Madawaska River (Saint John)
Encyclopedia
The Madawaska River flows from Lake Témiscouata
in Quebec
to join the Saint John River at Edmundston, New Brunswick
.
The river's name comes from the Algonquian
word "Madoueskak", which means "land of the porcupine".
The river formed part of the Témiscouata Portage, a canoe
and land route from the Bay of Fundy
to the Saint Lawrence River
dating from the late 17th century. A road, now Route 185
and part of the Trans-Canada Highway
, was built along this route in 1862. The Témiscouata Railway was built along the same route in 1886. In the early 20th century, timber and logs were floated down the river to New Brunswick.
The Petit Témis Interprovincial Linear Park is a rail trail
running from Edmundston, NB
to Cabano, QC
in the abandoned CN
rail corridor that was originally built by the Temiscouata Railway.
Lake Témiscouata
Lake Témiscouata is a lake in the Témiscouata region of southeastern Quebec. It is 45 km long and 5 km wide. The Madawaska River flows from this lake to the Saint John River.The city of Cabano is located on this lake...
in 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....
to join the Saint John River at Edmundston, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
.
The river's name comes from the Algonquian
Algonquian languages
The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...
word "Madoueskak", which means "land of the porcupine".
The river formed part of the Témiscouata Portage, a canoe
Canoe
A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...
and land route from the Bay of Fundy
Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine...
to the Saint Lawrence River
Saint Lawrence River
The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...
dating from the late 17th century. A road, now Route 185
Quebec route 185
Route 185 is part of the Trans-Canada Highway. It travels from Saint-Antonin, Quebec to Edmundston, New Brunswick, a distance of about . It connects Autoroute 85 and New Brunswick Route 2....
and part of the Trans-Canada Highway
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...
, was built along this route in 1862. The Témiscouata Railway was built along the same route in 1886. In the early 20th century, timber and logs were floated down the river to New Brunswick.
The Petit Témis Interprovincial Linear Park is a rail trail
Rail trail
A rail trail is the conversion of a disused railway easement into a multi-use path, typically for walking, cycling and sometimes horse riding. The characteristics of former tracks—flat, long, frequently running through historical areas—are appealing for various development. The term sometimes also...
running from Edmundston, NB
Edmundston, New Brunswick
Edmundston is a Canadian city in Madawaska County, New Brunswick.-History:During the early colonial period, the area was an important meeting place and hunting/fishing spot of the Maliseet nation. A considerable sized village was located there around the turn of the 19th century...
to Cabano, QC
Cabano, Quebec
Cabano is a city in Témiscouata Regional County Municipality within the Bas-Saint-Laurent region of Quebec, Canada. It is situated on Lake Témiscouata on Route 185.On May 9, 1950, a fire destroyed a large part of the city....
in the abandoned CN
Canadian National Railway
The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
rail corridor that was originally built by the Temiscouata Railway.
See also
- List of rivers of New Brunswick
- List of rivers of Quebec