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Sweetsburg, Quebec

Cowansville
City
Nesbitt House, Cowansville
Nesbitt House, Cowansville
Coat of arms of Cowansville
Coat of arms
Motto: Fortitudo et decor
Location within Brome-Missisquoi RCM
Location within Brome-Missisquoi RCM
Cowansville is located in Southern Quebec
Cowansville
Cowansville
Location in southern Quebec
Coordinates: 45°12′N 72°45′W / 45.200°N 72.750°W / 45.200; -72.750Coordinates: 45°12′N 72°45′W / 45.200°N 72.750°W / 45.200; -72.750
Country  Canada
Province  Quebec
Region Montérégie
RCM Brome-Missisquoi
Constituted January 1, 1876
Government
 • Mayor Arthur Fauteux
 • Federal riding Brome—Missisquoi
 • Prov. riding Brome-Missisquoi
Area
 • City 48.70 km2 (18.80 sq mi)
 • Land 46.09 km2 (17.80 sq mi)
 • Urban 29.42 km2 (11.36 sq mi)
 • Metro 46.09 km2 (17.80 sq mi)
Population (2011)
 • City 12,489
 • Density 271.0/km2 (702/sq mi)
 • Urban 11,615
 • Urban density 394.8/km2 (1,023/sq mi)
 • Metro 12,489
 • Metro density 271.0/km2 (702/sq mi)
 • Pop 2006-2011 Increase 2.5%
 • Dwellings 5,789
Time zone EST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
Postal code(s) J2K 1T4
Area code(s) 450 and 579
Highways Route 104
Route 139
Route 202
Route 241
Geocode 46080
Website www.ville.cowansville.qc.ca

Cowansville is a town in south-central Quebec, Canada, located on Lac Davignon 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of the U.S. border. It is the seat of Brome-Missisquoi, a regional county municipality. The population as of the Canada 2011 Census was 12,489.

In recent years, Cowansville has seen its commercial activity blossom mainly due to its proximity to a major freeway, Autoroute 10, and the Eastern Townships ski resort region.

Jacob Ruiter was the first person to settle on the current site of Cowansville. In 1800 he built a flour mill, and then a saw mill. In 1805, Ruiter named the small town as Nelsonville, in honour of British admiral, Lord Horatio Nelson, who was killed in the naval Battle of Trafalgar.

The city's current name is due to Peter Cowan, a merchant from Montreal who settled in the area in 1836 and become postmaster in 1841. In order to avoid the mail being sent inadvertently to another city named Nelsonville, close to Hamilton in Upper Canada, he decided to change its name.

During the 1870s, the construction of the South Eastern Railway linking Montreal to Cowansville and the opening of the first bank, the Eastern Townships Bank, contributed to the expansion of the small city, which allows many businesses settle in the area. The municipality detached from the district of Dunham, and incorporated on the January 1, 1876 and officially was named Cowansville. In February of the same year James O'Halloran was acclaimed as Mayor by the town council. Cowansville saw a strong industrial growth during the 20th century, and became a city on June 25, 1931, and has grown since World War II by various annexations, such as Sweetsburg in 1964.


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