Madawaska County: History, Rivers and Nature

Madawaska County brings together architectural and local history with river landscapes, lakes and trails. If you’re looking for a hotel for a trip to the county, you can start by asking whether cultural sites, water activities or outdoor trails will shape your stay. The places described here offer specific points of interest to help you decide.

Historic and cultural sites

In Edmundston, the P'tit Sault Blockhouse was built in 1841 on a hill overlooking the confluence of the Saint John and Madawaska Rivers. Also in Edmundston is St. John the Baptist Church Provincial Heritage Place. Built between 1878 and 1887, it is the northernmost example of the Anglican bishop John Medley's Gothic Revival church-building project.

The Cyr Historical House in Saint-Basile was built by Alexis Cyr between 1825 and 1830. It is considered the oldest house in Madawaska County. In Saint-François, the Forge Jos B. Michaud tells a different story of architecture and craftsmanship: the forge was built in 1894 and operated for at least 100 years before passing to the blacksmith's son. At the Musée de la Forge Jos B. Michaud, tools and the story of former owner Joseph B. Michaud offer insight into the craft of blacksmithing.

The collections in Saint-François-de-Madawaska also focus on pioneer history. The 150th Anniversary Heritage Room Museum preserves artifacts, religious objects and personal belongings of pioneers and their descendants. The Cyr Historical House, in turn, connects the history of a single house with the development of Saint-Basile and the county.

Ledges… Place des Pionniers is a miniature replica of the former village of Saint-François, once known as Ledges. A trail winds among historic buildings dedicated to the pioneers of the Saint-François District. The building types represented include a home, a church, a farm, a post office, a school and a general store. A festival in the Saint-Hilaire District includes a visit to the Maxime-Albert Museum and activities recalling notable moments in Saint-Hilaire's history.

The Site historique de Clair is located in the 1848 Maison Daigle-Saint-Jean on the Saint John River. Together with the houses, churches and museums, it illustrates the variety of historic sites found throughout the county.

Rivers, lakes and trails

In Edmundston, the New Brunswick Botanical Garden features twelve themed gardens spread across more than eight hectares, equivalent to 20 acres, along the Madawaska River. In the Ward of Saint-François, the nature park is a place for family picnics and offers views of the Saint John River. Here, you can experience river landscapes in both a landscaped garden and a nature park.

Lac Unique and Lac Glazier in the Ward of Saint-François are each associated with canoeing, kayaking and fishing. In the Ward of Baker-Brook, there are snowshoeing and hiking trails. The trail options vary by activity: here, the focus is on winter and hiking trails; there, on activities on and around the lakes.

Every Ward of Haut-Madawaska has ATV trails; the ATV Club of Haut-Madawaska is the point of contact for them. The trails in Baker-Brook and the ATV options in the Wards cater to different ways of getting around outdoors. The Festivités du Demi-Marathon de Saint-François also offers a varied program for the whole family, including dancing, inflatable games, walking or running, a family afternoon and vendor booths.

The Petit-Témis Interprovincial Linear Park connects Edmundston in New Brunswick with Rivière-du-Loup in Québec via more than 130 kilometres of trails. In Edmundston, the Visitor Information Centre is housed in a former CP railway station, built in 1930 and fully renovated in 2005. The centre is next to a bike path connecting Edmundston with Rivière-du-Loup. The Petit-Témis is therefore a regional point of interest that extends beyond Madawaska County.

Start planning by exploring the topics that interest you in the county.

Discover more destinations: Edmundston, Saint-André, Rivière-Verte, Saint Hilaire, Lac Baker, St John County, York County, Charlotte County.

For the broader travel overview: New Brunswick.