History
E.M. McKay
C.H. Parker
D.D. Mclnness
Thomas Muir
J.D. Morrison
Kenneth Smith
Allen A. Morrison
John D Graham
J. D. Graham
John M. MacDonald
J. D. Smith
J.C. Morrison
Albert McLeod
P.A. Sherman
Hervé Duperron
Émile Laprise
Rosario Robert
Léonidas Charest
Fernand Gilbert
Antonio Guillette
Emmanuel Prévost
Normand Côté
Bertrand Prévost
Écu d'azur au sautoir d'argent
chargé de quatre billettes de sinople
cantonné à dextre
d'une fleur de lys d'or
sur le tout d'argent
au sautoir de gueules
cantonné de quatre aigles d'azur
sur le tout du tout
d'or à la lettre «V» aux
pointes cloutées de sable
d'une champagne d'argent
semée d'herbe de sinople
chargée d'une fasce ondée d'azur
chargée d'un saumon d'argent
L'écu est soutenu
de deux rinceaux
de feuilles d'érable de sinople
et accompagné d'un listel de gueules
The name of Hampden for our township appeared on maps in the last decade of the 1700's even though the territory had not yet been surveyed.
The Scots, from the «Highland Clearances» came here in 1845 from the Western Isles and Highlands of Scotland. In the beginning, settlement was primarily occupied by squatters as there were no official records of land concessions. They were for the most part from the town of Stornoway, located on the north part of the Isle of Lewis in the Hebridean Islands.
They used debris, planks and nails, from the abandoned houses of the village of Victoria (established on the shores of the Rivière-au-Saumon, near Scotstown, the small village was inundated each time the river was swelling, nothing is left of that village today). At this time, Hampden was occupied by a population of 23 Scottish families.
In 1860, the territory of the township was surveyed and built and Hampden was officially appointed as on the 10th of June 1867 and on the 1st of January 1874, it became a town municipality.
You possess some old photos of historic buildings that don't exist anymore?
Or some writings related to the past (true and testable if possible) of our township that have been forgotten?
You would like to share them with others who are also interested in the history of the township?
What you will share with us will be used
to assemble an historic booklet on the Canton de Hampden.
Come to the municipal office with the photos and/or writtings you possess about the township history
and we will make copies so you can keep your originals. If you already scanned them in digital format,
you can send them directly by email. The writtings can also be sent by fax.
Click here to get our contact informations.
We are eager to discover your treasures of forgotten history!
Here's an example of what we're looking for :
The Pont Scotstown that was located on the chemin du 4 milles and passed over the Rivière-au-saumon.
(found on the web page :
http://www.pontscouverts.com/Pontscouverts2/Scotstown.html )
The history of the township interests you?
A brief history of Hampden Township
The name Hampden comes from the first family to settle in the township. They owned the concession of Hampden, Buckinghamshire, in England. The lineage of the family ended in 1824 after John Hampden died without an heir.
The beginnings of colonization had been more difficult than expected for the first settlers who believed in the generosity of the agents of colonization. The land was not as arable as had been suggested. Part of the township land was discovered to contain granite rock which made the land very difficult to plough. The same applied to the swampy area (BOG) on the Chemin de Franceville that was found to be an ideal location for waterfowl and for the nesting grounds of rare birds in addition to being the natural habitat of aquatic species. This has even been kept as a wildlife preservation area.
However the township's territory is well suited for logging and has been exploited for the wood by the Glasgow Canadian Company. In 1891, there were even fifty sawmills in the township, employing more than 500 people at that time. That development has been possible because of the various rivers of the district and their natural waterfalls.
To complete this page of history . . .
Here is a list of the Mayors, from 1889 until today
1889
1889 to 1892
1892 to 1893
1893 to 1894
1894 to 1897
1897 to 1900
1900 to 1907
1907 to 1915
1916 to 1917
1917 to 1935
1936 to 1939
1939 to 1944
1944 to 1947
1947 to 1957
1957 to 1959
1959
1959 to 1960
1960 to 1963
1963 to 1968
1968 to 1972
1972 to 2004
2005 to 2009
2009 to ......
The Coat of Arms of
Canton de Hampden
The main shield has a blue background on the front,
a white X-shaped cross, representing the "Cross of St Andrew",
patron saint of Scotland, the homeland from which originate
the founders of the canton of Hampden
each branch of the white cross bears on its front side
a green rectangle representing logs
that symbolize in heraldry the forest industry...
a yellow lily flower occupies the space on the right side - in fact, on the left for the one who looks at the shield - but in heraldry, the left and the right is marked according to the vision of the wearer of the shield which is in fact its shield, the lily represents the succession carried out by the French Canadians to the development of the township.
a coat of arms is placed in the middle of the main,
on a white background with a red cross
placed in the free spaces of the cross are four blue eagles,
which are taken from the shield of the Hampden family,
owners of the Hampden concession, Buckinghamshire, England.
one coat of arms over another coat of arms
with a yellow background with the letter "V" in black and nail-shaped ends. This shield in the centre of the shield marks the origins of the settlement in the township by the establishment of Victoria in 1836, hence the "V", a settlement that was aborted two years later. The nailheads symbolize the legend that the settlers who came a decade later used the boards and nails from Victoria's abandoned houses to build new ones.
the lower part of the white shield,
which bears green tussocks of grass
is placed over a blue wavy horizontal bar
symbolizing the Salmon River
with a white salmon, which symbolizes the marshy environment
of a part of the township that must be safeguarded
as part of the wildlife and environmental heritage
according to the municipality's land use planning.
The shield is surrounded
by a dual-branch
of green maple leaves
and accompanied by a red ribbon
bearing the writing : «Canton de Hampden, 1er janvier 1874»
Exterior Ornaments
Heraldic description
(in french only)
Explanation in current language
