Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index

Île d'Orléans

The Île d'Orléans lies in the St. Lawrence River 10 km downstream of Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It is 32 km long and 8 km wide. Originally called Minigo by the Huron, it was renamed Île de Bacchus by Jacques Cartier in 1535 because of the large number of grapes he saw growing there. It was later renamed for the royal family of France.

The Île d'Orléans is still a very rural place famous locally for its produce, especially its strawberries, apples and potatoes. There are also sugar maple stands producing maple syrup and other products.

Until 1935 the only way to get to the Île was by boat, but in that year a bridge was built across from the environs of the Chutes de Montmorency to the island.