Bellecombe

From where you are standing, compare what you see before you with the historical photo shown here.

The building that now houses the Bellecombe neighborhood office and the library, was once the village convent and school, serving students in grades 6 through 9. When it was a convent, it was occupied by the Sisters of Our Lady Help. Between the building and the church in front of which you are standing, once stood the rectory, which no longer exists.

Situated alongside lakes and vast green spaces, Bellecombe offers a wonderful quality of life. With a total area of 733 km², this neighborhood is the second largest in the Rouyn-Noranda region after Cadillac. Take advantage of your stroll to explore its nooks and crannies and make some wonderful discoveries.

Photo source: BAnQ

Founded in 1941, it was very active in the heart of the village and provided women with valuable skills for household tasks, including sewing, gardening, child-rearing, and cooking.

Photo source: BAnQ

Here, in the background, is the first general store of Saint-Roch-de-Bellecombe.

Photo source: BAnQ

The renowned singer-songwriter and musician Jacques Michel is from Bellecombe. For more information, see the “Highlights” section of the interpretive panel.

Photo credit: Elizabeth Delage

This pencil drawing depicts Bellecombe’s agricultural past through the presence of an old fence post, a milk can, and an old hay rake. The present is represented by the weathered wood, which symbolizes the disappearance of barns in this community and throughout the province.

Our eyes move upward to the top of the artwork, where we see Bellecombe, with its restored buildings and the tower in the distance that symbolizes modern communications.

Artist: Bernard Béland

Year: 2016

Material: graphite on UHD panel

Bernard Béland was born in Montreal in 1953. He moved to Abitibi-Témiscamingue at the age of 20 to work there. He eventually settled in the region and made Bellecombe his home.

His love of painting emerged by chance. The landscape around him fills him with wonder and inspires his work.

Oil is his preferred medium, but he also uses India ink, graphite pencil, pastel, and acrylic. Self-taught, his passion for art and painting has developed and has been constantly evolving since the 1980s.

Photo credit: Abitibi-Témiscamingue Culture Council

1935: Founding of the Sainte-Agnès-de-Bellecombe parish and celebration of the first Mass 

1938: Opening of the Saint-Roch-de-Bellecombe parish with the settles from Asbestos, Magog, Lac-Mégantic, Coaticook, and Scottstown 

1941, 1945, and 1947: several forest fires deplete the timber reserves on which the settlers depend for their livelihood

1954–1955: following the abandonment of the land and the migration of part of the population to the mines, summer camps are built and retail businesses resume thanks to hunting and fishing

Mid-1960s to early 1970s: political void and closure of the local school board following school regionalization

After 1969: end of religious services in Saint-Roch due to population decline

1975: merger of Saint-Roch with Sainte-Agnès

Late 1970s: young couples move to the area, leading to new construction

1979: incorporation as a municipality

2002: merger with the other municipalities of the MRC