Rivière du Nord () is a tributary of the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (, ) is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word "to trade", as it was the major trade route of Eastern Canada at the time. For most of its length, it defines the border betw ...

located in the

Laurentides The Laurentides (, ) is a region of Quebec. While it is often called the Laurentians in English, the region includes only part of the Laurentian Mountains. It has a total land area of and its population was 589,400 inhabitants as of the 2016 C ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

in southwest

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Geography

Rising from its source at Lac Brûlé, the Rivière du Nord comes from the north-northwest rather than from the north and flows east of

Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts () is a town in the province of Quebec, Canada, in the regional county municipality of Les Laurentides in the administrative region of Laurentides, also known as the "Laurentians" or the Laurentian Mountains (in English) ...

and waters several settlements, including

Val-David Val-David is a village of more than 5,200 inhabitants in the Laurentian Mountains about north of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Attracting about 100,000 tourists a year, Val-David is predominantly francophone although it has a small anglophone minori ...

, Sainte-Adèle, Prévost (formerly Shawbridge) and

Saint-Jérôme Saint-Jérôme () ( 2021 population 80,213) is a suburban city located about northwest of Montreal on the Rivière du Nord. It is part of the North Shore sector of Greater Montreal. It is a gateway to the Laurentian Mountains and its reso ...

. From there, it winds its way west-southwest to

Lachute Lachute () is a town in southwest Quebec, Canada, northwest of Montreal, on the Rivière du Nord (Laurentides), Rivière du Nord, a tributary of the Ottawa River, and west of Mirabel International Airport, the Mirabel International Airport. It i ...

, waters Saint-André-Est before emptying into the

at the entrance to

Lac des Deux Montagnes Lake of Two Mountains (French: ''Lac des Deux Montagnes'') is part of the river delta widening of the Ottawa River in Quebec, Canada, at its confluence with the St. Lawrence River. Lake of Two Mountains has four outflows: Rivière des Mille Île ...

Toponymy

The origin of this toponym dates back to the seventeenth century. Mention of the "Rivière du Nord" is mentioned in the deed of 7 June 1680, by which Intendant Jacques Duchesneau granted the seigneury of Argenteuil to Charles-Joseph d'Ailleboust Des Muceaux. Subsequently, this toponym has remained stable. The name can be explained by the fact that the river comes from the north or that the region through it was, at the time, considered the North.

History

A colourful character is linked to this region.

Antoine Labelle François-Xavier-Antoine Labelle (; November 24, 1833 – January 4, 1891) was a Roman Catholic priest and the person principally responsible for the settlement (or "colonization") of the Laurentians. He is also referred to as "Curé Labelle" ...

(1833-1891), parish priest of Saint-Jérôme from 1868 to 1891 and deputy commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Colonization from 1888 to 1890, used this waterway to visit and support the many settlers who settled between

and

Mont-Laurier Mont-Laurier () is a town and incorporated municipality in western Quebec, Canada, located on the banks of the Lièvre River (''Rivière du Lièvre''), a tributary of the Ottawa River. Known as the "Capital of the Haute-Laurentides", the motto o ...

References

Rivers of Laurentides {{Quebec-river-stub