Beauharnois is a city located in the Beauharnois-Salaberry Regional County Municipality of southwestern Quebec, Canada, and is part of the Greater Montreal Area. The city's population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 13,638. It is home to the Beauharnois Hydroelectric Power Station, as well as the Beauharnois Lock of the Saint Lawrence Seaway.

History

During the Lower Canada Rebellion, the Battle of Beauharnois was fought in 1838, between Lower Canada loyalists and Patriote rebels. After Edward Ellice and his family were taken prisoner by rebels, the townspeople rebelled. The British were able to quash the rebellion and captured over a hundred Patriote rebels. The Beauharnois Canal was dug between 1842 and 1845 to connect the lakes Saint-Louis and Saint-Francois as part of a larger project that included the expansion of the Lachine canal. During these years, however, a series of labor conflicts emerged during the canal's construction. On June 3, 1843, a strike began at the canal's construction site. A battle ensued between the striking workers and employers, resulting in the death of five workers and 50 additional injured. The violence unleashed during the strike represented the bloodiest repression against workers in Canadian history. As part of the 2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec, the neighbouring towns of Maple Grove and Melocheville were amalgamated into Beauharnois on January 1, 2002.

Geography

Communities

In addition to the main population centre of Beauharnois, the following locations are within the municipality's boundaries:

Lakes & rivers

The following waterways pass through or are situated within the municipality's boundaries:

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Beauharnois had a population of 13,638 living in 6,293 of its 6,451 total private dwellings, a change of NaN% from its 2016 population of 12,884. With a land area of 68.22 km2, it had a population density of in 2021.

Economy

In 2012, OVH started construction of its first Canadian data centre in Beauharnois, one of the largest in the world.