Lac-Mégantic
| Lac-Mégantic | |||
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 Lac-Mégantic |
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| Location in Quebec | |||
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| State : |
 Canada
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| Province : | Quebec | ||
| Administrative region : | Estrie | ||
| MRC or equivalent : | Le granite | ||
| Coordinates : | 45 ° 35 ′ N , 70 ° 53 ′ W | ||
| Area : | 20.33 km² | ||
| Residents : | 5967 (status: 2006) | ||
| Population density : | 293.5 inhabitants / km² | ||
| Time zone : | Eastern Time ( UTC − 5 ) | ||
| Municipality number: | 30030 | ||
| Website : | www.ville.lac-megantic.qc.ca | ||
Lac-Mégantic [ ˌlakmegɑ̃ˈtik ] is a city in the Canadian province of Québec . It is located 140 km south of the city of Québec , at the northern end of Lake Mégantic , whose natural course is the Rivière Chaudière .
The first white settlers settled in the region that was previously inhabited by Abenaki Indians around 1850 . The city emerged from the villages Mégantic and Agnès founded in 1885 and 1895. The two villages merged in 1907 to form the city of Mégantic . Their name was changed in 1958 to today's Lac-Mégantic .
On July 6, 2013, the center of the village was badly damaged when a driverless freight train that had loaded oil products derailed in a railway accident; some tank cars went up in flames and exploded. The confirmed number of deaths was put on July 19, 2013 at 47. In October 2019, a project to bypass Lac-Mégantic on a 12.8 kilometer new line was presented. Construction is scheduled to start in 2020.
Economy, transport
In the beginning, the place was particularly important as a railway junction between the east-west route Montreal –Lac-Mégantic– Mattawamkeag - New Brunswick (built from 1878 to 1889 by the Canadian Pacific Railway ) and the south-north route Lac-Mégantic– Québec ( Built from 1894 to 1895 by the Quebec Central Railway ).
The region's economy is based on timber, granite mining and tourism. The city is also a regional service center. Although the Quebec and Megantic Land Company attempted to attract English-speaking settlers in the 19th century , the city is now French-speaking. A town partnership has existed with the French municipality of Dourdan since 1989.
sons and daughters of the town
- Laurier LaPierre (1929–2012), television presenter, author and politician
- Vincent Blais (* 1990), biathlete
Web links
- Profile at the Comission de toponymie du Québec (French)
- City of Lac-Mégantic (French and partly English)
- Mégantic Tourism (French / English)
- Choeur de l'église Sainte-Agnès à Lac-Mégantic
Individual evidence
- ↑ Lac-Mégantic timeline. In: The Gazette . July 19, 2013, accessed September 4, 2013 .
- ↑ Canada: Lac-Mégantic accident site is to be bypassed (source: Radio Canada, BAPE, Journal de Montréal). Locomotive Report , November 1, 2019, accessed on November 23, 2019 .
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