Saint-Édouard-de-Gentilly Church
Gentilly River Falls in the Gentilly River Park

Gentilly , formerly known as "Saint-Édouard-de-Gentilly" is a village now part of Bécancour, Quebec, Canada. It is one of the major population centres within Bécancour's extensive territory with 1673 inhabitants being counted in Gentilly during the last population census in 2016.[1] The village is home to a traditionally French-speaking population and is hosts the famous yearly Potirothon.[2] While Gentilly is a small town, it has all the essential services and a warm/welcoming community. The Parc Regional de la Rivière Gentilly[3] is close to town and offers hiking, camping, mountain biking and kayaking. It is also in proximity to the Parc Industriel de Bécancour[4] where most industries are involved in manufacturing. Among these is the Gentilly Nuclear Generating Station, decommissioned in 2012.[5]

46°24′00″N 72°16′28″W / 46.40000°N 72.27444°W / 46.40000; -72.27444[6]

History

In 1647 the Company of New France, or Company of One Hundred Associates (Compagnie des Cent-Associés) as it was more commonly known, sold two fiefs to Nicolas Marsolet and Pierre Lefebvre on the shores of the Saint-Lawrence River and the Gentilly River. In 1668 Pierre Lefebvre gave his fief title to his son-in-law Félix Thunès (Sieur Dufresne) who held it until 1669 when it was to Michel Pelletier (Sieur de Laprade). The same year Pelletier got Intendant Bouterouse to grant him a parcel of land bordering Nicolas Marsolet's fief. In 1671 Marsolet also sold his fief to Michel Pelletier, who now owned a parcel of land along about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) of coastline on the Saint Lawrence and reached 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) inland. This was the land on which Gentilly would be established.[8] In 1683, these three land concessions gained the status "seigneurie des Poissons". The Seigneurie de Gentilly was surveyed in March 1735, and the territory then became a parish in 1784.[9] The town was named Saint-Édouard-de-Gentilly after Gentilly, Val-de-Marne, in France.[10]

On 10 April 1900, the parish of Saint-Édouard-de-Gentilly was broken up, and the town became an independent village, taking on the shorter name of Gentilly.[11] On 17 October 1965 Gentilly was merged into the municipality of Bécancour[12] and has been part of it since.

Notable people

Demographics

Of the resident population, 78.3% (1 310) speak only French, and 21.7% are bilingual in French and English.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 Gouvernement du Canada, Statistique Canada (2017-02-08). "Profil du recensement, Recensement de 2016 - Gentilly [Centre de population], Québec et Québec [Province]". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  2. ↑ "(pas de titre)". potirothon.wordpress.com (in French). Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  3. ↑ "Parc de la Rivière Gentilly | Randonnée camping et vélo à Bécancour". Parc de la Rivière Gentilly (in French). Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  4. ↑ "Société du parc industriel et portuaire de Bécancour - SPIPB". Société du parc industriel et portuaire de Bécancour (in French). Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  5. ↑ sûreté nucléaire, Commission canadienne de (2014-02-03). "Installation nucléaire de Gentilly-2". nuclearsafety.gc.ca (in French). Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  6. ↑ "Gentilly". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  7. "Gentilly". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  8. ↑ Dubois, Lucien,, Histoire de la paroisse de Gentilly /, Québec (Province), s.n., 1935, 1 ressource en ligne (286 p.) : ill. portr., Collections de BAnQ.
  9. ↑ admin. "Gentilly – Voyage à travers le Québec" (in French). Retrieved 2022-11-16.
  10. ↑ Upham, Warren (1920). Minnesota Geographic Names: Their Origin and Historic Significance. Minnesota Historical Society. p. 425.
  11. ↑ Gazette officielle de Québec, 14 avril 1900, pages 901-902.
  12. ↑ Gazette officielle de Québec, 9 octobre 1965, 97e année, numéro 41, pages 5373-5375.
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