Hudson, Quebec

Hudson is an off-island suburb of Montreal, with a population of 5,135 (2011 Census). It is located on the south-west bank of the lower Ottawa River, in Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality. Situated about 60 kilometres (37 mi) west of downtown Montreal, many residents commute to work on the Island of Montreal.

Hudson
City
Location within Vaudreuil-Soulanges RCM.
Hudson
Location in southern Quebec.
Coordinates: 45°27′N 74°09′W[1]
Country Canada
Province Quebec
RegionMontérégie
RCMVaudreuil-Soulanges
ConstitutedJune 7, 1969
Government
 • MayorJamie Nicholls
 • Federal ridingVaudreuil-Soulanges
 • Prov. ridingVaudreuil
Area
 • Total36.50 km2 (14.09 sq mi)
 • Land21.90 km2 (8.46 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[4]
 • Total5,165
 • Density234.5/km2 (607/sq mi)
 • Pop 2006-2011
 0.9%
 • Dwellings
2,229
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)
J0P
Area code(s)450 and 579
Highways
A-40
Route 201
Route 342
Websitewww.ville.hudson.qc.ca

Location and population

Hudson is a municipality within Greater Montreal. An informal rural agglomeration since the early part of the 19th century, the Town of Hudson was formally created in June 1969 by merging the villages of Hudson, Hudson Heights and Como. A relatively wealthy town, Hudson is known for its large, turn-of-the century houses, many of which border the Lake of Two Mountains. A ferry from Hudson takes cars across the lake (a widening of the Ottawa River) to the village of Oka.

Hudson has been dubbed "the leafy Anglo-enclave" because, unlike the surrounding mainly French-speaking municipalities, Hudson has a majority English-speaking population (65% according to 2001 Census), although many residents speak both languages.

Hudson is near the edge of suburban Montreal to the east, but also surrounded by substantial farming and forest areas to the west. Large lot sizes, enforced by town by-laws, contribute to the relatively large number of trees in the residential areas. Zoning, infrastructure and building development are occasionally controversial subjects, such as when town residents voted against permitting Gheorghe Zamfir to build a concert hall near the edge of town in the 1980s. In 2001, the town won a victory in Canada's Supreme Court, upholding its by-law 207, which bans pesticide use on public and private property for cosmetic (purely aesthetic) purposes.

Although much larger in population, Hudson has been compared to culturally and demographically similar Quebec towns such as the Eastern Townships villages of North Hatley and Brome Lake as well as nearby Senneville. All four municipalities border a body of water (used extensively for recreation year-round) and include a harmonious blend of French and English residents.

The town is largely upper-middle class and includes professionals, artists and artisans, corporate executives, and a wide variety of entrepreneurs as residents. There are some 140 businesses in town, 50% of which are of an arts and crafts nature.

The town has three schools, of which two are English (Mount Pleasant Elementary School & Westwood Senior, formerly Hudson High School) and one French (St-Thomas Elementary School), as well as six churches: one Baptist (Hudson Community Baptist Church [5]), one Catholic (St-Thomas Aquinas), two Anglican (St-James & St-Mary's), one United (Wyman), and one Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (Hudson-Saint-Lazare)

Physical environment

The bedrock under Hudson is Cambrian Period sandstone. This is overlain by marine clay or stony sandy loam glacial till. On the surface are sands which were deposited by air or water. Most of Hudson is built on the Ste-Sophie loamy fine sand, which is well drained and drought-prone despite its clay base; undisturbed areas have classic podzol development. Several blocks away from the river the sands become deeper, coarser and even more xeric; they are mapped as Upland sand which is also a podzol.[6]

Demographics

Population
Canada census – Hudson, Quebec community profile
2011 2006
Population: 5,135 (+0.9% from 2006) 5,088 (+6.1% from 2001)
Land area: 21.90 km2 (8.46 sq mi) 21.75 km2 (8.40 sq mi)
Population density: 234.5/km2 (607/sq mi) 234.0/km2 (606/sq mi)
Median age: 49.4 (M: 48.6, F: 50.0) 46.5 (M: 45.9, F: 47.0)
Total private dwellings: 2,229 2,160
Median household income: $79,186 $73,887
References: 2011[4] 2006[7] earlier[8]
Historical Census Data - Hudson, Quebec[9]
YearPop.±%
1991 4,829—    
1996 4,796−0.7%
YearPop.±%
2001 4,796+0.0%
2006 5,088+6.1%
YearPop.±%
2011 5,135+0.9%
2016 5,185+1.0%

Language
Canada Census Mother Tongue - Hudson, Quebec[10]
Census Total
French
English
French & English
Other
Year Responses Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop % Count Trend Pop %
2011
5,115
 1,175 6.8% 22.97% 3,375 0.3% 65.98% 120 0.0% 2.35% 445 11.0% 8.70%
2006
5,085
 1,100 6.4% 21.63% 3,365 8.2% 66.18% 120 9.1% 2.36% 500 26.6% 9.83%
2001
4,790
 1,175 16.3% 24.53% 3,110 8.5% 64.93% 110 144.4% 2.30% 395 25.4% 8.25%
1996
4,770
 1,010 n/a 21.17% 3,400 n/a 71.28% 45 n/a 0.94% 315 n/a 6.60%
Ethnic origin (2006)
Language Population Percentage (%)
English 1,465 35%
Canadian 1,240 29%
Scottish 945 22%
French 925 22%
Irish 835 20%
German 455 11%
British Isles, n.i.e. 185 4%
Polish 175 4%
Italian 150 4%
Ukrainian 135 3%

Education

Commission Scolaire des Trois-Lacs operates Francophone schools.[11]

  • École Saint-Thomas

Lester B. Pearson School Board operates Anglophone schools.[12]

  • Mount Pleasant Elementary School
  • Westwood Senior Campus

Events and tourist attractions

Tourist attractions of Hudson include:

  • Artistes Hudson Artists, Quebec's oldest continuing English language art club www.artisteshudsonartists.com
  • Hudson & Region Studio Tour
  • The Hudson Players Club, Quebec's oldest continually operating theatre company, English or French, professional or amateur
  • The Village Theatre (located in the historical train station)
  • The Hudson Film Society
  • Finnegan's antique market
  • The Auberge Willow Place Inn restaurant
  • Mon Village restaurant
  • Greenwood Centre for Living History[13]
  • St. James', St. Mary's, Wyman Memorial United and St. Thomas Aquinas churches
  • Chateau du Lac (bar in a historic building, closed 2020)
  • Cunninghams Pub (Irish Pub)
  • Que De Bonnes Choses (famous gluten-free baked goods)
  • Brigadoon B&B / Gite Bed & Breakfast - an alternative lodging when staying right in Hudson
  • Mademoiselle's English Tea Room & Floral Emporium High Tea served daily www.mademoiselleclifford.com
  • The Hudson Music Fest
  • Stirling Arts Boutique & Photo Studio (Urban fashion, Fine Art Photography) www.stirlingarts.com
  • Centre Decor Hudson (Home Decor, Local Artisan works) www.centredecorhudson.com

Notable annual events in Hudson include the Hudson Street Fair, the Hudson Yacht Club Labour Day Regatta, the FruitBowl Regatta (North America's most well-attended youth sailing event), Canada Day festivities, Shiver Fest (a winter carnival), the Turn on the Lights Festival, the Hudson & Region Studio Tour, the Home & Gardens Tour, the Hudson Festival of Canadian Film, the Santa Claus Parade and (as of 2010, started by Andrew Dumas) the St. Patrick's Day Parade. The town was also put under the spotlight in a recent taping of the reality television series Road Hockey Rumble. Residents of the town were selected to play a game of road hockey.

Hudson Yacht Club

The Hudson Yacht Club (HYC) is a boating and social club founded in 1909 on the shores of Lake of Two Mountains (Lac des Deux Montagnes). The club annually hosts the "FruitBowl" regatta for young sailors and the Labour Day Regatta for its general membership and visitors. The HYC has published two retrospectives: Hudson Yacht Club: Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Year in 1984[14] and Our Spirit Lives On: A Celebration of Hudson Yacht Club's First 100 Years, 1909-2009 in 2009.[15]

Pesticide Ban

The town gained notoriety in 1991 by becoming the first in Quebec, Canada to ban several forms of lawn and garden pesticides used to kill insects and weeds. The town was sued by two pesticide companies and on June 28, 2001, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in the town's favour.[16] The Hudson example spurred many other municipalities and provinces in Canada to enact similar bans of pesticides.[16] The Hudson case is the subject of a 2009 American documentary movie titled A Chemical Reaction by filmmaker Brett Plymale.[17]

Government

Municipal council

The Quebec Cities and Towns Act requires all towns the size of Hudson to have a municipal council of six councillors and one mayor, elected by the local population every four years. The mayor is elected by all Hudson residents, while the town is divided into six wards to elect the councillors. Given the small size of the town, council seats are often won by acclamation. Council meets once per month in the Stephen Shaar Community Centre, named after the mayor who served until 2004 (and presided over its construction). Municipal administrators work in the Town Hall. Town council is responsible for things such as water supply, local road maintenance, zoning, construction permits, and administration of parks. Some responsibilities, such as regional planning, is shared with the county. Council receives its revenues through property taxes, which it establishes. The town maintains its own volunteer fire department and a local patrol to enforce municipal by-laws.

Mayor
Jamie Nicholls
Councillor District
Helen Kurgansky #1 Como
Austin Rikley-Krindle #2 Hudson - East
Chloe Hutchison #3 Hudson – Center
Barbara Robinson #4 Fairhaven
Jim Duff #5 Heights - East
Daren Legault #6 West

Infrastructure

Transportation

A single street, Main Road, traverses Hudson east to west, while the southern border of the town mainly runs along Quebec Route 342 (also known as Boulevard Harwood). Although many residents commute by automobile, a commuter train to Montreal (Vaudreuil-Hudson Line) stops in Hudson once per weekday in either direction.

The town is also served by the 21 bus from the Exo La Presqu'Île, terminating at the Vaudreuil train station.

During the spring, summer and fall, a ferry[18][19][20] links Hudson with Oka, Quebec, 2 kilometres (1.2 miles) across the Ottawa River. During the winter months, a tolled ice bridge allows vehicular traffic between the two towns.[21]

Water and sewage

Hudson has a municipal water and sewage system. The sewage system was built in the first decade of the 21st century and serves the central area of town. It is relatively common for houses outside the central area to use well water and/or a septic tank.

Municipal facilities

The town operates the Stephen Shaar Community Centre, teen centre (in the lower level of the community centre) and a municipal outdoor swimming pool. The town also has a number of parks, including St. Thomas Park (soccer fields behind the swimming pool), Thompson park (lakeside soccer fields), Benson Park (with a softball field, children's playground with outdoor hockey and skating rinks), Jack Layton Park (trails to Sandy Beach, excellent picnic area and public boat launch) and Sandy Beach.

Ferry to Oka

Since 1909 a ferry across the Lake of Two Mountains has run from Hudson to Oka.[18][19][20] Ferries are self-propelled and take ten to fifteen minutes to carry multiple automobiles, bike passengers, and foot passengers for a fee. Prior to the change to self-propelled ferries, a system of barges were towed across the lake by ropes attached to diesel powered boats.

Notable people
  • Jack Layton, former leader of the New Democratic Party
  • Patrick Watson, musician, best known for 2007 single "The great escape"
  • Paul Frappier was a Montreal-based Canadian entertainer, musician, and hip hop MC of Haitian origin, better known by his stage name Bad News Brown.
  • Jean-Paul L'Allier, former mayor of Quebec City
  • Vanessa Lengies, actress, best known for "Are you afraid of the dark", "Popular Mechanics For Kids", American Dreams and Glee,
  • Matthew Lombardi, NHL hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs (formerly Calgary Flames, Phoenix Coyotes, Nashville Predators)
  • A.M. Pattison, artist, commercial artist and architect
  • Daniel Shelton, comic artist, for syndicated comic strip Ben.
  • Larry Smith, former Canadian Football League Commissioner and current Conservative Senator
  • Amanda Walsh, best known for being a MuchMusic VJ (2000–2004), as well as her role in film 'Ghosts of Girlfriends Past' (2009), and recurring roles in 'Sons & Daughters' and 'The Big Bang Theory'
  • Sam Goldberg Jr., musician, best known as member of Broken Social Scene
  • Lorne Elliott, comedian, musician and former presenter for CBC Radio
  • P.J. Stock, former NHL hockey player for the New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers and Boston Bruins and current commentator on French-Canadian sports channel RDS
gollark: I do not. He mutes me annoyingly.
gollark: ++delete <@319753218592866315> (general evil)
gollark: * I
gollark: I SAID he was drunk, didn't it?
gollark: No, I am ADDING money, in melons.

See also
  • List of cities in Quebec

References
  1. Reference number 29182 of the Commission de toponymie du Québec (in French)
  2. "Ministère des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire: Hudson". Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  3. "Parliament of Canada Federal Riding History: VAUDREUIL--SOULANGES (Quebec)". Archived from the original on 2009-06-18. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
  4. "2011 Community Profiles". 2011 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. July 5, 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-28.
  5. http://www.hudsonbaptist.ca
  6. http://sis.agr.gc.ca/cansis/publications/surveys/pq/pq53/index.html
  7. "2006 Community Profiles". 2006 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. March 30, 2011. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  8. "2001 Community Profiles". 2001 Canadian Census. Statistics Canada. February 17, 2012.
  9. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 census
  10. Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 census
  11. "Les écoles et les centres". Commission Scolaire des Trois-Lacs. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
  12. "School Board Map." Lester B. Pearson School Board. Retrieved on September 28, 2017.
  13. "That Was Phoebe: A Community Remembers its Past". www.virtualmuseum.ca. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  14. Hudson Yacht Club, Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Year: 1909-1984. Hudson, Québec: Hudson Yacht Club. 1984.
  15. Hodgson, Roderick L. (2009). Our Spirit Lives On: A Celebration of Hudson Yacht Club's First 100 Years, 1909-2009. Montreal: Hudson Yacht Club.
  16. Town of Hudson. "Environment". Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  17. A Chemical Reaction, retrieved 2019-03-21
  18. Oka Ferry
  19. Oka-Hudson Archived 2012-01-06 at the Wayback Machine
  20. Oka/hudson Ferry
  21. "Hudson-Oka ice bridge opens". The Gazette. 2009-01-22. Archived from the original on 2010-02-13. Retrieved 2009-10-27.

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