and also includes a fire station.
Demographics
edit| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 13,000 | — |
| 1951 | 22,450 | +72.7% |
| 1961 | 40,807 | +81.8% |
| 1966 | 52,336 | +28.3% |
| 1969 | 66,820 | +27.7% |
| [2] | ||
Jacques-Cartier was overwhelmingly francophone. It had twelve Catholic parishes at the time of its merger with Longueuil in 1969. The clergy played a large role in the success of the community. It ran various social organizations and was in charge of education in the city.[2]
Legacy
editCardboard City (Ville Jacques-Carton), a 2025 documentary-fiction hybrid film directed by André Forcier and Jean-Marc E. Roy, centred on the history of the community.[5]
Location (1969)
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ↑ Lovell's South Shore directory (PDF). Lovell. 1960. p. 8.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Pratt, Michel. "De la balkanisation des villes à leur fusion". Société historique et culturelle du Marigot. Archived from the original on 2017-08-03.
- ↑ King, M.J. (chairperson of the board), "South Shore Protestant Regional School Board" (St. Johns, PQ). The News and Eastern Townships Advocate. Volume 119, No. 5. Thursday December 16, 1965. p. 2. Retrieved from Google News on November 23, 2014.
- ↑ Lovell's Montreal "Criss Cross" directory - Southern section (PDF). Vol. 7. Lovell. 1968–1989. p. 182.
- ↑ Jean-François Nadeau, "«Ville Jacques-Carton» : la vie oubliée de Ville Jacques-Cartier", Le Devoir, September 5, 2025.
External links
edit- Marigot.ca - Historical information on Ville Jacques-Cartier from Michel Pratt, Atlas historique de Longueuil Archived 2007-04-30 at the Wayback Machine
- - Map of Ville Jacques-Cartier from Michel Pratt, Atlas historique de Longueuil Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
- "Jacques-Cartier (cité) 10.5.1947 - 16.8.1969". Répertoire des entités municipales.
