Survey of the Population inside of Sandy Beach, including the Peninsula (Gaspé Basin)

(currently the City of Gaspé)

August 1842

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About the Survey of Gaspé Basin

The information in this transcription was originally published as "The Names of the Heads of Families, Business or Calling, and Number of Persons in each, residing at Gaspé Basin, South-West Branch, North-West Branch, Peninsula and Sandy Beach, 14th August, 1842" from The Journal of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, 1843 (Appendix G [4 October], No.33).

The information was collected by the Postmaster, John Eden, apparently in response to requests for information on the state of the justice system in the region, and is dated 14th August 1842.

Following the survey of the population of Gaspé Basin settlements, in No.34, are a series of documents in which the justices of the peace of the Gaspé Basin settlements answer questions about the state of the judiciary in that region, including number and nature of cases, the usual procedures for arrests, etc. In addition, there is a further part of the same appendix which compares the total population of settlements in the District of Gaspé in 1819, 1825, 1831 and 1842.  Under 1842 the document notes that the figures were obtained "By Returns furnished to the Commissioners of Inquiry." These documents are all apparently part of this investigation into the state of the judiciary in the District of Gaspé.

The survey of Gaspé Basin was divided into four settlements, with totals for each settlement calculated separately:

In the Recapitulation, or totals, of the returns, Eden describes the region as "inside of Sandy Beach, including the Peninsula." He found 95 heads of families and 530 additional people, for a total population of 625.

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Maps

Below is a map showing the general area covered by this survey:

Gaspé basin topographical map
Click on image for greater detail
This map is a detail from topographical maps 22A16 (Gaspé) and
22A15 (Sunny Bank)


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Last revised 7 Sep 2004
© C. Gagnon