| Présence amérindienne à la Pointe-du-Buisson (Melocheville) et dans la région de Sorel | 1642 The founding of the city of Sorel, forth oldest city in Canada. 1657 Year that Longueuil was founded through a Seigneury concession act to Charles Le Moyne. 1665 Louis XIV decides to come to the aid of the colony and sends the Carignan-Salière regiment to face the Iroquois threat. 1665 Construction of Route 1 “Chemin Chambly” between the cities of Chambly and Longueuil by the troops of the Carignan-Salière regiment, under the orders of Daniel Rentry de Courcelle, governor of New France. First road suitable for cars in Canada. 1665 Construction of a wooden fort in Chambly, near the Richelieu River rapids, in order to prohibit the Iroquois access to the region. 1667 The founding of the François-Xavier Mission in La Prairie to teach Native Americans the Christian religion. 1668 The founding of Boucherville. Settlement of Pierre Boucher on the land of “Seigneuries des Îles-Percées”. 1673 The founding of Châteauguay. | 1708 Construction of a windmill in Pointe-du-Moulin on l’Île-Perrot. 1709 A stone fort replaces the wooden fort in Chambly. 1716-1717 The Saint-François-Xavier Mission is moved and becomes Kahnawake. 1748 The founding of the city of Saint-Hyacinthe. 1750 The French dig the Rigolet Canal in Côteau-du-lac. First canal in North America. 1759 The French undertake the construction of a star-shaped fort on l’Île-aux-Noix. It will become British in 1760. 1759-1760 Battle of Québec and defeat of Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham. The French colony is surrendered to the British. 1768 The return from exile after the “Great Upheaval” of 1755 (the expulsion of the Acadians), who settle in Sainte-Marguerite-de Blairfindie, which becomes “petite Acadie” and then L’Acadie. 1775 Battle against the American troops at Dorion. 1779-1780 The British build the first canal lock in North America in Coteau-du-Lac. An octagonal bunker will ensure its protection starting in 1812. 1781 The British build the Lacolle River Blockhouse(the only building of its type in Québec still intact). | 1813 Under the orders of Lieutenant-Colonel Charles-Michel de Salaberry, the Canadian troops take down the American army at Allan’s Corner, better known as “The Battle of the Châteauguay”. 1819 The construction of military buildings, by the British, on the site of the old French fort of l’Île-aux-Noix, which is Fort-Lennox. 1836 Inauguration of the first Canadian railroad between La Prairie and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. 1837-1838 Patriots’ rebellion against the British regime. Victory at Saint-Denis. 1843 Inauguration of the Chambly Canal, open to commercial navigation on the Richelieu River. 1845 The construction of the Beauharnois Canal. 1851 Inauguration of the first international railroad between Longueuil and Portland via Acton Vale. 1860 Construction of Victoria Bridge. First bridge linking Montréal and the South Shore. 1861 Construction of a covered bridge in Powerscourt (Hinchinbrooke). It is the oldest covered bridge in Canada. 1879 Opening of world known organ builders, Casavant et Frères, in Saint-Hyacinthe. | 1909 Opening of King Edward amusement park on l’Île Groisbois in Boucherville. It closes its doors permanently in 1922. 1930 The Airship R100, coming from Carling in Great Britain, lands in Saint-Hubert after its first and only transatlantic flight. 1959 Opening of the Saint-Lawrence Seaway. 1978 UNESCO recognizes Mont Saint-Hilaire as the first “Biosphere Reserve” in Canada. 2000 UNESCO recognizes the Archipelago of Lake Saint-Pierre as the second “Biosphere Reserve” in Montérégie. |
