Waltham, Quebec

Waltham
Municipality
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Location within Pontiac RCM. Location within Pontiac RCM.
Waltham Location in western Quebec.
Coordinates:
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Outaouais
RCM	Pontiac
Constituted	January 1, 1859
Government
• Mayor	Garry Marchand
• Federal riding	Pontiac
• Prov. riding	Pontiac
Area
• Total	401.80 km2 (155.14 sq mi)
• Land	375.71 km2 (145.06 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	384
• Density	1.0/km2 (3/sq mi)
• Pop 2006-2011	6.7%
• Dwellings	226
Time zone	EST (UTC−5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s)	J0X 3H0
Area code(s)	819
Highways	Route 148

Waltham is a village and municipality in the Outaouais region, Quebec, Canada, part of the Pontiac Regional County Municipality. It is located at the mouth of the Noire River, along the north shore of the Ottawa River at Allumette Island.

The municipality consists of the hamlet of Carroll and the village of Waltham, both near the Ottawa River between Chichester and Mansfield-et-Pontefract, about west of Fort-Coulonge. Quebec Route 148 connects Waltham to Allumettes Island and Pembroke, Ontario.

Its territory, with a maximum elevation of just over , is sparsely populated, the majority of the population living along or near the Ottawa River. The northern portion is a vast extended tract of undeveloped land, dotted with lakes, such as Findlay, Landon, Gagnon, and Caughlin, which are popular for fishing.

History

The name Waltham, mentioned on the Gale and Duberger map of 1795, comes from a place on the River Lea in Essex, England, named Waltham Abbey. In 1849, the Waltham Township was formed. In 1859, it was officially reorganized into a township municipality, also named Waltham, and its first mayor was John T. Coghlan.

File:Waltham QC.jpg

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In 1869, the Bryson Township was annexed, creating the United Township Municipality of Waltham-et-Bryson. The name Bryson comes from George Bryson Sr. (1813–1900), influential logging merchant, and mayor of Mansfield-et-Pontefract. In 1888, the railroad from Fort-Coulonge to Waltham was completed but not until August 27, 1894, was the railroad opened by the Pontiac Pacific Junction Railway Company. Four years later, in 1898, a post office was established, called Waltham Station.

In 1937, a hydroelectric generating station and dam were built across the Noire River just north of Waltham village, forming a reservoir called Robinson Lake.

In 1959, rail service to Waltham is discontinued, and in 1984 the railline was removed and later turned into the Cycloparc PPJ bike path stretching from Bristol, Quebec, to Pembroke, Ontario.

In 1995, a UFO was reported to have landed in the town's lumberyard. "According to Hector Brochu, a witness of the event, he watched the object, which was described as a diamond shape, 2-1/2 feet high and 2 feet wide, fall to the ground like a feather. It made no noise whatsoever, and was very shiny, as if made of foil. There were no markings whatsoever. The object had what appeared to be a "bulb of mercury" hanging from it. When Brochu got within 10 feet of the object, which he was going to bring home for his daughter, the object rose into the air and remained in a fixed position approximately 150' in the air. Brochu, who ran when the object rose into the air, is 60 years old. The object had landed in a lumber yard. Brochu was able to get 8 people who all saw the object, which remained stationary for about 10 minutes and then left and landed again in what witnesses described as Alouette[sic] Island in the Ottawa River."

In 1997, Waltham-et-Bryson is reorganized into the Municipality of Waltham.

In 2007, The wood drying kilns caught fire.

In 2009, Waltham celebrated its 150th birthday.

Demographics

Population

Historical Census Data - Waltham, Quebec
Year Pop. ±% 1991 466 —     1996 496 +6.4%	Year Pop. ±% 2001 425 −14.3% 2006 360 −15.3%	Year Pop. ±% 2011 384 +6.7%

Language

Languages:

• English as first language: 69%
• French as first language: 25%
• English and French as first language: 3%
• Other as first language: 3%

See also

• List of municipalities in Quebec