Town Hall

In 1855, the first municipal meeting was held in the office of notary John Horan, just across from the current Town Hall. The minutes from December 17, 1855, mention that the second council session would take place in the Village of Rawdon Township. In 1862, all council meetings for the year were held in the office of Dr. John Mc Adams.

Three years later, the council’s request to build a municipal hall with a $200 grant was rejected—the funds were allocated instead to the construction of a bridge over the Ouareau River, upstream from Dorwin Falls. 

First Municipal Hall

Around 1888, a municipal hall that also served as the Town Hall was built on the current site. In 1919, Rawdon was divided into two municipalities, the village of Rawdon and the township of Rawdon, due to differences within the population.

The Royal Bank, attached to Rawdon’s former Town Hall from 1926 to 1973. The old Balmoral Hotel can also be seen. In the 1930s, it was destroyed by fire and replaced by the Rawdon Inn. 

Source: Société d’histoire de Rawdon

In 1926, a new Town Hall was constructed to house the offices of both the village and township councils, as well as the telephone exchange and the Royal Bank, which remained there until 1973. In 1928, From 1928 to 1963, the post office also moved into the Town Hall. On May 28, 1998, the municipalities of Rawdon Township and Rawdon Village merged to form the Municipality of Rawdon. The building has undergone numerous renovations, including in 2015, to make it accessible for people with reduced mobility.

Popular Places

A few steps from here, once stood Aimé Morin’s grocery store, the Auberge du Colonel, which later became the Jolicoeur restaurant, Mercerie Neveu, and the bus terminal. These were all popular places for the local community! Like many villages, Rawdon had a lively and vibrant center, shaped by people who left a lasting impact.

Everyone remembers Charlemagne Neveu, who took care of his displays and customers for nearly 50 years! He is seen here proudly posing in his well-organized shop in 1990.

Source: Société d'histoire de Rawdon

Mr. and Mrs. Mirko Konecny were the first Czechoslovakians to settle in Rawdon around 1958. They moved to Domaine Pontbriand, and within a few years, a dozen other families followed, including Mr. Vik, who would later build the Look Out Park Hotel-Motel. 

Other Czechoslovakian industrialists also settled in Rawdon, including Mr. Loffelman and Mr. Nemec, who built several houses in the village.

Back when it was common to listen on the line...

Source: Société d'histoire de Rawdon

One of the tenants of the Town Hall was the telephone exchange. In the early 1900s, a group of citizens from Joliette and Montcalm County founded La Compagnie de Téléphone de Joliette. This first independent company, separate from Bell Telephone, had its headquarters in Joliette and was backed by 50 shareholders. By 1904, Rawdon subscribers could communicate with Montréal and Trois-Rivières via this new company. The cost of a long-distance call between Rawdon and Montréal was 50 cents, whether made day or night. In 1924, Rawdon had 33 telephone subscribers.

The Corporation de téléphone de Joliette 

In 1945, the company was sold and renamed the Corporation de Téléphone de Joliette. Four years later, Bell Canada acquired the company along with a prime piece of land on 4th Avenue. This site became the starting point for the installation of automatic switching systems, allowing users to dial numbers directly to connect with other lines, eliminating the need for an operator to manually establish calls. On March 6, 1960, the 1,200 subscribers in the Rawdon area transitioned from manual to automatic service!

“I remember our neighborhood’s party line very well,” recalls Diane Kyte. “Many houses shared a phone line when I was young. One of our neighbors was always listening in! We often heard, 'Lise… Hang up!' so she would let us talk in peace.”

Throughout the province, relations with Indigenous peoples have been tumultuous and unequal. This 1842 archive shows that some groups settled on the territory and cleared their land, but their recognition as integral members of the community remained difficult. 

Frequently erased from mainstream history, Indigenous presence is now being studied and documented thanks to research conducted by Guillaume Petit, Daniel Parkinson, and Michel Léonard. The results of their work will help shed light on a lesser-known part of local history.

In Rawdon, Algonquin families are believed to have frequented the region more than 1,000 years ago, setting up camps along the banks of the Rouge and Ouareau Rivers. In fact, the toponym Ouareau is thought to mean “distant, deep, and hollow” in the Algonquin language. 

Source: List of land lot occupants in 1842. This list includes 48 individuals of various Indigenous origins. Highlighted by Guillaume Petit, available online.

Inaugurated in 2012, Place Rawdon hosts numerous celebrations, including the traditional St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Since 1978, this parade has proudly celebrated the municipality’s Irish heritage in grand style!

Other cultural events bring this public square to life, such as outdoor musical performances, open-air cinema, public pianos, and special celebrations, especially during the Holiday season. A choir adds a magical touch to the multicultural Christmas trees, which proudly displays decorations from around the world, contributed by Rawdon’s diverse citizens.

Source: Simon Laroche Photographie

You are now standing in front of Rawdon’s Town Hall, located on the same site as the original one, in the historical, social, and commercial heart of the municipality. Then and now, 4th Avenue and Metcalfe, Church, and Queen Streets have been a hub of activity! Notably, Queen Street, which runs alongside Rawdon Lake, is exceptional for the region as it was built in a straight line. It leads to magnificent Mont Pontbriand, adorned with an iron cross erected in 1950 to commemorate the Holy Year. This monument once illuminated the panoramic view, much like Montréal’s Mount Royal!

Rawdon Township was officially established on July 13, 1799. In 1815, Joseph Bouchette, the Surveyor General of Lower Canada, aided by Algonquin guides, mapped the territory, laying the groundwork for Rawdon’s land development. In his topographic report, he describes the township’s fertile lands, suitable for growing grain, hemp, and flax.

By 1820, the first landowners were Americans, Irish, British, and Scottish. After World War I, Russian, Hungarian, Polish, Ukrainian, Czechoslovakian, and German families were drawn to Rawdon’s charm and settled in the region. While life in Rawdon was predominantly English-speaking until the 1901 census, neighboring villages were French-speaking and less welcoming to new arrivals from diverse backgrounds. Here, however, newcomers found their place in the community, working as farmers, shoemakers, and millers. Their skills were essential to the village’s development.

Did you know that a fascinating historical document is preserved at the Town Hall? It contains the 1845 landowners' list, presented on a historical map once used by Rawdon Township’s Secretary-Treasurer, William Holtby Jr. The map was donated to the Municipality in 2022 by Daniel Parkinson, a descendant of Holtby with a passion for Rawdon’s history and genealogy.