Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia

Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃t‿alɛksi də matapedja]) is a village and municipality in the Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region of eastern Quebec, Canada.

Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia
Municipality
Location within Avignon RCM
St-Alexis-de-Matapédia Location in eastern Quebec
Coordinates: 47°58′N 67°03′W[1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Gaspésie– Îles-de-la-Madeleine
RCM	Avignon
Constituted	July 1, 1855
Government [2]
• Mayor	Cynthia Dufour
• Federal riding	Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj
• Prov. riding	Bonaventure
Area [2][3]
• Total	85.07 km2 (32.85 sq mi)
• Land	84.91 km2 (32.78 sq mi)
Population  (2021)[3]
• Total	519
• Density	6.1/km2 (16/sq mi)
• Pop (2016–21)	3.8%
• Dwellings	285
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	G0J 2E0
Area codes	418 and 581
Highways	No major routes
Website	www.matapedia lesplateaux.com

In addition to Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia itself, the municipality also includes the communities of Léonard-de-Matapédia and Saint-Benoît-de-Matapédia.

Its name comes from Alexis Mailloux (1801-1877), a Roman Catholic vicar general who presided over the founding of the parish, and from the Matapedia river and township, in turn from the Mi'kmaq word matapegiag, meaning "river which forks".^[1]

History

Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia ca. 1895

The place was first incorporated in 1845 as the Township Municipality of Matapédia. Its first inhabitants were Acadians from Rustico, Prince Edward Island, who arrived around 1860. That same year, a mission was established that became a parish in 1870.^[1]

The local post office opened in 1866 under the name Avignon, but was renamed to Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia in 1922. Sometime before the 1920s, the municipality had changed its status and name to the Parish Municipality of Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia.^[1]

In 1966, the Municipality of Saint-Benoit was merged into Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia.^[4]

In 2003, the Parish Municipality of Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia changed statutes to become a regular municipality.^[1]

Demographics

Canada census – Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	519 (+3.8% from 2016)	500 (-8.8% from 2011)	548 (-12.3% from 2006)
Land area	84.91 km2 (32.78 sq mi)	84.09 km2 (32.47 sq mi)	84.40 km2 (32.59 sq mi)
Population density	6.1/km2 (16/sq mi)	5.9/km2 (15/sq mi)	6.5/km2 (17/sq mi)
Median age	58.8 (M: 56.8, F: 61.2)	57.3 (M: 56.3, F: 58.4)	54.3 (M: 52.5, F: 57.1)
Private dwellings	285 (total)  249 (occupied)	283 (total)  232 (occupied)	286 (total)
Median household income	$48,000	$39,765	$34,713

References: 2021^[5] 2016^[6] 2011^[7]

Historical Census Data – Saint-Alexis-de-Matapédia, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1921 1,923 —     1931 933 −51.5% 1941 757 −18.9% 1951 969 +28.0% 1956 1,001 +3.3% 1961 979 −2.2%	Year Pop. ±% 1966 1,314 +34.2% 1971 1,101 −16.2% 1976 1,022 −7.2% 1981 904 −11.5% 1986 851 −5.9% 1991 786 −7.6%	Year Pop. ±% 1996 747 −5.0% 2001 665 −11.0% 2006 625 −6.0% 2011 548 −12.3% 2016 500 −8.8% 2021 519 +3.8%
Population counts are not adjusted for boundary changes. Source: Statistics Canada[4][8]

See also

• List of municipalities in Quebec