Lac-au-Saumon, Quebec

Lac-au-Saumon is a municipality in the Canadian province of Quebec, located in La Matapédia Regional Council Municipality in the Matapédia Valley.

The municipality had a population of 1,488 as of the Canada 2021 Census.

The village is located on the shores of the eponymous Lac au Saumon (French for "Salmon Lake") that is an enlargement of the Matapédia River. It was known as a spawning ground for salmon, but major pollution from mills made this a thing of the past.

History
The area opened up to colonization in 1863, and the Mission of Saint-Edmond-du-Lac-au-Saumon was founded in 1876. But it was not until 1896 that real settlement began with the arrival of a group of Acadians from the Magdalen Islands. The following year the Lac-au-Saumon post office opened.

In 1904, the Municipality of Saint-Edmond was incorporated when it separated from the Parish Municipality of Saint-Benoît-Joseph-Labre (now Amqui). The following year, the Village Municipality of Lac-au-Saumon was established.

On December 17, 1997, the Village Municipality of Lac-au-Saumon and the Municipality of Saint-Edmond were amalgamated to form the new Municipality of Lac-au-Saumon.

Geography
Lac-au-Saumon is located approximately 10 kilometers between the two main towns of La Matapédia, Amqui and Causapscal, on Route 132 which is the main communication axis of Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie. The latter passes on the north side of the lake although the bulk of the village is located to the south. North of the lake, we find the Notre Dame Mountains which are part of the Chic-Chocs mountains.

Demographics
Canada Census data before 2001 (pre-merger):


 * Combined population in 1996: 1,553 (+0.06% from 1991)
 * Lac-au-Saumon (village): 1,314 (+0.3% from 1991)
 * Saint-Edmond (municipality): 239 (-1.2% from 1991)


 * Combined population in 1991: 1,552
 * Lac-au-Saumon (village): 1,310
 * Saint-Edmond (municipality): 242

Municipal council
Mayors of the Municipality of Lac-au-Saumon (following the merger with Saint-Edmond)  Mayors of the former Village Municipality of Lac-au-Saumon
 * Mayor: Gérard Grenier
 * Councillors: Gérald Ruel, Patrick Bacon, Jocelyne Bérubé, Chantal Gagné, Alain Fradette, Valérie Simard
 * Gérard Grenier 2017-
 * Michel Chevarie 2009-2017
 * Jean-Claude Dumoulin 2005-2009
 * Aurélien Beaulieu 1998-2005
 * Jean-Claude Dumoulin 1997-1998


 * Joseph Gaudreau 1905-1909
 * Hector Fournier 1909-1910
 * Zénon Routhier 1910-1912
 * J.-A. Burton 1912-1913
 * Alphonse Landry 1913-1915
 * M.-E. Castonguay 1915-1917
 * P.-A. St-Laurent 1917-1921
 * Ernest Deschênes 1921-1928
 * Ferdinand Paradis 1928-1933
 * Léo Marmen 1933-1937
 * Ludger Leblanc 1937-1945
 * Charles Lavoie 1945-1947
 * Florian Drouin 1947-1949


 * Ferdinand Dupont 1949-1960
 * Adrien Ferlatte 1960-1963
 * Joseph-Marie St-Amand 1963-1965
 * Alphonse Richard 1965-1967
 * Ghislain Roy 1967-1973
 * Guy Garon 1973-1976
 * Joseph O. Bérubé 1976-1978
 * Alphonse Richard 1978-1982
 * Jean-Guy Gagnon 1982-1983
 * Roland Poitras 1983-1987
 * Daniel Lamarre 1987-1993
 * Jean-Claude Dumoulin 1993-1997