| Sherbrooke | |
| Official Name: | Ville de Sherbrooke |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Image Blank Emblem: | Ville_de_Sherbrooke.svg |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Logo |
| Nickname: | Queen of the Eastern Townships |
| Motto: | Ne quid nimis |
| Pushpin Map: | Canada Southern Quebec#Canada Quebec#Canada |
| Pushpin Label Position: | top |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of Sherbrooke in Quebec |
| Coordinates: | 45.4°N -125°W |
| Coordinates Footnotes: | [1] |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Canada |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Type3: | RCM |
| Subdivision Name1: | Quebec |
| Subdivision Name2: | Estrie |
| Subdivision Name3: | None |
| Established Title: | Settled |
| Established Date: | 1793 |
| Established Title1: | Constituted |
| Established Date1: | 1 January 2002 |
| Parts Type: | Boroughs |
| P1: | Brompton |
| Government Footnotes: | [2] |
| Government Type: | Sherbrooke City Council |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Évelyne Beaudin |
| Leader Title1: | Federal riding |
| Leader Name1: | Compton—Stanstead / Sherbrooke |
| Area Footnotes: | [3] |
| Area Total Km2: | 367.10 |
| Area Land Km2: | 353.40 |
| Area Urban Km2: | 102.61 |
| Area Metro Km2: | 1458.10 |
| Elevation Min M: | 128 |
| Population Total: | 172950 |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Density Km2: | 489.4 |
| Population Urban: | 151157 |
| Population Density Urban Km2: | 1473.1 |
| Population Metro: | 227398(19th) |
| Population Density Metro Km2: | 156 |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Pop 2016–2021 |
| Population Blank1: | 7.2% |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Dwellings |
| Population Blank2: | 86019 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code(s) |
| Postal Code: | J1C to J1R |
| Area Code: | 819 |
| P2: | Fleurimont |
| P3: | Jacques-Cartier |
| P4: | Lennoxville |
| P5: | Mont-Bellevue |
| P6: | Rock Forest–Saint-Élie–Deauville |
| Leader Title2: | Prov. riding |
| Leader Name2: | Richmond / Saint-François / Sherbrooke |
| Area Urban Footnotes: | [4] |
| Elevation Max M: | 378 |
| Timezone: | EST |
| Utc Offset: | −05:00 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | −04:00 |
| Blank2 Name: | NTS Map |
| Blank3 Name: | GNBC Code |
| Blank3 Info: | EIDHN[5] |
| Blank Name Sec2: | GDP (Sherbrooke) |
| Blank Info Sec2: | CA$8.0 billion (2016)[6] |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | GDP per capita (Sherbrooke) |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | CA$37,797 (2016) |
Sherbrooke (pronounced as /fr-CA/) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) and census division (CD) of Quebec, coextensive with the city of Sherbrooke. With 172,950 residents at the Canada 2021 Census,[3] it is the sixth largest city in the province and the 30th largest in Canada. The Sherbrooke Census Metropolitan Area had 227,398 inhabitants, making it the fourth largest metropolitan area in Quebec and 19th in Canada.
Sherbrooke is the primary economic, political, cultural, and institutional centre of Estrie, and was known as the Queen of the Eastern Townships at the beginning of the 20th century.
There are eight institutions educating 40,000 students and employing 11,000 people, 3,700 of whom are professors, teachers and researchers. The direct economic effect of these institutions exceeds one billion dollars. The proportion of university students is 10.32 students per 100 inhabitants, giving Sherbrooke the largest concentration of students in Quebec.[7]
Sherbrooke rose as a manufacturing centre in the 1800s, and today the service sector is prominent.
The Sherbrooke region is surrounded by mountains, rivers, and lakes. There are several ski hills nearby and various tourist attractions in regional flavour. Mont-Bellevue Park, a large park in the city, is used for downhill skiing.
The city was named in 1818 for John Coape Sherbrooke, a former Governor General of Canada.[8]
First Nations settled the region 8,000-3,000 years ago.[9] The Abenaki called it Ktinékétolékouac/Kchi Nikitawtegwak ('the large forks'),[10] or Shacewanteku (where one smokes).[1]
The first non-native settler was the farmer Jean-Baptiste Nolain, in 1779.[1] The area was first surveyed in 1792.[11] Americans from Vermont built mills in the area in 1802. Gilbert Hyatt led a group of loyalists, who settled around 1803. He dammed the Magog River and a gristmill and a sawmill were soon built nearby. The settlement was then known as Hyatt's Mills.[12]
The first immigrants from England arrived in 1815.[13] The British American Land Company was formed in 1832[14] to acquire and develop almost 1100000acres of Crown land and other lands in the area. It prioritized speculation over immigration.[15]
In 1852 a railway linked Montreal and Portland, Maine via Sherbrooke. By the 1890s there were rail connections to Boston, Halifax, and New York City.
Immigration from the rest of Quebec began in 1850, and by 1871 francophones were in the majority.[13]
By the turn of the 20th century, Sherbrooke was a thriving industrial city, with manufacturing benefiting from locally-produced hydroelectricity. From the 1950s, some the steel and textile industries declined, giving way to government services and education.
As part of the 2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec, the city grew considerably on 1 January 2002, when it absorbed Ascot, Bromptonville, Deauville, Fleurimont, Lennoxville, Rock Forest, and Saint-Élie-d'Orford. Part of Stoke was also annexed to the newly expanded Sherbrooke.
In 2012, a local biochemical factory suffered an explosion, which killed 2, and injured 19, some severely. A large toxic cloud enveloped part of the city, raising health concerns.[16] [17]
Located at the confluence of the Saint-François (St. Francis) and Magog rivers in the heart of the Eastern Townships and the French: italics=no|[[Estrie]] administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) and census division (CD) of Quebec, coextensive with the city of Sherbrooke. Its geographical code is 43.
Sherbrooke has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb), with long, cold, and snowy winters, warm summers, and short but crisp springs and autumns. Highs range from -5.8C in January to 24.6C in July. In an average year, there are 34 nights at or colder than, and 6.5 nights at or colder than ; 4.1 days will see highs reaching . Annual snowfall is large, averaging at 287cm (113inches), sometimes falling in May and October. Precipitation is not sparse any time of the year, but is the greatest in summer and fall and at its least from January to April, totalling 1100mm annually.
The highest temperature ever recorded in Sherbrooke was 36.7C on 1 & 2 July 1931.[18] The coldest temperature ever recorded was -41.2C on 15 January 2004.[19]
The city includes several neighbourhoods:
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Sherbrooke had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of 353.4km2, it had a population density of in 2021.[20]
86.4% of Sherbrooke residents spoke French as a first language in 2021, while those whose mother tongue was English accounted for 3.9%. The next most common first languages were Spanish (2%), Arabic (1.3%) and Dari (0.7%)
As of 2021, approximately 88.7% of Sherbrooke residents were white, while 9.6% were visible minorities and 1.7% were Indigenous. The largest visible minority groups in Sherbrooke were black (3.1%), Latin American (2%), Arab (1.7%), and West Asian (1%).
| 2021[21] | 2016[22] | 2011[23] | 2006[24] | 2001[25] | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 148,235 | 143,110 | 140,695 | 137,040 | 70,625 | ||||||||||
| Black | 5,215 | 3,515 | 2,530 | 1,780 | 745 | ||||||||||
| Middle Eastern | 4,530 | 3,235 | 1,825 | 1,410 | 590 | ||||||||||
| Latin American | 3,410 | 2,705 | 2,110 | 2,005 | 690 | ||||||||||
| Indigenous | 2,820 | 1,720 | 1,345 | 865 | 140 | ||||||||||
| East Asian | 965 | 655 | 475 | 620 | 105 | ||||||||||
| Southeast Asian | 760 | 530 | 605 | 390 | 260 | ||||||||||
| South Asian | 710 | 450 | 455 | 310 | 85 | ||||||||||
| Other/Multiracial | 540 | 340 | 210 | 170 | 40 | ||||||||||
| Total responses | 167,180 | 156,260 | 150,255 | 144,595 | 73,285 | ||||||||||
| Total population | 172,950 | 161,323 | 154,601 | 147,427 | 75,916 | ||||||||||
| +Ethnic origin (2021) | |||
| Ethnic origin | Population | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian | 57,945 | 34.6 | |
| French | 43,525 | 26.0 | |
| Québécois | 21,100 | 12.6 | |
| Irish | 8,400 | 5.0 | |
| North American Aboriginal | 7,605 | 4.5 | |
| English | 4,570 | 2.7 | |
| Scottish | 3,245 | 1.9 | |
| Italian | 2,790 | 1.6 | |
| German | 2,305 | 1.3 |
The Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) comprises the cities of Sherbrooke, Magog and Waterville, the municipalities of Ascot Corner, Compton, Saint-Denis-de-Brompton, Stoke and Val-Joli; the township municipalities of Hatley and Orford; and the village municipality of North Hatley. The population in 2021 was 227,398. The median age was 43.
Approximately 90.5% of the greater Sherbrooke area residents were white, while 7.7% were visible minorities and 1.8% were Aboriginal.[3]
French was mother tongue to 87.3% of residents. The next most common mother tongues were English (4.5%), Spanish (1.6%), Arabic (1.0%) Dari (0.5%), Mandarin (0.2%), Portuguese (0.2%) and Serbian (0.2%).[3]
About 55.7% of the population identified as Catholic in 2021 while 32.2% said they had no religious affiliation, 2.9% were Muslim, 0.5% Anglican, 0.5% Eastern Orthodox, 0.4% Jehovah's Witness and 0.4% Baptist. United Church and Pentecostals made up 0.3% of the population each while buddhist made 0.2%.
Sherbrooke, which is the economic centre of Estrie, is a significant cultural, industrial, and academic hub in the province. The city is directly served by two railways: the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad and the Canadian Pacific Railway. Sherbrooke is also served by four highways as well as the regional airport named Sherbrooke Airport but located in the nearby city of Cookshire-Eaton. Sherbrooke Airport no longer offers scheduled passenger services as of March 2010.
According to data from the Institut de la statistique du Québec, average personal income per capita in the Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) of Sherbrooke amounted to in 2010.[26] Estrie's GDP for the same year was $.[27]
The hockey equipment manufacturer Sherwood was founded in Sherbrooke in 1949. The city is also home to the hockey puck manufacturer Inglasco.
In the summer season, several festivals, concerts, and events are held in the city, such as the Fête du Lac des Nations, Sherblues & Folk, and the Festival des traditions du monde. Come winter, the city hosts the Carnaval de Sherbrooke.
The city has British architectural heritage, as seen in the buildings in Vieux-Nord.
Sherbrooke has the fourth largest theatre in Quebec, the Maurice O'Bready University Cultural Centre of Sherbrooke (Salle Maurice-O’bready du centre culturel de l’Université de Sherbrooke). Music, theatre, and dance shows are staged there. The Centennial Theatre of Bishop's University also hosts music and dance concerts from around the world. The Vieux Clocher, owned by the Université de Sherbrooke, has two stages, the primary being used by various music groups and comedians from around the province. The Théâtre Granada, designated as a historical site by the Canadian government, holds music concerts. It has retained its original architecture since its opening. The Petit Théâtre de Sherbrooke, located downtown, presents musicals and plays for children.[29]
Since 2007, the Centre des arts de la scène Jean-Besré (CASJB), built by the city with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Communications, has assisted in the creation and production of material for the region's artistic community.[30] It serves as the location for training theatre, music, and dance professionals. It contains three rehearsal studios, a production room, a decoration workshop, and a costume workshop, as well as administrative offices for each of its resident companies.
Situated along lac des Nations, this park is about away from the downtown area and is connected to the lac des Nations promenade. It contains several sports facilities including soccer fields and tennis courts. Several festivals are held here including the Fête du Lac des Nations, the Carnaval de Sherbooke, the festivities for the Fête Nationale and Canada Day.
This park is the largest in Sherbrooke, with an area of . Situated partially on the campus of the Université de Sherbrooke, it is managed by the city and developed by volunteer organization Regroupement du Mont-Bellevue. Within the park are mounts Bellevue and John-S.-Bourque, the former of which has a small ski station. The park is also used for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, walking, and tubing in winter; as well as hiking, mountain biking, archery, tennis, and jogging in summer. The park contains a total of of trails and several different types of ecosystems.[32]
This park was established on an old maple grove that belonged to Major Henry Beckett between 1834 and 1870. The property remained in his family until it was acquired by the city in 1963.[33] In 2000, the Ministère de Ressources naturelles et de la Faune recognized the property as an old-growth forest.[34] The oldest tree is said to be 270 years old.[35] The park is maintained, protected and promoted by a volunteer group. Several trails have been built by the city which are open year-round. Within the park, there are several artifacts left behind by Beckett, such as foundations, wells, and farm equipment.
Situated west of downtown on the bank of the Magog River, this park is open to several outdoor activities such as swimming and beach volleyball. Bicycles, canoes, kayaks, paddle boats, and dragon boats are available for rent. There is an interpretation centre with an emphasis on the reptiles and amphibians of the region as well as a boutique.
At the heart of the Rock Forest–Saint-Élie–Deauville borough, this park is equipped for soccer, tennis, baseball, beach volleyball, and has a playground and an outdoor pool.
Formerly called Parc Central de Fleurimont, this park is situated in the borough of Fleurimont, and mirrors Central Park of Rock Forest-Saint-Élie-Deauville. In early July, the Pif Classic baseball tournament is held in the park, and in August, it hosts the Festival des Traditions du Monde.
Across Terrill Street from one another, these parks are situated just east of downtown. Inside these parks lie pedestrian trails, Olympic-size soccer fields, a handicap accessible outdoor pool, and a sports complex.[36] This multifunctional facility, called the Centre MultiSport Roland-Dussault, has an artificial turf allowing local teams the opportunity to practise indoor soccer, baseball, football, rugby, and so on. There is a hockey arena.
Located near the Saint-François River, this marsh was developed by CHARMES, a non-profit management corporation that seeks to promote ecotourism in and around Sherbrooke.[37] The park is located on of land and allows visitors access to wooden piers and observation towers, where there are over 50 tree and shrub species and birds.[38]
The Sherbrooke Expos of the Ligue de Baseball Majeur du Québec, an amateur baseball league, play their home games at Amedée Roy Stadium.
The city also hosted some games of the 2002 World Junior Baseball Championship,[39] and the 2013 Canada Games.[40]
Historically, several professional teams based in Sherbrooke competed in Minor League Baseball or in independent baseball leagues:[41]
| Season(s) | Team | League | Classification | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940 | Sherbrooke Braves | Class B | ||
| 1946 | Class C | |||
| 1947 | Sherbrooke Black Sox | Quebec Provincial League | Independent | |
| 1948–1949 | Provincial League | |||
| 1950–1951 | Class C | |||
| 1953–1955 | Sherbrooke Indians | |||
| 1972–1973 | Double-A |
The Sherbrooke Phoenix is a junior hockey team playing in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League.
The Sherbrooke Canadiens competed in the American Hockey League from 1984 to 1990.
Sherbrooke is the seat of the judicial district of Saint-François.[42]
Local governance is provided by the Sherbrooke City Council. The mayor is Évelyne Beaudin.[43]
Under the 2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec, Sherbrooke merged with most of the suburban municipalities in the surrounding area: Rock Forest, Saint-Élie-d'Orford, Deauville, Fleurimont, Bromptonville, Ascot, and Lennoxville. This resulted in the creation of six Boroughs of Sherbrooke: Brompton, Fleurimont, Lennoxville, Mont-Bellevue, Rock Forest–Saint-Élie–Deauville, and Jacques-Cartier. Each of the boroughs is subdivided into electoral districts, with the number varying based on population. For example, there are only two districts in Brompton, which only has 6,314 inhabitants, whereas Fleurimont (pop. 40,824) has five. Sherbrooke has 21 districts total, for which the average population is 7,200 inhabitants.
| Borough | Population | City Councillors | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brompton | 5,956 | 3 | |
| Fleurimont | 41,276 | 5 | |
| Jacques-Cartier | 30,229 | 4 | |
| Lennoxville | 5,195 | 3 | |
| Mont-Bellevue | 33,377 | 4 | |
| Rock Forest–Saint-Élie–Deauville | 29,191 | 4 |
Sherbrooke is split into the federal electoral districts of Sherbrooke, represented by Élisabeth Brière of the Liberal party of Canada and Compton—Stanstead, represented by Marie-Claude Bibeau of the Liberals.
Provincially, Sherbrooke is divided into three electoral districts. Sherbrooke is represented by Christine Labrie of the Québec solidaire (QS), Saint-François is represented by Guy Hardy of the PLQ and Richmond is represented by Karine Vallières of the PLQ.
| Liberal | Conservative | Bloc Québécois | New Democratic | Green | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 37% | 31,803 | 14% | 12,239 | 30% | 26,097 | 12% | 10,636 | 3% | 2,347 | ||||||
| 2019 | 31% | 27,575 | 11% | 9,873 | 28% | 24,967 | 23% | 20,409 | 5% | 4,188 | ||||||
| CAQ | Liberal | QC solidaire | Parti Québécois | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 31% | 26,790 | 22% | 19,132 | 28% | 23,722 | 16% | 13,437 | |||||
| 2014 | 19% | 15,494 | 36% | 29,608 | 10% | 8,355 | 32% | 26,133 | |||||
In 2007, the crime rate was 5,491 per 100,000.[44]
Sherbrooke does not host any units from the Regular Force with the exception of a recruiting centre, but four Primary Reserve units are stationed in the city:
A Canadian military artifact is preserved at the William Street Armoury, the Sherman tank "Bomb" which helped liberate Europe fighting with the Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment and is the only Canadian tank to have landed on the Normandy beach on D-Day and fought through to VE Day without being knocked out.
Transdev Limocar provides bus service to Montreal via Granby and Magog. Formerly, Autobus Jordez linked Sherbrooke to Drummondville and Trois-Rivières, and also to Victoriaville and Quebec City, but since the company lost their licence to operate heavy vehicles,[45] they have sold their licence to Autobus La Québécoise, who now provide the service.
Société de transport de Sherbrooke (STS) provides bus service within the city. It operates 18 bus routes, 10 minibus routes, 7 express routes, 3 taxibus routes, and 3 microbus routes.
The city is located at the eastern terminus of A-10, and directly on the Autoroute Trans-Québécoise (A-55). A-10 provides a direct freeway connection to Montreal and points west, while A-55 connects directly to Trois-Rivières, Shawinigan, and points north, as well as to Interstate 91 to the south (Vermont). A-410 and A-610 are the southern and northern bypass roads, respectively.
The last passenger train for the city was VIA Rail's Montreal – Saint John, New Brunswick Atlantic, which ended service in 1994. There have been recent proposals to provide rail service from Montreal to Boston with a stop in Sherbrooke.[46]
Sherbrooke Airport, in Cookshire-Eaton is just east of the city. There are currently no scheduled flights operating out of the airport.
The suburban Sherbrooke University Hospital ("CHUS"[47] or "Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbooke) has over 5,200 employees, including 550 doctors. It includes a clinical research facility, the Étienne-Lebel Research Centre.
Education represents an important part of Sherbrooke, both as part of the city's character and as a principal domain of employment, employing about 11,000 people in its colleges and universities. The city has approximately 40,000 postsecondary students, of which about 17,000 are university students.[48]
Sherbrooke has five academic institutions that make up the Sherbrooke University Pole, providing both English and French education. Students in university comprise a total 10.32% of the city's population, the highest concentration in the province.
The city is the location of one French-language university, the Université de Sherbrooke, which alone has more than 31,000 students annually. The programs are split among 8 different faculties, the largest of which being in education, medicine, and management with around 7,900, 5,000 and 4,800 students per year respectively.[49] 3,000 of the university's students are international students, coming from around 100 different countries and territories. About half of the foreign students come from France, as they are exempt from additional tuition fees as part of a student mobility agreement between the Québec and French governments.[50] The university is split into three different campuses: the main campus, the Health campus located in upper Fleurimont, and the campus in Longueuil.
One of the province's three English-language universities, Bishop's University, is also located in Sherbrooke, more specifically in the borough of Lennoxville. The school brings in around 3,000 students annually, mainly for undergraduate programs. It is subdivided into three faculties and schools, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the School of Education, and the Williams School of Business.[51]
There are three cégeps in Sherbrooke, two of them French-language, the Cégep de Sherbrooke and the Séminaire de Sherbrooke, and one English-language, Champlain College Lennoxville.
The city's public primary and secondary schools are run by either the French-language Centre de services scolaire de la Région-de-Sherbrooke or the English-language Eastern Townships School Board. The CSSRS educates around 25,000 students and employs 4,000 teachers, support staff, and administrative staff. [52]
Sherbrooke has a total of six public secondary schools:
Sherbrooke also has four private schools that offer secondary education:
See main article: Media in Sherbrooke.