Harrington, Quebec

Harrington is a township municipality in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Argenteuil Regional County Municipality. It is located in the Laurentian Mountains, about 40 kilometres (25 mi) north-west of Lachute.

Harrington
Township municipality
Location within Argenteuil RCM
Harrington Location in central Quebec
Coordinates: 45°50′N 74°40′W[1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Laurentides
RCM	Argenteuil
Settled	1830
Constituted	July 1, 1855
Government [2]
• Mayor	Gabrielle Parr
• Federal riding	Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation
• Prov. riding	Argenteuil
Area [2][3]
• Total	249.91 km2 (96.49 sq mi)
• Land	233.65 km2 (90.21 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[3][4]
• Total	891
• Density	3.8/km2 (10/sq mi)
• Pop 2016-2021	5.3%
• Dwellings	1,339
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	J8G 2T1
Area code	819
Highways	R-327
Website	www.harrington.ca

Its population centres include Harrington, Lac-Keatley (45°47′08″N 74°36′09″W),^[5] Lac-MacDonald (45°52′25″N 74°35′11″W),^[6] Lakeview (45°52′56″N 74°34′17″W),^[7] Lost River (45°49′53″N 74°32′54″W),^[8] and Rivington (45°47′26″N 74°41′01″W).^[9]

Geography

Harrington is a land of lakes and rivers, stocked with abundant fish. The Rouge River is the main river flowing through it, and the largest lakes include Lake (Lac) MacDonald, Green Lake, and Lake Harrington, each attracting a large number summer cottage vacationers. Its territory has a characteristic appearance of the Laurentian region with dense forests, rising to an elevation of 457 metres (1,499 ft) in the north-east, which is 30 metres (98 ft) more than Mont Chauve which dominates Green Lake.^[10][11]

The Lost River flows for some miles from a spring that disappears under a calcareous rock between Gate Lake and Fraser Lake.^[12]

History

Harrington Township first appeared on the Gale and Duberger Map of 1795, but was not settled until 1830 when Scottish pioneers settled in the Lost River area in the east. In 1841, the township is officially established and in 1855, the township municipality was formed.^[11]

It is believed that the name Harrington may be attributed to a location in England, however, the local post office was identified under the name of Rivington between 1878 and 1961.^[11]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Harrington had a population of 891 living in 495 of its 1,339 total private dwellings, a change of 5.3% from its 2016 population of 846. With a land area of 233.65 km² (90.21 sq mi), it had a population density of 3.8/km² (9.9/sq mi) in 2021.^[3][4]

Canada census – Harrington community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	891 (+5.3% from 2016)	846 (-0.8% from 2011)	853 (+9.8% from 2006)
Land area	233.65 km2 (90.21 sq mi)	237.09 km2 (91.54 sq mi)	236.73 km2 (91.40 sq mi)
Population density	3.8/km2 (9.8/sq mi)	3.6/km2 (9.3/sq mi)	3.6/km2 (9.3/sq mi)
Median age	61.6 (M: 62.0, F: 61.2)	60.7 (M: 60.9, F: 60.5)	56.6 (M: 56.3, F: 56.9)
Private dwellings	1,339 (total)  495 (occupied)	1,379 (total)	1,361 (total)
Median household income	$55,200	$45,491	$n/a

Notes: 2021 Info based on amended population and dwelling counts.^[4]
References: 2021^[13] 2016^[14] 2011^[15]

Historical census populations – Harrington, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1871 760 —     1881 718 −5.5% 1891 720 +0.3% 1901 1,097 +52.4% 1911 538 −51.0% 1921 600 +11.5% 1931 613 +2.2% 1941 689 +12.4%	Year Pop. ±% 1951 642 −6.8% 1956 681 +6.1% 1961 688 +1.0% 1966 650 −5.5% 1971 698 +7.4% 1976 679 −2.7% 1981 679 +0.0% 1986 679 +0.0%	Year Pop. ±% 1991 729 +7.4% 1996 730 +0.1% 2001 785 +7.5% 2006 777 −1.0% 2011 843 +8.5% 2016 846 +0.4% 2021 891 +5.3%
2021 Population figure based on amended count. Source: Statistics Canada[4][16][17]

Canada Census Mother Tongue - Harrington, Quebec
Census		Total		French				English				French & English				Other
Year		Responses		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %		Count	Trend	Pop %
2021[3]		970		380	8.6%	39.2%		495	12.5%	51.0%		35	600.0%	3.6%		50	11.1%	5.2%
2016[14]		845		350	1.4%	41.4%		440	2.2%	52.1%		5	75.0%	0.6%		45	50.0%	5.3%
2011[15]		855		345	60.5%	40.4%		450	2.2%	52.6%		20	78.9%	2.3%		30	200.0%	3.5%
2006 [citation needed]		775		215	4.9%	27.7%		460	8.0%	59.4%		95	n/a%	12.3%		10	84.6%	1.3%
2001 [citation needed]		765		205	28.1%	26.8%		500	1.0%	65.4%		0	0.0%	0.0%		65	62.5%	8.5%
1996 [citation needed]		710		160	n/a	22.5%		505	n/a	71.1%		0	n/a	0.0%		40	n/a	5.6%

Local government

Harrington forms part of the federal electoral district of Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation and has been represented by Stéphane Lauzon of the Liberal Party since 2015. Provincially, Harrington is part of the Argenteuil electoral district and is represented by Agnès Grondin of the Coalition Avenir Québec since 2018.

Harrington federal election results^[18]

Year		Liberal		Conservative		Bloc Québécois		New Democratic		Green
	2021	52%	312	14%	82	25%	152	4%	24	0%	0
	2019	53%	310	14%	80	21%	123	5%	31	5%	32

Harrington provincial election results^[19]

Year		CAQ		Liberal		QC solidaire		Parti Québécois
	2018	19%	97	55%	285	6%	33	8%	44
	2014	8%	45	76%	436	1%	6	14%	80

List of current and former mayors:

• Ellen Lakoff (2001–2009)
• Keith Robson (2009–2012)
• Jacques Parent (2012–2021)
• Pierre Richard (2021–2022)
• Gabrielle Parr (2023-present)

List of current city councillors :

• Seat #1: Chantal Scapino
• Seat #2: Julie James
• Seat #3: Daniel St-Onge
• Seat #4: Robert Dewar
• Seat #5: Richard Francoeur
• Seat #6: Gerry Clark

Attractions

Buddhist Monastery of Tam Bao Son in the Township of Harrington.

The municipality of Harrington has 3 community centers on its territory:

• Lost River community center (LRCC), 2811 route 327
• Harrington Valley community center (HVCC), 420 chemin Harrington
• Harrington Golden Age (HGA), 259 chemin Harrington

Tourist attractions include:

• Auberge Val Carroll
• Đại Tòng Lâm Tam Bảo Sơn: First and largest Buddhist temple in Canada, founded in 1988 by Thich Thien Nghi. It houses the tallest Buddhist statue in Canada, Avalokiteshvara, who flies on a dragon to help people. It is the statue of the Buddha of compassion. The 28-metre colossus is the largest of its kind in Canada. Heavy with 360 tons of Chinese granite, it took 28 containers to transport it from Asia in separate pieces. The statue was inaugurated in 2015 in front of 10,000 devotees.
• Eco Spa Highland

Education

The Commission scolaire de la Rivière-du-Nord operates French-language public schools.^[20]

• École polyvalente Lavigne in Lachute

Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board operates English-language schools:

• Arundel Elementary School in Arundel serves a portion^[21]
• Laurentian Elementary School in Lachute serves a portion^[22]
• Grenville Elementary School in Grenville serves a portion^[23]
• Laurentian Regional High School in Lachute^[24]

See also

• List of anglophone communities in Quebec
• List of township municipalities in Quebec