La Bostonnais is a municipality

Types of municipalities in Quebec

The following is a list of the types of local and supralocal territorial units in Quebec, including those used solely for statistical purposes, as defined by the Institut de la Statistique du Québec....

 in the Mauricie

Mauricie

Mauricie is a traditional and current administrative region of Quebec. La Mauricie National Park is contained within the region, making it a prime tourist location. The region has a land area of 35,855.22 km² and a 2006 census population of 258,928 residents...

 region of the province

Provinces and territories of Canada

The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...

 of Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. The community is about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of La Tuque's town centre along Quebec Route 155

Quebec route 155

Route 155 is a north/south highway on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada. Its northern terminus is in Chambord at the junction of Route 169, and the southern terminus is the Piles Bridge in Shawinigan...

.

The municipality takes its name from the nearby Bostonnais and Little Bostonnais Rivers. This name probably came from an American man originally from Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 who joined the Abenaki at the beginning of the 19th century. In 1823, a reference was made to an Abenaki man named Jean-Baptiste Bostonnais had one of his daughters baptized at Trois-Rivières

Trois-Rivières

Trois-Rivières means three rivers in French and may refer to:in Canada*Trois-Rivières, the largest city in the Mauricie region of Quebec, Canada*Circuit Trois-Rivières, a racetrack in Trois-Rivières, Quebec...

. The Bostonnais family had their hunting territory in the area where the namesake rivers flow.

History

The area, located within the geographic township of Bourgeoys, opened up for colonization around 1871. The Mission of Saint-Jean-Bosco was formed in 1946 and became a parish two years later. In 1946, the post office opened, and closed again in 1961.

Not until 1987 was La Bostonnais incorporated as a municipality. On March 26, 2003, it became part of the City of La Tuque

La Tuque, Quebec

La Tuque is a city in south central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. In 2006, it had a population of 11,821 Latuquois....

, but following a referendum against the forced amalgamation, the Municipality of La Bostonnais was reestablished on January 1, 2006.

Demographics

Population trend:

• Population in 2006: 617 (2001 to 2006 population change: 16.6 %)
• Population in 2001: 529
• Population in 1996: 524
• Population in 1991: 473

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 273 (total dwellings: 345)

Mother tongue:

• English as first language: 1.6 %
• French as first language: 92.7 %
• English and French as first language: 0 %
• Other as first language: 5.7 %