Saint-Jean-Port-Pretty

Saint-Jean-Port-Pretty is a village of the area of the Boiler-Appalachian Mountains to the Quebec, located in MRC of Islet.

History

The seigniory of Port-Jolly, from which the name comes from the village, was established in 1677. The parish of saint-Jean-Port-Pretty was set up canonically in 1721. The church, built as from 1779, is of a remarkable architecture and shelters many sculptures. The municipality of Port-Pretty was created in 1845 and became part of the municipality of county in 1847. The municipality of parish of Saint-Jean-Port-Pretty was established in 1855 and was divided in 1857 in the municipalities of Saint-Jean-Port-Pretty and Saint-Aubert.

Just like the other villages of the Coast of the south between River-Ouelle and Beaumont, all the houses (except very rare exceptions) were burned during the Conquest in 1759 by the regiment of Fraser Highlanders on the orders of the British general James Wolfe. However the village was raised gradually.

Tourist attractions

With its population of 3.300 inhabitants, this locality is today a tourist appointment of importance in the area, mainly because of the presence of many craftsmen wood-carvers and several events cultural. The village shelters also a marina, on the site of the old quay.

The village was named capital cultural of Canada in 2005 and the cultural life is there always very active, amongst other things through four festivals.

the International one of sculpture

This festival present since 1994 the international symposium of woodcarving in the direct face, which accommodates during eleven days of the professional sculptors of Quebec, Canada and abroad, which carry out, in front of the public, an original work. The symposium 2007 selected seven artists among 106 projects. The majority of works carried out are added to the permanent collection of a gallery with open sky, counting now more than 90 sculptures, which can be visited in any time on the banks of the St. Lawrence. The festival is accompanied by workshops of initiation to the sculpture, of conferences of the artists, exposures of works and demonstrations of regional scupture on wood and sculpture on sand. The 13th symposium took place from June 22nd to July 1st, 2007.

the Festival of the songs of sailors

This festival underlines the various aspects of the maritime heritage, the legends, the songs of the sea. She proposes also a gourmet's menu based on the products of the sea like workshops, literary contest, race of sailing ships, harbor market, films and exposures. The 10th edition is held from August 15th to 17th 2008.

violins of autumn

Festival of music centered on the violin, which presents music jazz, blues, traditional, popular, traditional, boogie-woogie, gipsy, swing, haversack, Celtic, contemporary, music of the world. The 9th edition is held from September 20th to 23rd 2007.

the festival of winter

Present of the sculpture on snow, with shutters professional and raises. The event is accompanied by cultural activities and sporting and the spectacles. The 12th edition was held from February 8th to 11th 2007.

Famous residents

Some outstanding characters of the Québécois culture lived with St-Jean-Port-Pretty, of which:

Philippe Aubert de Gaspé, memorialist and one of the first Québécois novelists; he is the author of the novel the Former Canadians ;
Medard Bourgault, Jean-Julien Bourgault and Andre Bourgault, initiators of a revival of the traditional woodcarving in Quebec during the Forties and Fifties;
Emilie Chamard, expert famous of weaving in the Fifties;
Eugene Leclerc, a manufacturer of miniature sailing boats.

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