Escuminac, Quebec

Escuminac (French pronunciation: [ɛskyminak]) is a municipality in Quebec, Canada, on the north shore of the Restigouche River.

Escuminac
Municipality
Skyline of Escuminac⁩ Flats
Location within Avignon RCM
Escuminac Location in eastern Quebec
Coordinates: 48°07′N 66°29′W[1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Gaspésie– Îles-de-la-Madeleine
RCM	Avignon
Settled	2nd half of 18th century
Constituted	October 10, 1907
Government [2]
• Mayor	Robert Bruce Wafer
• Federal riding	Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj
• Prov. riding	Bonaventure
Area [2][3]
• Total	108.93 km2 (42.06 sq mi)
• Land	108.70 km2 (41.97 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[3]
• Total	575
• Density	5.3/km2 (14/sq mi)
• Pop (2016-21)	5.7%
• Dwellings	317
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	G0C 2M0
Area codes	418 and 581
Highways	R-132
Website	www.escuminac.org

In addition to Escuminac itself, the municipality also includes the communities of Escuminac Flats, Fleurant, and Pointe-à-la-Garde.

According to missionary Joseph-Étienne Guinard, Escuminac is a Mi'kmaq word meaning "here are small fruits", originally identifying a point of land jutting into the Restigouche River. But this translation has been disputed as fanciful. It has been spelled in various ways over time, including Semenac, Scamanac, Scaumenac, Escouminac, Scoumenac, and Scouminac.^[1]

History

Village of Pointe-à-la-Garde, Bonaventure County, 1927

The area was first colonized by American Loyalist farmers and loggers.^[1]

In 1845, the Municipality of Shoolbred, which included the area now known as Nouvelle, was first incorporated. It was named after John Shoolbred, who was the first owner of the seignory granted there. In 1847, the municipality was abolished but re-established in 1855. From 1861 on, it was known as the Township Municipality of Nouvelle-et-Shoolbred.^[4]

In 1907, the township municipality was split into the Municipalities of Nouvelle-et-Shoolbred-Partie-Nord-Est (that became Nouvelle in 1953) and Nouvelle-et-Shoolbred-Partie-Sud-Ouest. This latter one was renamed to Escuminac in 1912.^[1]

Demographics

Population

Canada census – Escuminac community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	575 (+5.7% from 2016)	544 (-7.5% from 2011)	588 (-8.8% from 2006)
Land area	108.70 km2 (41.97 sq mi)	108.20 km2 (41.78 sq mi)	108.43 km2 (41.87 sq mi)
Population density	5.3/km2 (14/sq mi)	5.0/km2 (13/sq mi)	5.4/km2 (14/sq mi)
Median age	52.4 (M: 52.4, F: 52.4)	49.0 (M: 47.3, F: 50.6)	46.1 (M: 45.7, F: 46.6)
Private dwellings	317 (total)  268 (occupied)	297 (total)  241 (occupied)	326 (total)
Median household income	$60,800	$49,280	$.N/A

Notes: 2011 income data for this area has been suppressed for data quality or confidentiality reasons.
References: 2021^[5] 2016^[6] 2011^[7]

Historical Census Data - Escuminac, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1911 468 —     1921 528 +12.8% 1931 588 +11.4% 1941 642 +9.2% 1951 816 +27.1% 1956 847 +3.8% 1961 849 +0.2%	Year Pop. ±% 1966 829 −2.4% 1971 727 −12.3% 1976 674 −7.3% 1981 652 −3.3% 1986 659 +1.1% 1991 632 −4.1% 1996 661 +4.6%	Year Pop. ±% 2001 604 −8.6% 2006 645 +6.8% 2011 588 −8.8% 2016 544 −7.5% 2021 575 +5.7%
Source: Statistics Canada[8]

Language

Mother tongue (2021):^[3]

• English as first language: 23.5%
• French as first language: 74.8%
• English and French as first language: 2.6%
• Other as first language: 0%

See also

• Escuminac River
• Escuminac, New Brunswick
• Chaleur Bay
• List of anglophone communities in Quebec
• List of municipalities in Quebec