Pont-Rouge Explained

Pont-Rouge
Settlement Type:City
Pushpin Map:Canada Central Quebec
Pushpin Label Position:left
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in central Quebec
Coordinates:46.75°N -113°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Type2:Region
Subdivision Name2:Capitale-Nationale
Subdivision Type3:RCM
Subdivision Name3:Portneuf
Established Title:Settled
Established Date:ca. 1740
Established Title1:Constituted
Established Date1:January 3, 1996
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Mario Dupont
Leader Title1:Fed. riding
Leader Name1:Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier
Leader Title2:Prov. riding
Leader Name2:Portneuf
Area Total Km2:123.67
Area Land Km2:121.12
Area Urban Footnotes:[1]
Area Urban Km2:6.67
Population Total:10121
Population As Of:2021
Population Density Km2:83.6
Population Urban:6579
Population Density Urban Km2:986.3
Population Blank1 Title:Pop (2016-21)
Population Blank1: 9.5%
Population Blank2 Title:Dwellings
Population Blank2:4344
Timezone:EST
Utc Offset:−5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:−4
Postal Code Type:Postal code(s)
Postal Code:G3H
Area Codes:418 and 581
Blank Name:Highways

Pont-Rouge (pronounced as /fr/,) is a Canadian city along the Jacques-Cartier River in southern Quebec, Canada. In the 2021 Canadian census the population was 10,121 inhabitants.

Transportation had considerable influence on the development of the parish, mainly the two bridges and the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway bridge in 1874. The Royal Bridge (now called Pont Déry), was reconstructed several times because of the weakness of the centre of the bridge. This bridge served its purpose for the transportation of heavy loads and mail between Quebec and Montreal. The bridge was a toll bridge, and the money served the construction of a second bridge le pont Rouge, which was free. It united the western part to the eastern part of Dupont Street, named in honour of Father Charles-François Dupont, who was priest there from 1917 to 1933. A newer bridge has now replaced this bridge as of 2009.

History

The first settlers arrived around 1740, but real efforts to colonize the area came around 1769. In 1804, the Royal Bridge (now called Pont Déry) was built over the Jacques-Cartier River, and was Quebec's first toll bridge. In order to avoid paying toll, another bridge was built by locals in 1822, which was painted red in 1838.

On April 15, 1867, the archbishop of Quebec, Charles-François Baillargeon, founded the Parish of Sainte-Jeanne-de-Neuville from portions of Cap-Santé, Saint-Basile, and Neuville. A year later, the Parish Municipality of Sainte-Jeanne-de-Neuville was established (which was renamed to Sainte-Jeanne-de-Pont-Rouge in 1957), and its post office opened. In 1911, the village separated from the parish municipality to become the Village Municipality of Sainte-Jeanne de Neuville (which was renamed to Pont-Rouge in 1918).

The new City of Pont-Rouge was established when the Parish Municipality of Sainte-Jeanne-de-Pont-Rouge and the Village Municipality of Pont-Rouge merged on January 3, 1996.

Geography

The Jacques-Cartier River runs through the municipality from north-east to south-east and forms its boundary. The Rivière aux Pommes, a tributary of the Jacques-Cartier River, flows through the municipality from south-east to south-west. The Noire River crosses the south-east and flows south-west.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Pont-Rouge had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 121.12km2, it had a population density of in 2021.

Mother tongue (2021):

Government

List of successive mayors of current city:

List of former mayors of Pont-Rouge village:[2]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Pont-Rouge, Quebec [Population centre] Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population ]. www12.statcan.gc.ca . Government of Canada - Statistics Canada . 2025-10-06.
  2. Web site: Répertoire des entités géopolitiques: Pont-Rouge (village) 19.9.1911 - 3.1.1996 . www.mairesduquebec.com . Institut généalogique Drouin . 6 October 2025.