Ussel, Corrèze
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Ussel (; oc, Ussèl) is a
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
in the
Corrèze Corrèze (; oc, Corresa) is a department in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, ...
department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in central
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. Its inhabitants are called Ussellois.


Location

The community of Ussel is located in the
Massif central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,00 ...
on the foothills of the
plateau de Millevaches 220px, Plateau de Millevaches The Plateau de Millevaches (; oc, Replanat de Miuvachas) is an upland area in Limousin a former administrative region of France. It covers approximately 3,500 km² and crosses the boundaries of three French dep ...
. The city itself sits on a hilltop in between the valley of the river
Diège The Diège (; oc, Dieja) is a long river in the Corrèze ''département'', south central France. Its source is at Saint-Setiers, on the plateau de Millevaches, in the '' parc naturel régional de Millevaches en Limousin''. It flows generally sou ...
and the valley of the river Sarsonne. It is situated at an altitude of 2070 ft (631 m), in the Massif Central on the last buttress of the Plateau de Millevaches. Ussel is crossed by the Green Meridian.


Hydrography

Three main watercourses are flowing through the community, the river
Diège The Diège (; oc, Dieja) is a long river in the Corrèze ''département'', south central France. Its source is at Saint-Setiers, on the plateau de Millevaches, in the '' parc naturel régional de Millevaches en Limousin''. It flows generally sou ...
(The town sometimes is called ''Ussel-sur-Diège''), the river Sarsonne and the stream of Étang Roux.


Demography

In 2017, the population of Ussel was 9,736 inhabitants.


Historical heritage


Places and monuments

*The Borde Castle, 15th century, reshuffled during the 17th century *The Mothe Castle, 16th century, historical monument since 1980 *The Ventadour Hotel, historical monument since 1932 *The Church Saint-Martin, 13th century, classified historical monument since 1926 *The Roman Eagle situated in the Voltaire Square. This monument is sculpted in the granite, and discovered in The Peuch Mill, on the Sarsonne. It was cleaned and shifted en 2009 during the refurbishment of the Voltaire Square. *The Chapel of Notre-Dame de la Chabane *The Church Saint Martial *The Church Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption, in La Tourette *The Church Saint-Dizier in Saint-Dézéry


Parks and green areas

Ussel is well known thanks to its many green and natural areas. It offers the city a countrified atmosphere very appreciated by its inhabitants. Besides gardens, Ussel is composed of a large number of natural spaces, with hiking and walking trails. The municipality is a floral city which obtained three flowers during the contest "
villes et villages fleuris Villes is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ain department The following is a list of the 393 communes of the Ain department of France. The communes cooperate in the following ...
".


Transportation

The highway A 89 provides an easy access to the towns. Two main exits feeds the city. Exit 23 (''Mauriac-Maymac-Ussel Ouest'') south-west of town and Exit 24 (''Ussel Est-Eygurande'') North East of town. The construction of the highway has highly improved the security but also the comfort inside the town. This highway is a component of the
European route E70 European route E70 is an A-Class West-East European route, extending from A Coruña in Spain in the west to the Georgian city of Poti in the east. Itinerary The E 70 routes through ten European countries, and includes one sea-crossing, ...
. Ussel is also crossed by the RN 89. This road which was retrofitted to a regional road links
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
to
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
via
Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, ; ; oc, label=Auvergnat (dialect), Auvergnat, Clarmont-Ferrand or Clharmou ; la, Augustonemetum) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population ...
. The train station of Ussel lies on a main railtrack linking
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
to
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
. As of 2022, there are
TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine is the regional rail network serving the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It is operated by the French national railway company SNCF. It was formed in 2017 from the previous TER networks TER Aquitaine, TER ...
services to Bordeaux, Brive-la-Gaillarde and Limoges. The closest airports are Limoges-Bellegarde, Clermont-Ferrand-Auvergne. The Ussel-Thalamy airfield is a leisure and tourist oriented place. It is located a few kilometers away from town.


Twinning

Ussel is paired with Auray (France), located in the department of Morbihan.


Economy


Forest products and wood

Ussel shelters many company in the wood field, like the panel producer MDF Isoroy, the stratified clothes designer Polyrey, the interior door manufacturer Jeld Wen, the front door manufacturer Bel .


Mining and steel

The Des farges mine, located 3 kilometers from Ussel, is part of Nouvelle-Aquitaine's mining. The extraction of lead was applied, as well as silver and much more, until its closure in 1981. La Société des fonderies d'Ussel (SFU) is one of the metallurgical representative of the region.


Food processing

The city is the center of a farming region, marked by the bovine breed ''limousine'' and the pig farming at the same time. The pork butcher group Loste owns a production site of salted meat in the industrial area Empereur. Regional products are beef and pork, hunting and fishing products, and harvest products (cep, chanterelle, blueberry ) Local dishes are the ''tourtou'' or the ''farcidure'', for example.


Pharmaceutical industry

The industrial sector sets up in High-Corrèze since 1990 when Bristol-Myers Squibb settles a production site in the town of Meymac. In 1999, Pierre Fabre came to Ussel by building a distribution and logistics center in the industrial zone of L'Empereur. The company Chesapeake features a production unit specializing in packaging for the pharmaceutical industry (holsters and instructions), also located in the industrial zone of "The Emperor".


Culture


Museum of Ussel

The museum of Ussel is dedicated to history, arts and tradition of the region of Ussel. It features some objects and pictorial representations. Another part is devoted to the history of printing and exhibitions of engraving. Many of the objects exhibited concerning agricultural trades were kindly provided by Dr. Ernest Chiocconi, a salvage dealer. He had recovered objects in agricultural holdings which were no longer used.


Transcorrezien Railway Line

Ussel was the northern terminus of the Metre Gauge Transcorrezien railway line linking Tulle to Ussel via
Marcillac-la-Croisille Marcillac-la-Croisille (; oc, Marcilhac la Crosilha) is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Corrèze department The following is a list of the 279 communes of the Corrèze depart ...
,
Lapleau Lapleau (; oc, La Plèu) is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. Geography The Luzège forms the commune's eastern boundary. Population See also *Communes of the Corrèze department The following is a list of the 279 ...
,
Soursac Soursac (; oc, Sorçac) is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. Geography The Luzège forms most of the commune's western boundary, then flows into the Dordogne, which forms the commune's southern and eastern boundaries. P ...
and
Liginiac Liginiac (; oc, Liginhac) is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. Geography The Triouzoune forms most of the commune's western boundary. Population See also *Communes of the Corrèze department The following is a list ...
. This line was part of the narrow gauge network of railways in the Corrèze region.Details about the Transcorrézien.
/ref> While the line has disappeared, many architectural and track elements still remain and can be visited by the public. Many of the stations are preserved and have been restored and a Tourist Route created which enables visitors to follow the track from its terminus at Languenne on the outskirts of
Tulle Tulle (; ) is a commune in central France. It is the third-largest town in the former region of Limousin and is the capital of the department of Corrèze, in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Tulle is also the episcopal see of the Roman Cat ...
to Ussel. The road signs are rectangular with "Transcorrezien" shown on them on a white background The area includes the Roche Noir Viaduct, a suspension bridge crossing the deep gorge of the
Luzège The Luzège (; oc, Luseja) is a long river in the Corrèze ''département'', south-central France. Its source is on the Plateau de Millevaches, in Meymac, north-northwest of the town. It flows generally south. It is a right tributary of the Do ...
river between Lapleau and Soursac. It is possible to visit both ends of the bridge but, while it remains in good condition, it is closed even to pedestrians. The Soursac end of the bridge leads straight into a 150 m-long curved tunnel. Visitors can park at the Soursac end, walk through the tunnel (which is lit) and emerge by the bridge.


See also

*
Communes of the Corrèze department The following is a list of the 279 communes of the Corrèze department of France. The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2020):Communes of Corrèze Subprefectures in France Lemovices Limousin Corrèze communes articles needing translation from French Wikipedia