Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada
Sherbrooke

Located on Abenaki land, Sherbrooke was initially known as Ktinékétolékouac or Grandes Fourches ("The Large Forks"), and was the site of a portage at the foot of the falls of the Rivière Magog. The first permanent settlement was established in 1802 when American pioneers from Vermont built several mills. The village took the name of Governor General John Coape Sherbrooke in 1818. The city owes its initial urban growth to industrialization, which occurred in waves from the 1840s. It became a textile centre with the establishment of Canada's first cotton manufacturing plant in 1844 and a large wool plant in 1867.

The town owed its success in the 19th century as much to its dynamic anglophone businessmen, who established a regional bank and promoted railways and new industries, as to its francophone population, which supplied much of the industrial manpower.

The development of agriculture and mining in the region also enhanced Sherbrooke's role as a wholesale trade and services centre. Since the 1950s, the city has had difficulty attracting new industry and has experienced a decline in its textile and clothing industries. The founding of Université de Sherbrooke in 1954 and the decentralization of the province's administration have helped restore much of the city's dynamism.

The Canadian Encyclopedia

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