Chichester, Quebec

Chichester
Township municipality
Location within Pontiac RCM
Chichester Location in western Quebec
Coordinates: 45°55′N77°07′W / 45.917°N 77.117°W / 45.917; -77.117 [1]
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Outaouais
RCM	Pontiac
Constituted	January 1, 1857
Named for	Chichester [1]
Government [2]
• Mayor	Donald Gagnon
•  Federal riding	Pontiac
•  Prov. riding	Pontiac
Area [2] [3]
• Total	230.63 km2 (89.05 sq mi)
• Land	218.74 km2 (84.46 sq mi)
Population  (2021) [3]
• Total	350
• Density	1.6/km2 (4/sq mi)
• Pop (2016-21)	0.6%
• Dwellings	247
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)	J0X 1M0
Area code	819
Highways	No major routes

Chichester is a township municipality and village in the Canadian province of Quebec, located within the Pontiac Regional County Municipality.

Chichester is located along the north shores of the Ottawa River across from Chapeau on Allumette Island.

Its settlements include Chichester and Nichabau. Nichabau, also known as Nicabeau or Nichabong, is a scenic hamlet located northwest of Chichester in what used to be referred to as Poupore's Limits. It is noted for its great number of square log homes. ^[4]

Geography

The northern part of the municipal territory is sparsely populated and undeveloped, dotted with several lakes including Lake McGillivray. In its centre there are hills some of which reach an altitude of 400 metres (1,300 ft). The southern portion is mostly cleared and used for agriculture, and where the 2 communities are located. ^[5]

History

Cultural museum in Chichester

The Gale and Duberger Map of 1795 already showed the planned "Chicheter" [sic] Township but it was not officially proclaimed until 1849. It is named after the administrative capital of West Sussex, England. ^[5]

In 1854, the local post office opened (closed in 1970). In 1855, the township was incorporated as a municipality ^[6] with John B. Poupore as its first mayor. ^[4]

Chichester was once a thriving community with numerous sawmills, a grist mill, shingle mill, blacksmith shop and two hotels. In the 19th century (1873-1876), the township tried to boost its economy by petitioning the Federal Department of Public Works ^[7] to build large wooden locks in the Culbute Channel of the Ottawa River, claimed to be the largest wooden ones in Canada. The locks were meant to allow steamboat travel on the upper portion of the river but this idea never caught on. ^[4] The Culbute Locks (and associated dam) were in use from 1876 until the fall of 1889 when they were "...abandoned to the forces of the river and Nature's wood-rotting agents..." ^[7]

Today, the municipality is predominantly dependent on farming, lumbering, and some summer tourism. ^[4]

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Chichester had a population of 350 living in 165 of its 247 total private dwellings, a change of 0.6% from its 2016 population of 348. With a land area of 218.74 km² (84.46 sq mi), it had a population density of 1.6/km² (4.1/sq mi) in 2021. ^[8]

Canada census – Chichester community profile

	2021	2016	2011
Population	350 (+0.6% from 2016)	348 (-5.4% from 2011)	368 (-5.2% from 2006)
Land area	218.74 km2 (84.46 sq mi)	221.14 km2 (85.38 sq mi)	221.39 km2 (85.48 sq mi)
Population density	1.6/km2 (4.1/sq mi)	1.5/km2 (3.9/sq mi)	1.7/km2 (4.4/sq mi)
Median age	51.2 (M: 50.4, F: 51.6)	52.0 (M: 48.8, F: 54.2)	48.2 (M: 44.2, F: 49.8)
Private dwellings	247 (total)  165 (occupied)	243 (total)	239 (total)
Median household income	$51,200	$43,605	$.N/A

Notes: 2011 income data for this area has been suppressed for data quality or confidentiality reasons. ^[9]
References: 2021 ^[10] 2016 ^[11] 2011 ^[12] earlier ^{[13] [14]}

Historical Census Data - Chichester, Quebec

Year Pop. ±% 1976 559 —     1981 534 −4.5% 1986 488 −8.6% 1991 460 −5.7% 1996 462 +0.4%	Year Pop. ±% 2001 381 −17.5% 2006 388 +1.8% 2011 368 −5.2% 2016 348 −5.4% 2021 350 +0.6%
Source: Statistics Canada [15] [16]

Mother tongue (2016): ^[17]

• English as first language: 86.1%
• French as first language: 10.8%
• Other as first language: 3.1%

See also

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

References

1. "Reference number 13173 in Banque de noms de lieux du Québec". toponymie.gouv.qc.ca (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec.
2. "Geographic code 84090 in the official Répertoire des municipalités". www.mamh.gouv.qc.ca (in French). Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation.
3. "Chichester, Canton (municipalité de) (CT) Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Government of Canada - Statistics Canada. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
4. "Pontiac MRC Gateway: Chichester". Pontiac MRC Gateway. Archived from the original on October 7, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
5. "Canton de Chichester" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Archived from the original on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
6. "Municipalité de Canton de Chichester" (in French). Commission de toponymie du Québec. Archived from the original on 2016-01-23. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
7. Clyde C. Kennedy, The Upper Ottawa Valley, Renfrew County Council, Pembroke, Ontario, 1970
8. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), Quebec". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
9. "Chichester census profile". 2011 Census of Population . Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2012-04-02.
10. "2021 Community Profiles". 2021 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
11. "2016 Community Profiles". 2016 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. August 12, 2021. Retrieved 2019-11-18.
12. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. March 21, 2019. Retrieved 2014-02-01.
13. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. August 20, 2019.
14. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census . Statistics Canada. July 18, 2021.
15. 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
16. "Population and dwelling count amendments, 2016 Census". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Government of Canada - Statistics Canada. 15 August 2018. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
17. "Chichester, Quebec (Code 2484090) Census Profile". 2016 census . Government of Canada - Statistics Canada.

External links

Media related to Chichester, Quebec at Wikimedia Commons