Québec National Parks, one of the three magnificent Sépaq Networks

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	Conservation Mission

History

Parc national des Îles-de-Boucherville is a potential goldmine of prehistoric archaeology and history, and offers visitors a cultural continuum of exceptional note. Preliminary excavations indicate that aboriginal peoples inhabited Île Grosbois from the early Middle Woodland period (400 B.C. to 500 A.D.) until the 1600s.

According to archaeologist, Claude Joyal, local aboriginal inhabitants used the island as a seasonal campsite while culling various plant and animal resources that abound in the channels, spawning grounds, and forests. Archaeological digs carried out by the Committee on Québec History and Subaquatic Archaeology have also led to the discovery of the wreckage of the steamboat, Lady Sherbrooke, and the possibility that the islands may be the largest and oldest steamboat cemetery in the world.

Archaeological digs carried out by the Committee on Québec History and Subaquatic Archaeology have also led to the discovery of the wreckage of the steamboat, Lady Sherbrooke, and the possibility that the islands may be the largest and oldest steamboat cemetery in the world.

The first settlers christened the islands "Percées" and found them "all perfectly commodious and habitable". The fertile land, granted to Pierre Boucher, Seigneur of Boucherville, by Jean Talon in 1672, was used for agriculture. Pastures and cultivated fields soon appeared.

At the beginning of the 20th century, part of the archipelago took on a new role when the King Edward amusement park was built on Île Grosbois. A hippodrome, a rollercoaster, merry-go-rounds, and other rides attracted summer crowds. In the winter, people crossed the frozen river to reach downtown Montréal or for the carriage ride.

Other events took place on the islands over a rather short time span, including one of the first aviation competitions in North America. In the summer of 1910, on Île Grosbois, aviator Jacques de Lesseps maintained and repaired airplanes made of canvas and wood.

For many years, the islands were used for grazing, crop-growing, hunting, and fishing. At the same time, the eastern shores of Île Charron and Île Sainte-Marguerite grew popular with vacationers, who could rent cottages for a small fee.

The construction of the Louis-Hippolyte-Lafontaine tunnel and bridge made the islands accessible by land, spurring residential housing development. The Québec government, however, wished to protect the islands and promote their recreational use once again, so it acquired part of the archipelago between 1973 and 1976. It earmarked the land for a park where agriculture, outdoor recreation, and environmental protection could coexist. In the spring of 1981, Île Sainte-Marguerite was opened to the public. Parc national des Îles-de-Boucherville was officially created in 1984.