La Kanado, Québec

1915-1917
Location: approximately 11 kms east of Mont-Laurier; Lot 7, Range 7 in the municipality of Lac-des-Écorces, Township of Rochon. 46°33′ N 75°21′ W.   46.55 N, -75.35 W.

La Kanado was founded by Albert Saint-Martin. After his unsuccessful attempts to influence Montréal’s mayor and other local politicians to take possession of vacant lots in order to provide agricultural work for the unemployed, Albert Saint-Martin shifted his efforts to a rural setting. He created a farming collective called La Kanado on land previously obtained by Gustave Testard and the Coopérative Espéranto in 1910. (“Kanado” means Canada in Esperanto.) It had about 20 inhabitants who arrived there from Montréal, quite a few of whom were immigrants from France. Life in the settlement proved to be a challenge, as few of the inhabitants knew about agriculture and animal husbandry. La Kanado ceased to operate in 1917 and the settlement was destroyed by fire in 1918.

Larivière’s biography of Saint-Martin includes a brief discussion of the founding of La Kanado.

by Ines Ribeiro
06.10.13

Reference:

  • Larivière, Claude. 1979. Albert Saint-Martin, Militant d’avant-garde (1865-1947). Laval, QC: Éditions coopératives Albert Saint-Martin.