Blanc-Sablon
{{Other uses|Blanc-Sablon (disambiguation)}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=July 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name = Blanc-Sablon
|official_name =
|native_name =
|other_name =
|settlement_type = Municipality
|image_skyline = Lourdes de Blanc-Sablon-Overview.JPG
|imagesize =
|image_caption =Quebec Labrador Peninsula,{{cite web |title=Quebec Labrador Peninsula |url=https://toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/Fiche.aspx?no_seq=285985 |website=Gouvernement of Quebec |publisher=Commission de Toponymy Quebec |access-date=23 August 2024 |date=18 June 1993 |quote=Over the years, many variations of the name have been used: Terraagricule (1558); Land of Labor (1575); Estotilandt (1597) or Estotilande (1656); Terra Cortereale (1597); New Britain (1656).}} Blanc-Sablon Bay, Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon
|image_flag =
|flag_size =
|image_seal =
|seal_size =
|image_shield =
|shield_size =
|nickname =
|motto =
|image_map = Blanc-Sablon Quebec location diagram.png
|map_caption = Location within Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent RCM
|pushpin_map = Quebec
|pushpin_label_position =
|pushpin_label = {{nowrap|Blanc-Sablon}}
|pushpin_map_caption =
|coordinates = {{coord|51|25|03|N|57|11|08|W|region:CA-QC|notes={{Cite cgndb|EOACK|Blanc-Sablon}}|display=inline,title}}
|coor_pinpoint =
|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = Canada
|subdivision_type1 = Province
|subdivision_name1 = Quebec
|subdivision_type2 = Region
|subdivision_name2 = Côte-Nord
|subdivision_type3 = RCM
|subdivision_name3 = Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent
|subdivision_type4 =
|subdivision_name4 =
|established_title = Settled
|established_date = 19th century
|established_title1 = Constituted
|established_date1 = January 1, 1990
|established_title2 =
|established_date2 =
|government_footnotes = {{mamrot |{{#property:P3856}}|access-date=2024-04-24}}
|government_type =
|leader_title = Mayor
|leader_name = Colin Shattler
|leader_title1 = Federal riding
|leader_name1 = Manicouagan
|leader_title2 = Provincial riding
|leader_name2 = Duplessis
|leader_title3 =
|leader_name3 =
|leader_title4 =
|leader_name4 =
|area_footnotes = {{cite web |title=Data table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Blanc-Sablon, Municipalité (MÉ) [Census subdivision], Quebec |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&SearchText=blanc&DGUIDlist=2021A00052498005&GENDERlist=1,2,3&STATISTIClist=1&HEADERlist=0 |website=www12.statcan.gc.ca |publisher=Government of Canada - Statistics Canada |access-date=March 21, 2022 |date=February 9, 2022}}
|area_magnitude =
|area_total_km2 = 381.85
|area_land_km2 = 234.98
|area_water_km2 =
|area_water_percent =
|area_blank1_title =
|area_blank1_km2 =
|elevation_footnotes =
|elevation_m = 2
|population_total = 1122
|population_as_of = 2021
|population_density_km2 = 4.8
|population_blank1_title = Pop (2016-21)
|population_blank1 = {{increase}} 0.9%
|population_density_blank1_km2 =
|population_blank2_title= Dwellings
|population_blank2 = 503
|population_note =
|timezone = AST
|utc_offset = -04:00
|timezone_DST =
|utc_offset_DST =
|postal_code_type = Postal code(s)
|postal_code = G0G 1W0
|area_codes = 418 and 581
|blank_name = Highways
|blank_info = {{jct|state=QC|QC|138}}
{{jct|province=NL|NL|510|name1=Trans-Labrador Highway}}
|blank1_name = GNBC Code
|blank1_info = EOACK
|blank2_name = NTS Map
|blank2_info = 012P06
|website = {{Official URL}}
|footnotes =
}}
Blanc-Sablon ({{IPA|fr|blɑ̃ sablɔ̃}}) is a municipality located on the shore of Blanc-Sablon Bay, in the Strait of Belle-Isle, Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent RCM, Côte-Nord, Quebec, Canada.
The municipality is made up of the merger of the villages Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon,{{cite web |title=Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon, toponymy |url=https://toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/Fiche.aspx?no_seq=37215 |website=Gouvernement of Quebec |publisher=Commission de Toponymy Quebec |access-date=24 August 2024 |language=fr |date=5 December 1968 |quote=Vikings, Aboriginals, Basques, Bretons, English and Acadians frequented, at different times, the waters of the territory of this important village on the Lower North Shore,}} Blanc-Sablon and Brador. With a population of 1,122 inhabitants in 2021, it is the most populous of Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent RCM.
History
The place was already known to early European explorers who may have named it after the fine white sand of the eponymous bay (blanc means "white", whereas sablon is the diminutive form of sable meaning "sand"). Or it may be named after Blancs-Sablons Cove in Saint-Malo, home town of Jacques Cartier, who landed at the place in 1534 and set up a cross near the current site of Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon.{{cite web |title=Blanc-Sablon |url=https://toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/Fiche.aspx?no_seq=236021 |website=Gouvernement of Quebec |publisher=Commission de Toponymy Quebec |access-date=24 August 2024 |language=fr |date=25 January 1990 |quote=This territory of nearly 880 km² includes the islands of Bassin, aux Perroquets, au Bois and Greenly, at the entrance to the Strait of Belle Isle.}}
During the 16th and 17th centuries, Basque and Portuguese fishermen seasonally frequented the area. In 1704, Augustin le Gardeur de Courtemanche, landlord of the lower Côte-Nord at that time, built Fort Pontchartrain at the current location of Brador. Permanent settlement did not begin until the 19th century with the arrival of French Canadians, Acadians, and Jersey settlers. In 1858, the Mission of Longue-Pointe-de-Blanc-Sablon was established and took the name Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon or Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes at the end of 19th century. In 1884, the post office opened.{{cite web |url=http://www.tourismlowernorthshore.com/blancsablon.asp |title=Discover the region > Our villages > Blanc Sablon |publisher=Tourism Lower North Shore |access-date=2010-09-30}}
The area was first incorporated in 1963 as part of the Municipality of Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent, but separated on January 1, 1990, and became the Municipality of Blanc-Sablon.
Fifty hectares of land in Blanc-Sablon were designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 2007, as they contain over 60 archaeological sites relating to 9000 years of human occupation, including the Archaic, Dorset and European periods.{{CRHP|15814|Blanc-Sablon|5 March 2012}}
Geography
File:Detroit Belle Isle 960718 11 3557 2360.jpg, Bvrd. Docteur-Camille-Marcoux, (Route nº 138), Blanc Sablon]]
Blanc-Sablon is located on the north coast of the Gulf of St. Lawrence near the entrance of the Strait of Belle Isle. Two significant bays, Brador and Blanc-Sablon, mark its shores and the headland that separates these bays is dominated by Mont Parent, a {{cvt|100|m}} high flat-topped hill named after Martin Parent, a local fisherman in the middle of the 19th century.{{cite web |url=http://www.toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/fiche.aspx?no_seq=145361 |title=Mont Parent (colline) |publisher=Commission de toponymie du Québec|access-date=2010-09-30|language=fr}} The municipality borders Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent to the south-west, and L'Anse-au-Clair, Labrador, to the north-east.
The estuary of the Brador River and Blanc-Sablon River has a lagoon designated barachois, separated from the sea by sand or gravel. Seawater enters at high tide.
The Blanc-Sablon archipelago is located off the coasts of the villages of Blanc-Sablon and Brador and includes Long Island, Lazy Island, Basin Island, Island of the Parrots, Wood Island and Greenly, housing the Bird Sanctuary of Brador Bay.
The municipality of Blanc-Sablon has several land protrusions into the Gulf of St. Lawrence; from east to west, they are Point Saint-Charles, Morel's Point, Lazy Point, Hunting Point, "À la Barque" Point, Cape Crow and Point Jones.
=Time zone=
Blanc Sablon is located in the Atlantic Time Zone (Atlantic Standard Time or AST). The offset of the applicable time relative to UTC is -04:00 In accordance with the applicable time and longitude, the average solar noon in Blanc Sablon occurs at 11:48. Blanc Sablon is the only village where local time coincides with zone time.{{Citation needed|date=July 2023}}
=Climate=
Blanc-Sablon experiences a subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification Dfc). It has short, cool summers, and very long and snowy winters: the mean snowfall is {{cvt|375.3|cm}}.{{cite web |author1=Valerie Céré |title=Blanc-Sablon and the storms extreme winter weather - The anthropology of disaster |url=https://tpquebec.ca/pdf/Conference-Neige%20ATPA%202013%20-%20Valerie%20Cere.pdf |publisher=Comité des mesures d'urgence de l'ATPA |access-date=22 August 2024 |language=fr |date=15 June 2013 |quote=Living in a hostile climate: adapting to it environment and being highly resilient: Blanc-Sablon}} Although its latitude is only 51 degrees north, and its climate is tempered by the Atlantic Ocean, it experiences a much colder climate than other localities at the same latitude due to the cold Labrador Current. For example, London, England, on the same latitude, has an annual mean that is nearly {{cvt|10|C-change}} milder, and inland Calgary, despite being around {{cvt|1,050|m}} above sea level, is still almost {{cvt|4|C-change}} warmer despite recording extreme minima about {{cvt|11|C-change}} colder.
{{Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon weatherbox}}
= Communities =
The municipality includes three villages: Blanc-Sablon, Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon, and Brador Bay.
== Blanc-Sablon ==
Blanc-Sablon is located about one kilometre east of Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon directly on the Blanc-Sablon Bay. It had a population of 116 in 2016.{{Cite web |title=Census profile, 2016 |url=https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=DPL&Code1=240224&Geo2=DPL&Code2=240204&Data=Count |access-date=March 20, 2022 |website=Statistics Canada| date=February 8, 2017 }} The wharf and the ferry to St. Barbe, Newfoundland and Labrador are located in the town.
==Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon==
Indigenous peoples, Vikings, Basques, Bretons, English and Acadians frequented, at different times, the waters of the territory of this important village on the Quebec-Labrador Peninsula. Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon ({{coord|51|24|41|N|57|12|11|W|region:CA-QC_type:city|notes={{Cite cgndb|EHBMK|Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon}}}}) is the largest community in the municipality, and is located on the headland that separates Brador Bay from Blanc-Sablon Bay. It was originally known as Longue-Pointe (Long Point) until the beginning of the 20th century. It has a small natural harbour, and long depended on the fishing business.{{cite web |url=http://www.toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/fiche.aspx?no_seq=37215 |title=Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon (village) |publisher=Commission de toponymie du Québec |access-date=2010-09-30 |language=fr}}
==Brador==
Brador or Brador Bay ({{coord|51|27|40|N|57|14|44|W|type:city_region:CA-QC|notes={{Cite cgndb|EFQKH|Brador}}}}) is on the eastern shore of the namesake bay, {{cvt|7|km}} north of the village of Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon. While known in the 18th century as Fort Pontchartrain and Phélipeaux Bay, its current name is the shortened form of Labrador. In French, the syllable la is a definite article, and in documents from the 17th and 18th century, this syllable was considered as such and separated from the rest of the name. François Martel de Brouague, the King's Commander of this region from 1714 to 1760, referred to this location as: "A la Baye de Phélipeaux, coste de la Brador" ("At the Bay of Phélipeaux, coast of the Brador").{{cite web |url=http://www.toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/ToposWeb/fiche.aspx?no_seq=7989 |title=Brador (hameau) |publisher=Commission de toponymie du Québec |access-date=2010-09-30 |language=fr}}
Demographics
=Population=
{{Canada census
|location = Blanc-Sablon
|2021_population=1,122 | 2021_pop_delta=+0.9 | 2021_land_area=234.98 | 2021_pop_density=4.8
|2021_median_age=46.0 | 2021_median_age_m=47.2 | 2021_median_age_f=45.2
|2021_total_pvt_dwell=503 |2021_occ_pvt_dwell=464 |2021_mean_hh_income=89,000
|2021_geocode=2021A00052498005 | 2021_access_date=2023-10-19
|2016_population=1112 | 2016_pop_delta=-0.5 | 2016_land_area=247.94 | 2016_pop_density=4.5
|2016_median_age=45.7 | 2016_median_age_m=45.7 | 2016_median_age_f=45.8
|2016_total_pvt_dwell=460 | 2016_mean_hh_income=81,664 | 2016_access_date=2022-03-21
|2011_population=1,118 | 2011_pop_delta=-11.5 | 2011_land_area=247.63 | 2011_pop_density=4.5
|2011_median_age=43.5 | 2011_median_age_m=43.7 | 2011_median_age_f=43.4
|2011_total_pvt_dwell=508 | 2011_mean_hh_income=66,241 | 2011_access_date=2014-01-28
|2006_population=1,263 | 2006_pop_delta=+5.2 | 2006_land_area=247.63 | 2006_pop_density=5.1
|2006_median_age=37.9 | 2006_median_age_m=37.1 | 2006_median_age_f=38.7
|2006_total_pvt_dwell=482 | 2006_mean_hh_income=50,817 | 2006_access_date=2012-04-04
|2001_population=1,201 | 2001_pop_delta=-3.8 | 2001_land_area=247.63 | 2001_pop_density=4.8
|2001_median_age=35.4 | 2001_median_age_m=36.1 | 2001_median_age_f=34.8
|2001_total_pvt_dwell=454 | 2001_mean_hh_income=47,124 | 2001_access_date=2012-04-04
|notes=
}}
{{Historical populations
| title= Historical Census Data - Blanc-Sablon, Quebec
| percentages =
| align = none
| cols = 2
| footnote =
| source = Statistics Canada1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
| 1991 |1211
| 1996 |1248
| 2001 |1201
| 2006 |1263
| 2011 |1118
| 2016 |1112
| 2021 |1122
}}
=Language=
Transportation
= Sea access =
Being at the eastern end of Quebec Côte-Nord region, Blanc-Sablon is served by the Bella Desgagnés{{cite web |title=The Bella Desgagnés |url=https://relaisnordik.com/en/the-bella-desgagnes/ |publisher=Relais Nordik |access-date=23 August 2024 |quote=... to better stabilize the ship, containers and other cargo, anti-roll tanks have been installed in addition to stabilizers to improve passenger comfort in rough seas.}} a passenger/cargo ship sailing, from the St. Lawrence Estuary to Gulf of St. Lawrence and Strait of Belle Isle, connecting with the coastal communities of Rimouski, Sept-Îles, Port-Menier (Anticosti Island), Havre-Saint-Pierre, Natashquan, Kegaska, La Romaine, Harrington Harbour, Tête-à-la-Baleine, La Tabatière, Saint-Augustin and Blanc-Sablon. This service is funded by the Government of Quebec.{{cite web |title=Maritime Service to Anticosti Island and the Lower North Shore |url=https://www.traversiers.com/en/our-ferries/maritime-service-to-anticosti-island-and-the-lower-north-shore |publisher=Quebec Ferry Society |access-date=24 August 2024 |date=2024 |quote=...providing a gateway to the natural beauty of Anticosti Island and the Lower North Shore that has fuelled many an imagination.}}
The ferry service's main goal is to make up for the {{cvt|425|km}} gap in Route 138, which remains unbuilt between Kegashka and Old Fort (in Bonne-Espérance).
Blanc-Sablon is also the northern terminus of a ferry service across the Strait of Belle Isle to the island of Newfoundland, mainly serving as a connection with nearby Labrador.{{cite web|url=https://www.tw.gov.nl.ca/ferryservices/schedules/j_pollo.html|title=St. Barbe - Blanc Sablon (Strait of Belle Isle Area)|publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador|date=January 31, 2020|access-date=February 25, 2020}} This {{cvt|28|km}}-long ferry service, operated by the Roll-on/roll-off MV Qajaq W,{{cite web |title=QAJAQ W Ro-Ro/Passenger Ship IMO: 9474060 |url=https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:353049/mmsi:316039093/imo:9474060/vessel:QAJAQ_W |access-date=24 August 2024 |date=2024 |quote=Roll-on/roll-off/Passenger Ship and is sailing under the flag of Canada.}} is funded entirely by the government of Newfoundland and Labrador and connects with a southern terminus at St. Barbe on Newfoundland island's Great Northern Peninsula. During winter months, ice conditions sometimes require the service to divert to Corner Brook instead of St. Barbe.{{cite news|url=https://www.saltwire.com/news/local/alternate-route-being-taken-for-labrador-ferry-413563/|title=Alternate route being taken for Labrador ferry|publisher=SaltWire Network|date=February 20, 2020|access-date=February 25, 2020}}
Ports of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the Côte-Nord Shore: Blanc-Sablon, Harrington Harbor, Natashquan, Havre-Saint-Pierre, Mingan, Port-Menier (Anticosti Island), Cap-aux-Meules (Îles-de-la-Madeleine).{{cite web |author1=Pierre Camu |title=Ports in the province of Quebec |url=https://www.erudit.org/fr/revues/cgq/1959-v3-n6-cgq2580/020193ar.pdf |website=Quebec geography notebooks |publisher=Department of Geography at Laval University - udit |access-date=13 October 2024 |pages=3 of 10 |language=fr |date=1959 |quote=Ports of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the Côte-Nord Shore: Blanc-Sablon, Harrington Harbor, Natashquan, Havre-Saint-Pierre, Mingan, Port-Menier (Anticosti Island), Cap-aux-Meules (Îles-de-la -Madeleine)}}{{cite web |title=Monthly and annual statistics Statistics on marine transportation occurrences |url=https://www.bst.gc.ca/eng/stats/marine/stats.html |website=Gouvernement of Canada |publisher=Transportation Safety Board of Canada |access-date=13 October 2024 |date=2024 |quote=Marine transportation Data and statistics Monthly and annual statistics, Monthly and Annual}}
File:N.M. Bella-Desgagnés 2019-05-20 Rimouski.jpg|Motor vessel Bella-Desgagnes loading at Rimouski-Est, port, St. Lawrence Estuary, Quebec
File:BlancSablon FerryWharf.JPG|Blanc-Sablon ferry terminal,{{cite web |title=St. Barbe – Blanc Sablon (Strait of Belle Isle Area) |url=https://www.gov.nl.ca/ti/ferryservices/schedules/j-pollo/ |website=MyGovNL and Online Services |publisher=Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Transportation and Infrastructure ministry |access-date=22 August 2024 |quote=MV Qajaq W ferry: Automobiles: 120 vehicles, including 8 tractor trailers Passengers: 300}} Blanc-Sablon Bay, Strait of Belle Isle, Quebec
File:2022-08-26 01 QAJAQ W - IMO 9474060.jpg|Labrador Marine Roll-on/roll-off cargo, QAJAQ W, leaving the terminal at St. Barbe, Strait of Belle Isle, Newfoundland
= Road access =
At present, Blanc-Sablon is inaccessible directly via the rest of the Quebec road network. From the west, Route 138 has been built to the village of Kegashka; then following a {{cvt|425|km}} gap, a {{cvt|69|km}} segment restarts at the village of Old Fort and continues to Blanc-Sablon, ending at the border with Labrador near L'Anse-au-Clair where it becomes the Trans-Labrador Highway (Route 510). To travel to the rest of Quebec from Blanc-Sablon, a traveller can take the Relais Nordik ferry (not drive-on/off, but can accommodate cars in shipping containers), or drive via Route 510 through Labrador for approximately {{cvt|1130|km}} to re-enter Quebec at the town of Fermont; then {{cvt|560|km}} of Route 389 from Fermont to Baie-Comeau, passing to the east of Manicouagan Reservoir. From there Route 138 leads west to points further on like Quebec City or Montreal. This trip by the north (between Baie-Comeau and Blanc-Sablon) is {{cvt|1722|km}}. Once Route 138 is eventually completed, the road distance between Baie-Comeau and Blanc-Sablon is estimated to be between {{cvt|1045|km}} to {{cvt|1067|km}}; thereby reducing the distance about 38%.
The Quebec government annually plans, invests and works towards connecting Quebec with Labrador via Blanc-Sablon with the completion of Route 138.
=Air travel=
The Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon Airport provides scheduled air service to Blanc-Sablon.
Education
Centre de services scolaire du Littoral operates:{{cite web|url=http://www.csdulittoral.qc.ca/ScriptorWeb/scripto.asp?resultat=277178# |title=Schools and centres|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923145027/http://www.csdulittoral.qc.ca/ScriptorWeb/scripto.asp?resultat=277178 |archive-date=2017-09-23|publisher=Commission scolaire du Littoral|access-date=September 23, 2017}}
- Mgr-Scheffer School (anglophone and francophone) in Lourdes-de-Blanc-Sablon
- St-Theresa School (for adults) in Blanc-Sablon
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Blanc-Sablon, Quebec}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20071012223910/http://www.blancsablon.com/ Blanc-Sablon tourist information page]
{{Geographic location
| title = Adjacent Municipal Subdivisions
| Centre = Blanc-Sablon
| North = Petit-Mécatina
| Northeast = Division No. 10, Newfoundland and Labrador
| East = L'Anse-au-Clair, Newfoundland and Labrador
| Southeast =
| South = Gulf of St. Lawrence
| Southwest =
| West = Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-St-Laurent
| Northwest =
}}
{{Le Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent RCM|state=expanded}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Municipalities in Quebec
Category:Incorporated places in Côte-Nord
Category:Hudson's Bay Company trading posts
Category:Designated places in Quebec