Shigawake

Shigawake is a municipality in the Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region of the province of Quebec in Canada. Shigawake is bordered to the west by Saint-Godefroi and to the east by Port-Daniel–Gascons.

Shigawake
Municipality
Saint Paul Church in Shigawake
Location within Bonaventure RCM
Shigawake Location in eastern Quebec
Coordinates: 48°06′N 65°05′W[1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Gaspésie– Îles-de-la-Madeleine
RCM	Bonaventure
Settled	Late 18th century
Constituted	December 15, 1924
Government [2]
• Mayor	Rolande Beebe
• Federal riding	Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj
• Prov. riding	Bonaventure
Area [2][3]
• Total	75.85 km2 (29.29 sq mi)
• Land	76.82 km2 (29.66 sq mi)
	There is an apparent contradiction between two authoritative sources.
Population  (2021)[3]
• Total	333
• Density	4.3/km2 (11/sq mi)
• Pop (2016-21)	14.0%
• Dwellings	167
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	G0C 3E0
Area codes	418 and 581
Highways	R-132
Website	municipalityshigawake.com

The place name is taken from the river that flows through the village and is of Mi'kmaq origin, meaning either "land of the rising sun" or "white water".^[1]

The Municipality of Shigawake has an eight kilometre stretch of coastline behind high red cliffs on the Gaspe Coast. It has been officially designated as an Anglophone community among the largely Francophone population of Quebec. The community is only home to, among many small houses, a municipal building, the Anglican church of St Paul's (built in the 1860s), and a former Rectory converted to the Community Centre. The United Church was decommissioned in 2012, formerly the site of a temperance hall.

Shigawake has held the Shigawake Fair annually since 1909, also now paired with the Shigawake Music Festival which has showcased local talent.^{[citation needed]}

Shigawake is also the site of Seagro, an organic fertiliser and composting firm.^{[citation needed]}

The oldest farmhouse on the entire coast continuously inhabited by one family, the Old Homestead, was built early in the first decade of the 1800s.^{[citation needed]} The founding of Shigawake is described in The Alford Saga, an eight book series of a romantic adventures by Paul Almond, an officer of the Order of Canada.

The area's fields, once so productive, are now used mainly for hay and its forests for harvest of sawlogs and firewood.^{[4][not specific enough to verify]}

History

It is believed that the first settlers were probably sailors on a ship transporting slaves at the end of the 18th century.^[1]

In 1864, its post office opened, and the parish was formed in 1873. But it was only on December 15, 1924, more than 50 years afer, that Shigawake was officially created by splitting away from the Township of Saint-Godefroy.^[1][5]

Demographics

Canada census – Shigawake community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	333 (+14.0% from 2016)	292 (-13.6% from 2011)	338 (-5.3% from 2006)
Land area	76.82 km2 (29.66 sq mi)	76.82 km2 (29.66 sq mi)	75.68 km2 (29.22 sq mi)
Population density	4.3/km2 (11/sq mi)	3.8/km2 (9.8/sq mi)	4.5/km2 (12/sq mi)
Median age	49.6 (M: 52.4, F: 48.0)	55.1 (M: 55.6, F: 54.3)	52.3 (M: 53.5, F: 51.2)
Private dwellings	167 (total)  144 (occupied)	171 (total)	163 (total)
Median household income	$55,600	$42,560	$.N/A

Notes: 2011 income data for this area has been suppressed for data quality or confidentiality reasons.
References: 2021^[6] 2016^[7] 2011^[8]

Historical Census Data - Shigawake, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1931 578 —     1941 642 +11.1% 1951 604 −5.9% 1956 609 +0.8% 1961 550 −9.7% 1966 493 −10.4%	Year Pop. ±% 1971 462 −6.3% 1976 516 +11.7% 1981 549 +6.4% 1986 492 −10.4% 1991 430 −12.6% 1996 302 −29.8%	Year Pop. ±% 2001 372 +23.2% 2006 357 −4.0% 2011 338 −5.3% 2016 292 −13.6% 2021 333 +14.0%
Source: Statistics Canada[9]

Mother tongue (2021):^[3]

• English as first language: 58.2%
• French as first language: 37.3%
• English and French as first language: 4.5%
• Other as first language: 0%

Government

List of former mayors:^[5]

• John A. Le Callais (1925–1929)
• Claude A. Skene (1929–1933)
• James P. Robinson (1933–1935, 1937–1941)
• Garvin Almond (1935–1937)
• Earle Almond (1941–1949)
• Edmund Vautier (1949–1953)
• Gillis Hayes (1953–1957)
• George Sullivan (1957–1973)
• Garry Hayes (1973–1987)
• Kenneth Duguay (1987–2013)
• Denzil Ross (2013–2017)
• Colette Dow (2017–2021)
• Rolande Couture-Beebe (2021–present)

Notable people

Major Sydney Valpy Radley-Walters of the Sherbrooke Fusiliers has lived in Shigawake, who in World War II was credited with putting out of action 18 enemy tanks and assault guns.^[10]

See also

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