Trois-Rivières, QC

A member of staff at the Boréalis museum told me that Trois-Rivières used to be the “paper capital of the world” with their world’s largest paper factory in the 1950s. The factory was razed about a decade ago to make way for new apartment buildings and only the water filtration plant remains of the once mighty factory that supplied the New York Times. The museum inhabits this space.

“I can see the St. Lawrence and the St. Maurice rivers.” I pointed at their confluence out the window of the museum. “Where’s the third river?”

“There’s actually only one river, the French thought the islands appeared to divide the St. Maurice into three tributary rivers that flowed into the St. Lawrence, but there’s actually only one river with three courses.” He laughed. “It’d be pretty stupid to rename the town to Une-Rivière, so they just stuck with it.”

Museum staff

Trois-Rivières was founded in 1634, making it the second oldest city in Canada after Quebec City. A walk along the heritage architecture path confirms this. The St. James Anglican Church, Ursuline Monastery, de Tonnancour Manor among others along the Rue de Ursuline are just a few buildings from the 17th century that survived the fire of 1908.

Being the largest city between Montreal and Quebec City, Trois-Rivières has a thriving cultural scene. The waterfront park just a stone’s throw away from the historic district is also home to the annual Festivoix music festival. It’s also home to several arts, history, and religious museums such as the Museum Pierre Boucher with free entry, POP Museum housed in a historical jail, Manoir de Niverville colonial house, and the Father Frédéric Jassoone Museum in the St. Antoine Church.