Les Gras
| Les Gras | ||
|---|---|---|
|
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| region | Bourgogne-Franche-Comté | |
| Department | Doubs | |
| Arrondissement | Pontarlier | |
| Canton | Morteau | |
| Community association | Val de Morteau | |
| Coordinates | 47 ° 0 ′ N , 6 ° 33 ′ E | |
| height | 782-1,290 m | |
| surface | 14.99 km 2 | |
| Residents | 797 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 53 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 25790 | |
| INSEE code | 25296 | |
Les Gras is a French municipality with 797 inhabitants (as of January 1 2017) in Doubs in the region Bourgogne Franche-Comté .
geography
Les Gras is a detached village at 853 m , eight kilometers southwest of Morteau and about 18 kilometers northeast of the city of Pontarlier (as the crow flies). The village is located in the Jura , in a valley widening of the Théverot in the chain system of the Montagne du Larmont at the western foot of Mont Châteleu, two kilometers from the border with Switzerland . The municipal area borders on the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel and its municipality of La Brévine over a length of around 7.7 kilometers . There is an official border crossing at an altitude of 1120 m.
The area of the 14.99 km² municipality covers a section of the French Jura. The central part of the area is taken up by the Théverot valley, which receives numerous tributaries through various side streams. It drains the area northeast to the Doubs . Below the village, he steps through a narrow valley in order to then reach the broad valley of Grand'Combe-Châteleu , the southern part of which also belongs to Les Gras. To the west, the valley is flanked by the striking limestone walls of the Rochers du Cerf ( 1195 m ) and their foothills. To the south, the municipality extends over partly wooded, partly pastureland heights, which are subdivided by the source streams of the Théverot, up to the elongated ridge of the Montagne du Larmont, which separates the valley of the Théverot from the Vallée de la Brévine . The eastern boundary runs on the ridge of Mont Châteleu, on which the highest elevation of Les Gras is reached at 1300 m.
In addition to the village itself, Les Gras includes various hamlets and numerous individual farms, including:
- Les Saules ( 805 m ) in the Théverot valley at the western foot of the Bois du Couard
- Le Rozet ( 983 m ) on the western slope of Mont Châteleu
- Le Nid du Fol ( 1064 m ) on a ledge on the western slope of Mont Châteleu
- Le Grand Mont ( 1031 m ) on a saddle at the level of the Montagne du Larmont
- Les Seignes ( 1055 m ) in a hollow on the level of the Montagne du Larmont
Neighboring communities of Les Gras are Ville-du-Pont to the west, Grand'-Combe-Châteleu to the north and east and the Swiss community of La Brévine to the south. As in the neighboring municipality to the south, high sub-zero temperatures are not uncommon in Les Gras in winter.
history
The area of Les Gras was reclaimed in the 12th century by monks of the Cluniac priory of Morteau. As a result, Les Gras belonged to the Morteau lordship, which was initially under the sovereignty of the Lords of Montfaucon , from 1325 to 1507 under that of the Counts of Neuchâtel and then belonged to Franche-Comté. In the 16th century, many residents were engaged in the manufacture of scythes and copper processing. Together with Franche-Comté , the village came to France with the Peace of Nijmegen in 1678.
Attractions
The village church of Les Gras originally dates from 1578 and was later restored and redesigned several times.
population
| Population development | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| year | 1962 | 1968 | 1975 | 1982 | 1990 | 1999 | 2008 | 2016 |
| Residents | 739 | 727 | 649 | 585 | 601 | 654 | 760 | 811 |
With 797 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017), Les Gras is one of the small communities in the Doubs department. After the population had decreased markedly in the first half of the 20th century (1024 people were counted in 1881), population growth has been recorded again since the beginning of the 1990s.
Economy and Infrastructure
Until well into the 20th century, Les Gras was a village dominated by agriculture (cattle breeding and dairy farming) and forestry. In addition, there are now various small businesses, especially in wood processing. Many workers are also commuters who work in the surrounding larger towns.
The village is off the main thoroughfares, but on a departmental road that leads from Grand'Combe-Châteleu to Les Alliés . Another road connection is with Les Taillères in the Vallée de la Brévine (Switzerland).
literature
- Le Patrimoine des Communes du Doubs. Volume 2, Flohic Editions, Paris 2001, ISBN 2-84234-087-6 , pp. 774-775.
