Sayabec Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Sayabec

Municipality

Coat of arms

Location within La Matapédia RCM.

Sayabec

Location in Eastern Quebec

Country

Canada

Province

Quebec

Region

Bas-Saint-Laurent

RCM

La Matapédia

Settled

mid 19th century

Constituted

December 24, 1982

Area

• Total

138.50 km² (53.48 sq mi)

• Land

130.48 km² (50.38 sq mi)

Population

(2011)

• Total

1,864

• Density

14.3/km² (37/sq mi)

• Pop 2006-2011

4.6%

• Dwellings

879

Time zone

UTC−5 (EST)

• Summer (DST)

UTC−4 (EDT)

Postal code(s)

G0J 3K0

Area code(s)

418 and 581

Highways

Route 132

Sayabec is a municipality located in the La Matapédia Regional County Municipality (RCM) in Bas-Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada. It is located in the Matapédia Valley between the Chic-Choc Mountains of the Appalachian near Lake Matapédia. The main activities of the village are agriculture and forestry. It has a population of approximately 2,000, the third biggest municipality in its RCM after Amqui and Causapscal. Due to the presence of the chipboards plant called Panval, the biggest industry of the valley, Sayabec is an important regional economic centre.

The territory was historically occupied by Mi'kmaq people, a First Nation who occupied much of the Gaspe Peninsula. Its first French Canadian inhabitant was Pierre Brochu, who came in 1833. At the end of the 19th century settlers began to come in the region to work in sawmills. The municipality was first officially created in 1887 as a school municipality under the name Sainte-Marie-de-Sayabec. The catholic parish was erected in 1894. In 1917, the village of Saindon was created, and it took the name of Sayabec in 1951. Today municipality was formed in 1982 through the merger of the parish municipality of Sainte-Marie-de-Sayabec and the village municipality of Sayabec.

The municipality's main transportation link is the Quebec Route 132 which loops around the Gaspe Peninsula back towards the Mont-Joli area northwest of Sayabec. It is also located along the Canadian National Railway (originally the Intercolonial Railway).