Stanstead, Quebec (city)

Stanstead
Town
View of Stanstead from across the Canada–United States border
Nickname(s): Granite Capital of Canada
Motto: Three Villages, One Border — Trois Villages, Une Frontière
Location within Memphrémagog RCM
Stanstead Location in Quebec
Coordinates: 45°01′N 72°06′W / 45.017°N 72.100°W / 45.017; -72.100Coordinates: 45°01′N 72°06′W / 45.017°N 72.100°W / 45.017; -72.100
Country	Canada
Province	Quebec
Region	Estrie
RCM	Memphrémagog
Settled	1789–1796
Constituted	February 15, 1995
Government
• Mayor	Philippe Dutil
• Federal riding	Compton—Stanstead
• Prov. riding	Orford
Area
• Total	22.30 km2 (8.61 sq mi)
• Land	22.72 km2 (8.77 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	2,857
• Density	125.8/km2 (326/sq mi)
• Pop 2006–2011	3.4%
• Dwellings	1,361
Time zone	EST (UTC−5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s)	J0B 1E0, J0B 2K0, & J0B3E0
Area code(s)	819
Highways A-55	Route 143 Route 247
Website	www.stanstead.ca

Stanstead is a town in the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, located on the Canada–United States border across from Derby Line, Vermont.

The Town of Stanstead was created in 1995 by the merger of the former towns of Stanstead Plain, Rock Island and Beebe (formerly Beebe Plain). It is not to be confused with the township of Stanstead, which is nearby although not directly adjacent (the municipality of Ogden lies in between). Not only is Stanstead home to the Haskell Free Library and Opera House — the only heritage building deliberately constructed straddling the border between both countries — it also features Canusa Street, one of a number of streets in the world where the country border corresponds to the middle line marker, effectively making across the street neighbors residents of two different countries.

Prior to merging, the towns of Stanstead, Rock Island and Beebe were known collectively as "Trois villages", or "Three villages".

In 1940, traffic on Quebec Route 143—the area's main route at the time—was halted due to snowfall from March 22 to April 3. Dufferin Heights was most affected. As volunteers attempted to clear the road with shovels, the snow banks became so high that steps needed to be carved into them. Trains were similarly affected, although able to dig out more quickly.

Stanstead Plain was founded in 1796 by Johnson Taplin, who came from New England in search of good farming land.

The Mansur (red brick) one-room school was built in 1819. Today part of Stanstead College, it is the oldest one-room school remaining in Quebec.

The town grew in the 19th century, due to the influx of United Empire Loyalists and the development of the granite industry. In 1855, the village was incorporated by the Quebec legislature. The town was the main centre of commerce of the region through the late 18th century, though eventually losing pre-eminence to Sherbrooke. Stanstead was also at one time the seat of the former Stanstead County.