Introduction
For other uses, see Malbaie.
City in Quebec, CanadaLa MalbaieCityView of La Malbaie, Quebec
Coat of armsMotto: In Fide Plantati et RadicatiLocation within Charlevoix-Est RCMLa MalbaieLocation in central QuebecCoordinates: 47°39′N 70°09′W / 47.650°N 70.150°W / 47.650; -70.150CountryCanadaProvinceQuebecRegionCapitale-NationaleRCMCharlevoix-EstConstitutedDecember 1, 1999Government • MayorMichel Couturier • Federal ridingMontmorency—Charlevoix • Prov. ridingCharlevoix–Côte-de-BeaupréArea • Total697.32 km2 (269.24 sq mi) • Land458.19 km2 (176.91 sq mi) • Urban3.97 km2 (1.53 sq mi)Population (2021) • Total8,235 • Density18/km2 (47/sq mi) • Urban3,534 • Urban density890.2/km2 (2,306/sq mi) • Pop (2016–21) 0.4% • Dwellings4,563Time zoneUTC−5 (EST) • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)Postal code(s)G5AArea codes418 and 581Highways R-138 R-362Websitewww.ville.lamalbaie.qc.ca
La Malbaie (French pronunciation: [la malbɛ]) is a municipality in the Charlevoix-Est Regional County Municipality in the Province of Quebec, Canada, situated on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River at the mouth of the Malbaie River. It was formerly known as Murray Bay. La Malbaie is the seat of the judicial district of Charlevoix.
Although the main business district is located at the mouth of the Malbaie River, the town itself covers a vast area that extends inland along both sides of the Malbaie River and north and south along the St. Lawrence River. The village of Pointe-au-Pic amalgamated with La Malbaie in 1995, and the villages of Rivière-Malbaie, Sainte-Agnès, Cap-à-l'Aigle, and Saint-Fidèle were added in 1999. The neighbouring town of Clermont is located about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) upstream along the Malbaie River.
History
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See also: 20th-century municipal history of Quebec
1605: French explorer Samuel de Champlain fails to find suitable anchorage on his arrival in the area in May and names the bay Malle Baye (old French for “bad bay”).
1688: Rudimentary settlement begins at La Malbaie to export lumber to France, but the focus quickly turns to the fur trade and beluga fishing.
1724: A farm established at La Malbaie begins providing meat and grain to the French king's trading posts along the St. Lawrence River.
1763: Two Scottish officers of the British Army—John Nairne (1731–1802) and Malcolm Fraser (1733–1815)—receive concessions in the area from the British Crown. Nairne's encompasses the tiny settlement of La Malbaie and the western side of the Malbaie River. Fraser's stretches to the east. They also rename the bay, settlement, and river “Murray Bay” after James Murray (1721–1794), a British general and the successor to General James Wolfe. Murray Bay never becomes the official name, but is the internationally accepted toponym in the 18th and 19th centuries even though La Malbaie remains in local use.
1774: The parish of Saint-Étienne-de-la-Malbaie is founded.
1825: The parish is canonically established.
1830: The steamship Waterloo pays a visit to La Malbaie “on a pleasure trip,” the first such recorded commercial visit.
Circa 1840: For the first time, well-to-do visitors begin to summer in La Malbaie.
1853: Construction of a quay on piles at Pointe-au-Pic makes it possible for steamers to begin providing regular service to leisure travellers.
1855: The Parish Municipality of Saint-Étienne-de-Murray-Bay is founded.
1876: The Murray Bay Golf Club opens, the third oldest course in North America and the oldest still operating at the same location.
1892: Future president of the United States William Howard Taft and his family begin summering in La Malbaie, where he will visit every year for nearly forty years except for his term of office as president.
1896: The village itself is separated from the parish municipality and incorporated as the Village Municipality of La Malbaie.
1899: The luxurious 250-room Manoir Richelieu opens its doors to serve the flood of summertime visitors.
Murray Bay wharf, circa 1912
1914: Newly retired U.S. president William Howard Taft becomes president of the Murray Bay Golf Club, a position he will hold for seven years.
La Malbaie, postcard, c. 1920
1925: A second golf course opens, the competition-class Manoir Richelieu course.
1928: At the end of the tourist season, the Manoir Richelieu is completely destroyed by fire. It will be rebuilt before the next season begins in 1929.
1957: Saint-Étienne-de-Murray-Bay is renamed Saint-Étienne-de la-Malbaie.
1958: The Village Municipality of La Malbaie officially becomes a town.
1965: The Town of La Malbaie annexes the Parish Municipality of Saint-Étienne-de la-Malbaie.
1995: The Town of La Malbaie and the Village Municipality of Pointe-au-Pic merge to form the Town of La Malbaie–Pointe-au-Pic.
1999: The Municipalities of Rivière-Malbaie and Saint-Fidèle, the Village Municipality of Cap-à-l'Aigle, the Parish Municipality of Saint-Agnès, and the Town of La Malbaie–Pointe-au-Pic amalgamate to form the new Town of La Malbaie.
2018: La Malbaie's Manoir Richelieu plays host to the 44th G7 summit, hosted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
La Malbaie has a long history as a holiday destination. Tourism in the area began to develop as far back as 1760 when the Scottish feudal lords John Nairne and Malcolm Fraser began receiving visitors to the region at their estates. The family of Charlotte Holt Gethings is thought to be among the very first to come to La Malbaie for summer holidays, beginning around 1840. Every summer, particularly from the late 1800s on, “Murray Bay” welcomed America's most fashionable families. They picnicked and played, went fishing and swimming, and entertained lavishly in their sprawling but modestly named “cottages” on The Boulevard (today's “Chemin des Falaises”). Many of their descendants still visit every summer to this day.
People called Murray Bay the “Newport of Canada.” US Tycoons mingled with mayors and governors and justices of the Supreme Court, there to escape the sweltering cities to the south. And conversation was “easy, intimate, and usually about golf” reported New Yorker magazine in 1924.
One regular visitor of note for nearly forty years was William Howard Taft, who served as president of the United States from 1909 to 1913. He once famously remarked that “The invigorating air of Murray Bay exhilarates like champagne without the effects of the morning after.” The residents of Murray Bay were very demonstrative in their affection for Taft, referring to him as “le petit juge,” lifting their caps to him as he drove by, and performing burlesque sketches during the winter months in which he was played by the most rotund villager. They burned a candle at the time of his death, and spat upon hearing of his betrayal by Theodore Roosevelt. Members of the Taft family are still a part of the local summer scene.
The American heritage of La Malbaie is still present in the inns and country homes, in bed & breakfasts frozen in time, and in the imposing Fairmont Manoir Richelieu, which hosted the world's political elite at the 44th G7 Summit in June 2018.
