Val-David, Quebec


Val-David is a village of more than 5,200 inhabitants in the Laurentian Mountains about north of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Atrracting about 100,000 tourists a year, Val-David is predominantly francophone although it has a small anglophone minority.
The village is famous for its delicious and diverse food scene as well for its artistic character. Many renowned and amateur artists, writers and dancers live and have lived in Val-David, notably Québécois poet Gaston Miron, jazz bassist Charlie Biddle, and singer-songwriter Alan Gerber.
Val-David is also a centre for much outdoor recreational activity as its Parc Dufresne is the most popular rock-climbing destination in eastern Canada. Also, the Parc Linéaire Le P'tit Train du Nord, a bike trail, and groomed cross-country ski and snowshoe trails in Winter, run throughout the town's splendid nature.

History

The place was first known as Belisle's Mills, after the owner of one of the area's first sawmills. In 1873, its post office opened under the name of Mont-Morin, which was renamed to Belisle's Mills in 1901. In 1917, the parish of Saint-Jean-Baptiste-de-Belisle or Bélisle was formed, detached from Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts. In 1921, the village municipality was officially established and named after the parish.
In 1923, the post office was renamed to Val-David, which also became the official designation of the municipality in 1944. It pays tribute to Louis Athanase David, member of parliament for Terrebonne from 1916 to 1919 and secretary of Quebec from 1919 to 1936, and his father Laurent-Olivier David, member of the House of Commons and author of several books.
It now has its first local community monthly newspaper, .

Demographics

Population trend:
Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 2084
Mother tongue:
in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts serves English-speaking students in this community for both elementary and secondary levels.