Saint-Jean-de-Matha
The l'Assomption River in park Chutes Monte-à-Peine
Coordinates: 46°14′N 73°32′W / 46.233°N 73.533°W / 46.233; -73.533
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Lanaudière
Regional County	Matawinie
Settled
Incorporated	July 1, 1855
Government
- Type	Municipality
- Mayor	Normand Champagne
- Federal riding	Joliette
- Prov. riding	Berthier
Area [1]
- Total	117.01 km2 (45.2 sq mi)
- Land	109.24 km2 (42.2 sq mi)
Population (2006)[2]
- Total	4,152
- Density	38.0/km2 (98.4/sq mi)
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
Postal Code	J0K
Area code(s)	450
Website	www.municipalitestjeandematha.com

Saint-Jean-de-Matha is a municipality located within the Matawinie Regional County Municipality, Quebec, Canada, in the Lanaudière region.

Contents 1 History 2 Transportation 3 Demographics 4 See also 5 References

[edit] History

The territory was once part of the seigneurial system in the 18th century and was travelled by several coureur des bois for the fur industry as well as workers in the logging industry as it was located nearby rich forest lands of the Laurentians and the Haute Mauricie regions near the Saint-Maurice River.

It was in the 1850s that the Saint-Jean-de-Matha Parish was made official and was declared a municipality in 1855. While development was slow in the 1800s, the population grew rapidly as settlers arrived in Quebec or moved away from the regions closer to the Saint Lawrence River as part of measures to develop new lands across the province. [1]

[edit] Transportation

The main transportation link of the municipality is Route 131 which travels throughout much of the Lanaudière region from Saint-Michel-des-Saints southward towards Joliette and Lavaltrie in which it connects Autoroute 40 towards Montreal, Quebec City and Ottawa-Gatineau. Secondary Route 337 travels through more western towns of the Lanaudière region towards the northern Montreal suburbs of Terrebonne and Mascouche located along Autoroute 25 just north of the east end of Laval.

Railway service also exists since the late 19th century part of a Canada-wide development initiated by the first Canadian Prime Minister John A. Macdonald which help develop several small industries despite frequent departures by several locales towards the United States in the late 1800s.

[edit] Demographics

Population:^[3]

• Population in 2006: 4152 (2001 to 2006 population change: 15.3 %)
• Population in 2001: 3602
• Population in 1996: 3624
• Population in 1991: 3260

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 1830 (total dwellings: 2527)

Mother tongue:^[2]

• English as first language: 0.8 %
• French as first language: 97.2 %
• English and French as first language: 0.2 %
• Other as first language: 1.7 %

[edit] See also

• List of municipalities in Quebec

[edit] References

• Municipal website (French)
• History of the region (French)

	Sainte-Émélie-de-l'Énergie	Saint-Damien
	Sainte-Béatrix		Saint-Gabriel-de-Brandon
		Saint-Jean-de-Matha
		Sainte-Mélanie	Saint-Félix-de-Valois

v • d • e  Administrative divisions of Lanaudière  (Region 14) Small caps indicate municipalities with over 10,000 inhabitants (2006 census). Regional county municipalities and equivalent territories D'Autray · L'Assomption · Joliette · Matawinie · Montcalm · Les Moulins Major1 municipalities Lavaltrie · Berthierville · Saint-Gabriel · Charlemagne · Repentigny · L'Assomption · L'Épiphanie (V) · Joliette · Notre-Dame-des-Prairies · Saint-Charles-Borromée · Saint-Félix-de-Valois · Rawdon · Chertsey · Saint-Lin–Laurentides · Saint-Calixte · Sainte-Julienne · Terrebonne · Mascouche Administrative divisions of Quebec

Coordinates: 46°13′N 73°32′W / 46.217°N 73.533°W / 46.217; -73.533 (Saint-Jean-de-Matha, Quebec)