Les Moussières
| Les Moussières | ||
|---|---|---|
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| region | Bourgogne-Franche-Comté | |
| Department | law | |
| Arrondissement | Saint-Claude | |
| Canton | Saint-Lupicine | |
| Community association | Haut-Jura Saint-Claude | |
| Coordinates | 46 ° 20 ' N , 5 ° 53' E | |
| height | 880-1,310 m | |
| surface | 16.95 km 2 | |
| Residents | 167 (January 1, 2017) | |
| Population density | 10 inhabitants / km 2 | |
| Post Code | 39310 | |
| INSEE code | 39373 | |
 Town center in winter |
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Les Moussières is a commune in the French department of Jura in the region Bourgogne Franche-Comté .
geography
Les Moussières is located at 1144 m and is one of the highest municipalities in the Jura , about seven kilometers south of the city of Saint-Claude (as the crow flies). The farming village extends in the High Jura, on a north-sloping slope on the Hautes-Combes plateau.
The area of the 16.86 km² municipality covers a section of the French Jura. The area lies exclusively on the plateau of the Hautes-Combes (an average of 1200 m ). The landscape is wavy and shows terrain structures such as ridges and hollows, which are oriented in a south-west-north-east direction according to the direction of the fold of the Jura in this area. The basin layers do not have any surface drainage, as the rainwater seeps into the porous calcareous subsoil. In places that are sealed by clay minerals , there are bog areas. The only surface flowing water is the Bief des Parres , which is located in an erosion valley (northern municipal boundary) and drains the area to the Gorges du Flumen near Saint-Claude.
To the west, the community soil extends over the slightly inclined plateau to the upper edge of the deeply cut valley of the Tacon. In the east, the municipal area extends over a series of parallel ridges that gradually increase in height up to the height of Bellecombe, where the highest point of Les Moussières is reached at 1308 m . The high plateau of the Hautes-Combes shows a loose structure of pastureland and forest. The municipality is part of the Upper Jura Regional Nature Park (French: Parc naturel régional du Haut-Jura ).
Les Moussières includes various groups of farms and individual farms scattered across the plateau. Neighboring municipalities of Les Moussières are Villard-Saint-Sauveur and Septmoncel les Molunes with Les Molunes in the north, Bellecombe in the east, La Pesse in the south and Coiserette and Coyrière in the west.
history
The high plateau around Les Moussières belonged to the monastery of Saint-Claude. Even before the 10th century, the pastureland of the Hautes-Combes was used for pasturing the cattle, which is why the plateau was only inhabited during the summer months. The plateau was therefore called Franches Moussières . The name is derived from the French word mousse (moss, moorland). A permanent settlement consisting of stone houses did not develop until the late Middle Ages. The place was on the road between the monasteries of Saint-Claude and Chézery-Forens . Together with Franche-Comté , Les Moussières came to France with the Peace of Nijmegen in 1678.
Attractions
The village church of Les Moussières was built in the 18th century and remodeled in the 19th century. The cheese dairy at the entrance to the village produces the cheeses Bleu de Gex, Comté and Morbier and can be visited.
population
| Population development | |
|---|---|
| year | Residents |
| 1962 | 249 |
| 1968 | 226 |
| 1975 | 208 |
| 1982 | 209 |
| 1990 | 206 |
| 1999 | 164 |
| 2004 | 187 |
With 167 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017), Les Moussières is one of the small communities in the Jura department. After the population had decreased markedly in the first half of the 20th century (520 people were still counted in 1896), a slight increase in population has been recorded since 2000.
Economy and Infrastructure
Until well into the 20th century, Les Moussières was predominantly a village characterized by agriculture , in particular cattle and dairy farming, and forestry. In addition, there are now some local small businesses. Many workers are also commuters who work in the larger towns in the area.
As a resort in a popular excursion area in the High Jura, Les Moussières now benefits from tourism, especially from winter tourism, when cross-country skiing can be practiced on the Hautes-Combes plateau. On a slope near Bellecombe, a ski lift is in operation in winter.
The village is located away from the major thoroughfares on a departmental road that leads from Septmoncel to Les Bouchoux . Further road links exist with Les Molunes and Bellecombe.
