Saint-Boniface (Quebec)

Saint-Boniface is a parish municipality of the Maskinongé Regional county municipality (MRC de Maskinongé), in Moyenne-Mauricie.

The residents of Saint-Boniface benefit from a picturesque parish, with rural charms, while being close to the shops and services that Shawinigan offers. Highway 55 (connecting Trois-Rivières to Shawinigan (Grand-Mère sector) and Highway 153 cross municipal territory.

History
Local logging began at the end of the 18th century thanks to the leaders of the Forges du St-Maurice. Between 1734 and 1884, about 200 lumber workers were busy cutting an average of 10,000 cords of wood. The wood harvest is then reduced to charcoal in large ovens. This coal is used in the manufacture of cast iron produced at Forges in Trois-Rivières.

Around 1825, human activity intensified in forestry in the Moyen-Mauricie region, particularly in the current territory of Saint-Boniface. The area is favored by the proximity of the Saint-Maurice river for the transport of wood by flotation. Following Napoleon's blockade against Great Britain in 1805, the Canadian colony sold its finest pine trunks to the English Metropolis for civilian and military shipbuilding. Logging leads to the establishment of settlers who offer their agricultural products to workers on the construction sites.

Following the abolition in 1846 of the operating privilege held by the owners of the Saint-Maurice forges, the Government in 1849 ordered a survey of the region. In 1852, the Route des Forges was extended to the foot of the Shawinigan Falls, on the west side of the Saint-Maurice River. In the past, the workers of this steel company used this land route to transport the raw material to its forges.

On March 17, 1850, Justin Gélinas of the Bellechasse concession in Yamachiche was the first settler to settle in the Canton. Quickly, other families settled on the territory, notably the families of Solyme Caron, Gabriel Boulanger, Olivier Dugré, Pit Dubé and Jean Beaulieu. These first inhabitants are also busy building the ball slide at Shawinigan Falls (1852) and booms which will be used to direct the logs into the slide and onto the Saint-Maurice River.

Around 1853, the Catholic diocese of Trois-Rivières authorized the erection of a temporary chapel. It will be erected on the site of the current municipal water tank. Around 1855, because of the increase in the population, the diocese authorized the construction of a church. The current site was chosen the following year.

The civil establishment of the municipality of Saint-Boniface dates from July 1, 1855; initially, it bore the name of Canton de Shawénégan. Given the momentum of Christianity, the patronymic of Saint Boniface (German apostle who undertook the difficult reform of the Frankish Church) was chosen. The motto of the municipality of Saint-Boniface is “All for good, nothing for bad”.

Get in
The village of Saint-Boniface is accessible by road, bicycle, snowmobile and all-terrain vehicles.

By car

 * From Montreal (. Time: 1 hr 39 min. Take highway 40 eastbound, to Trois-Rivières; Highway 55 North; take the first exit for Saint-Boniface; take rue Principale (northbound).
 * From Quebec City. (. Time: 1 hr 38 min. Take highway 40 west to Trois-Rivières; take highway 55 (northbound); take the first exit for Saint-Boniface; take rue Principale (northbound).