| Grandes-Piles | |
| Settlement Type: | Village municipality |
| Pushpin Map: | Canada Central Quebec |
| Pushpin Label Position: | left |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in central Quebec |
| Coordinates: | 46.6833°N -116°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | Mauricie |
| Subdivision Type3: | RCM |
| Subdivision Name3: | Mékinac |
| Established Title: | Settled |
| Established Date: | c. 1850 |
| Established Title1: | Constituted |
| Established Date1: | August 10, 1885 |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Jean-Pierre Ratelle |
| Leader Title1: | Federal riding |
| Leader Name1: | Saint-Maurice—Champlain |
| Leader Title2: | Prov. riding |
| Leader Name2: | Laviolette |
| Area Total Km2: | 124.80 |
| Area Land Km2: | 116.97 |
| Population Total: | 493 |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Density Km2: | 4.2 |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Pop 2016-2021 |
| Population Blank1: | 18.8% |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Dwellings |
| Population Blank2: | 324 |
| Timezone: | EST |
| Utc Offset: | −5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | −4 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code(s) |
| Postal Code: | G0X 1H0 |
| Area Code: | 819 |
| Blank Name: | Highways |
| Blank Info: | |
| Blank Name Sec2: | Census profile |
| Blank Info Sec2: | https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&SearchText=Grandes-piles&GENDERlist=1&STATISTIClist=1&DGUIDlist=2021A00052435040 |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | MAMROT info |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | 35040 |
| Blank2 Name Sec2: | Toponymie info |
| Blank2 Info Sec2: | 228457 |
Grandes-Piles is a village municipality in the Mauricie region of the province of Quebec in Canada.
Located in Radnor Township, this small village is located on a cliff at north of Grand-Mère, overlooking the Saint-Maurice River on the east bank. The village faces the village of Saint-Jean-des-Piles. Once annually ice bridge connecting the two villages were built from December to March. The northwestern part of the municipality faces the La Mauricie National Park, located on the west bank of the Saint-Maurice River.
This town was the birthplace of the floating timber in Mauricie, which stopped in 1996 after 150 years. Grandes-Piles proved to be a historic landmark in the forestry industry. Since 1996, the reopening of the waterway free of floating logs, the Saint-Maurice River offers to boaters a large choice for water sports and a paradise for sailing. In winter, the frozen river and snowy cliffs and forest become a huge area for winter sports. Boating is generally done well between the dam of Grand-Mère and the dam of La Tuque, especially when the water is high.
The lakes of the municipal flow into one of the three following rivers:
Archange Lake is on the border of Grandes-Piles and Sainte-Thècle.
The name of Grandes-Piles (literally "large piles") has uncertain origin. One of the best-known but false explanations is that it referred to a stack of logs entanglement on the rocks of the Saint-Maurice that inspired the early settlers. Another explanation claims that it referred to the large rocks used by the indigenous Americans to grind grain. It may also refer to the stack of stratums, horizontal sedimentary layers that are exposed in this part of the Mauricie.
It is twinned with the city of Clamecy, Nièvre in France since 1996.
The first settlers of Grandes-Piles arrived circa 1850 and were drawn to the area because of the large stands of white and red pine. In 1852, the Norcross & Philips Company obtained the logging rights there. From 1852 to 1855, the Saint-Maurice River from La Tuque to Trois-Rivières was dredged and prepared for log driving, and Grandes-Piles became the gateway to lumberjacks and log drivers. In 1878, the village's first sawmill was built, followed by an industrial boom which led to the construction of a railway between Trois-Rivières and Grandes-Piles.[1]
In 1882, the post office opened. In 1885, the village was incorporated as the Parish Municipality of Saint-Jacques-des-Piles, named in honour of Jacques Buteux. At that time, it was the main transportation hub for the interior areas of the Mauricie since it was located at the head of navigation on the Saint-Maurice, and had warehouses and rail access. In 1890, 14 coal furnaces were installed and iron was produced in the town until 1920. In 1925, the road to Saint-Jacques-des-Piles was built.[1]
In 1966, Saint-Jacques-des-Piles was renamed to Grandes-Piles, and in 1988, it changed its status to Village Municipality. In 1997, the Compagnie de flottage du St-Maurice, the company responsible for log driving on the Saint-Maurice, ceased operations and the industrial waterfront of Grandes-Piles was reclaimed for tourism.[1]
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Grandes-Piles had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 116.97km2, it had a population density of in 2021.[2]
| 2021 | 18.8 % | 57.6 years | ||
| 2016 | 15.0 % | 57.0 years | ||
| 2011 | 3.1 % | 52.2 years | ||
| 2006 | 6.4% | – | ||
| 2001 | 0.0% | – | ||
| 1996 | 2.2% | – | ||
| 1991 | – | – | ||
| 1986 | – | – |
Mother tongue:
Grandes-Piles reserve several attractions for visitors on the East banks of the Saint-Maurice River: