PROFILE OF THE MUNICIPALITY

Melbourne, located in the southernmost region of Quebec, is part of the Eastern Townships. This township, established in 1855, covers an area of 173 square kilometers, with a population of approximately 1 125 residents. The Township of Melbourne is part of the MRC du Val-Saint-François.

The village was founded by Irish immigrants from New England after the famine in Ireland. These settlers, who arrived around 1860, decided to try their luck here, because these lands were still available, accessible, open and cultivable. The name Melbourne comes from the name of an English city in Derbyshire and Hampshire.

Melbourne stands out because of a diverse fauna and flora. The area has an abundance of animals and there are some rare species of birds, such as the Bobolink or the Osprey. If you follow Coddington Road, you can see in the forest, in good weather, the red-tailed hawk that hunts there, while in the cornfields you may see hen harriers or an American sparrow hawk that is the smallest falcon species in Quebec.

The general appearance of Melbourne Township’s village core, with its 19th-century red brick buildings, slate roof, and vernacular American style, reveals the origin of its pioneers that settled around 1799.