Saicourt

Saicourt

State :	Switzerland Switzerland
Canton :	Canton Bern Bern (BE)
Administrative district :	Bernese Juraw
BFS no. :	0706i1 f3 f4
Postal code :	2732 (Saicourt) 2713 (Bellelay)
Coordinates :	582.46 thousand / 232640 coordinates: 47 ° 14 '40 " N , 7 ° 12' 25" O ; CH1903: five hundred eighty-two thousand four hundred sixty / 23264047.244443 7.206953 749
Height :	749 m above sea level M.
Height range :	744–1161 m above sea level M.
Area :	13.77 km²
Residents:	628 (December 31, 2018)
Population density :	46 inhabitants per km²
Mayor :	Markus Gerber ( SVP )
Website:	www.saicourt.ch
Bellelay
Location of the municipality
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Saicourt is a municipality in the Bernese Jura administrative district in the Swiss canton of Bern .

geography

Saicourt is 749 m above sea level. M. , 14 km west-southwest of the village of Moutier (air line) and 12 km north of Biel / Bienne . The former street line village stretches along the Trame stream , a left tributary of the Birs , in the west of the Vallée de Tavannes in the Juralang valley .

The area of the 13.8 km² municipality covers a small part of the valley basin Vallée de Tavannes, which is up to 4 km wide here. Saicourt only includes the valley of the lower Trame and the south adjoining heights of Châtillon ( 822 m above sea level ) and Forêt de Chaindon ( 820 m above sea level ). To the north the municipality extends to the mostly forest-covered anticline of the western Moron (up to 1091 m above sea level ). In the west, the area extends to the height of the Montbautier , on which at 1160 m above sea level. M. is the highest point of Saicourt. Here there are extensive Jura high pastures with the typical mighty spruce trees , which either stand individually or in groups. In the far north, the Béroie ridge ( 1088 m above sea level ) belongs to Saicourt. The La Sagne moor , which covers a flat area of 2 km² and has no surface runoff, is embedded between these three mountain ranges . In 1997, 4% of the municipal area was in settlements, 50% in forests and woodlands, 45% in agriculture and a little less than 1% was unproductive land.

To Saicourt belong the places Bellelay with a former monastery, 931 m above sea level. M. on the northern edge of the moor La Sagne, and Le Fuet ( 841 m above sea level. M. ) on the southeast slope of Montbautier above the valley of the Trame, as well as numerous individual farms. The neighboring communities of Saicourt are Tramelan , Mont-Tramelan , Tavannes , Reconvilier , Saules and Petit-Val in the canton of Bern and Lajoux and Les Genevez in the canton of Jura .

population

Population development
year	Residents
1850	456
1900	802
1910	1016
1930	946
1950	1140
1960	1067
1970	932
1980	852
1990	780
2000	673

With 628 inhabitants (as of December 31, 2018) Saicourt is one of the medium-sized communities in the Bernese Jura . 84.0% of the residents are French-speaking, 12.6% German-speaking and 1.5% Italian-speaking (as of 2000). The population of Saicourt increased significantly, especially in the second half of the 19th century until 1910. After peaking around 1950, a decline of almost 50% has since been recorded due to strong emigration.

politics

The voting shares of the parties at the 2015 National Council election were: SVP 56.5%, SP 12.9%, BDP 10.2%, EPP 5.4%, EDU 4.9%, GPS 4.4%, FDP 3.6 %, PdA 1.0%, glp 0.6%, CVP 0.2%.

economy

The places Saicourt and Le Fuet in particular are still oriented towards agriculture , with dairy farming and cattle breeding predominating. There is a cheese dairy in Le Fuet that makes Tête de Moine , a type of cheese from the region. The largest employer in the municipality is the psychiatric clinic housed in the former Bellelay monastery.

traffic

Saicourt is on the connecting road from Reconvilier to Le Fuet, while the cantonal road from Tavannes through Le Fuet and Bellelay leads through the Pichoux gorge to Bassecourt in the Delsberg basin . All three places belonging to the municipality of Saicourt are connected to the public transport network by the bus line that runs from Tavannes via Lajoux to Les Genevez.

history

Saicourt was first mentioned in writing in 1262 under the name Zacurt . Later names were Zacort (1277) and Saccourt (1335). The place name probably goes back to the personal name Sacco . Saicourt was part of the lands of the Bellelay Monastery . On September 14, 1790, the village was affected by a great flood of the Trame. From 1797 to 1815 Saicourt belonged to France and was initially part of the Mont-Terrible department , which was linked to the Haut-Rhin department in 1800 . By the decision of the Congress of Vienna , the place came to the canton of Bern to the district of Moutier in 1815 .

Attractions

The townscape of Saicourt still shows some typical old farmhouses from the 18th and 19th centuries (the oldest is from 1722) and wood warehouses. To the west of the village there is an old sawmill that is operated with a paddle wheel. The place belonged to the parish of Tavannes-Chaindon, since 1928 to the parish of Reconvilier-Chaindon.

In Le Fuet there is a characteristic schoolhouse with a bell tower from the late 19th century and a chapel.

See also : Bellelay , Bellelay Monastery