Sainte-Mélanie is a municipality in the Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Joliette Regional County Municipality. It is located along the western shores of the L'Assomption River.

History

Sainte-Mélanie was formerly part of the territory of the Ailleboust Seignory, granted to Jean d'Ailleboust d'Argenteuil (1694-1785) in 1736. By 1800, Pierre-Louis Panet (1761-1812) was Lord of Ailleboust, whose daughter Charlotte-Mélanie Panet (1794-1872) may have been the source of the name Sainte-Mélanie, also a reference to Melania the Younger (383-439). Charlotte-Mélanie's husband, Marc-Antoine-Louis Lévesque (1782-1833), donated the land in 1814 for a chapel that was eventually built in 1830. The Parish of Sainte-Mélanie was founded in 1832, and four years later in 1836, the post office opened under the name Daillebout. The municipality officially started in 1845, was soon after abolished, and reestablished in 1855 as Sainte-Mélanie-d'Ailleboust. In 1881, the post office was renamed to Sainte-Mélanie, and more than a century later in 1986, the municipality followed suit by also adopting this shortened name.

Demographics

Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 1,394 (total dwellings: 1,518) Mother tongue:

Education

Commission scolaire des Samares operates francophone public schools, including: The Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board operates anglophone public schools, including:

Notable people from Sainte-Mélanie