The Pozer River (in French: rivière Pozer) is a river that originates in Shenley Township and flows into the Chaudière River at Saint-Georges. The latter flows northward to empty onto the south shore of the St. Lawrence River. It flows in the municipalities of Saint-Honoré-de-Shenley, Saint-Benoit-Labre and Saint-Georges (Aubert-Gallion sector), in the Beauce-Sartigan Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Chaudière-Appalaches, in Quebec, in Canada.

Pozer River
Pozer River seen from the Highway 271 bridge downstream.
Pozer River is located in Quebec
Pozer River
Native nameRivière Pozer (French)
Location
CountryCanada
ProvinceQuebec
RegionChaudière-Appalaches
MRCBeauce-Sartigan Regional County Municipality,
Physical characteristics
SourceAgricultural and forest streams
 • locationSaint-Honoré-de-Shenley
 • coordinates46°00′34″N 70°51′41″W / 46.009366°N 70.861461°W / 46.009366; -70.861461
 • elevation308 metres (1,010 ft)
MouthChaudière River
 • location
Saint-Georges
 • coordinates
46°03′28″N 70°41′57″W / 46.05783°N 70.69928°W / 46.05783; -70.69928
 • elevation
160 metres (520 ft)
Length26.9 kilometres (16.7 mi)
Basin features
River systemSt. Lawrence River
Tributaries 
 • left(upstream) ruisseau à Tomiche, ruisseau de la Fabrique, ruisseau Busque, ruisseau Gédéon-Loubier, ruisseau Breton, ruisseau Victor-Loubier, ruisseau Sainte-Anne
 • right(upstream) ruisseau Labbé, ruisseau Fleury, ruisseau Veilleux, ruisseau de la Ceinture, ruisseau Giroux, ruisseau Georges-Beaudoin, ruisseau Émile-Patry

Geography edit

The main neighboring watersheds of the Pozer river are:

The Pozer River takes its sources from several tributaries that drain lakes Saint-Charles, Poulin and Raquette as well as the northern part of the township of Shenley. Its source is located at 7.7 kilometres (4.8 mi) northeast of the center of the village of La Guadeloupe, at 5.6 kilometres (3.5 mi) north of the center of the village of Saint-Honoré-de-Shenley and 8.7 kilometres (5.4 mi) southeast of the center of the village of Saint-Éphrem-de-Tring.

From its source, the Pozer River flows on 26.9 kilometres (16.7 mi) divided into the following segments:

  • 5.9 kilometres (3.7 mi) towards the northeast, cutting on 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) the southeast part of the municipality of Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce, up to a country road;
  • 3.8 kilometres (2.4 mi) towards the northeast, collecting water from the Tomiche stream (coming from the north), to a country road, which it cuts at 2.7 kilometres (1.7 mi) south of the village of Saint-Benoît-Labre;
  • 1.7 kilometres (1.1 mi) north-east, to a country road;
  • 6.3 kilometres (3.9 mi) northeasterly, up to the limit between Saint-Benoit-Labre and Saint-Georges;
  • 1.1 kilometres (0.68 mi) north-east, to a country road;
  • 3.9 kilometres (2.4 mi) towards the northeast, zigzagging and forming a loop towards the north, until 30th avenue;
  • 3.1 kilometres (1.9 mi) north-east, crossing "Les Sept Chutes" and "Parc des Sept Chutes", on the south side of Domaine Pozer, to route 271;
  • 1.1 kilometres (0.68 mi) northward, in the western part of Domaine Pozer (residential estate) north of the west shore area in Saint-Georges, until its confluence.[1]

Its winding course extends for approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) in a northeast direction, crosses the municipality of Saint-Benoît-Labre, the former municipality of Aubert-Gallion, flows into the Parc des Sept-Chutes, up to its confluence with the Chaudière River at Saint-Georges.

Toponymy edit

 
Pozer river and old dam seen from the bridge on route 271 upstream.

Formerly, this watercourse was designated "Jean-Gagnon river"; this name appears on a document of 1818. This name, still attested on a map of 1864 in the form of "Rivière Gagnon", would evoke a pioneer (or a family group) established in this zone. The spelling of this name can also derive from the phonetic evolution of Gallion, one of the components of the patronymic which served to name the lordship Aubert-Gallion. Gayon, Galion and Gagnon are spellings in popular use according to the sources designating this seigneury at various times.

The current name of the river recalls the family of John George Pfo(t)zer (the spelling became Pozer), who acquired the Aubert-Gallion seigneury in 1808. He was nicknamed the Millionaire Pozer. In 1817, he brought to Canada, 189 of his German compatriots whom he installed in his seigneury. This name was imposed by usage towards the end of the last century. It probably evokes more specifically Christian Henry Pozer (1835-1884), lawyer, born and died in the manor of Aubert-Gallion. The latter was elected deputy in 1867 and became a senator in 1876. Throughout his career, he devoted himself actively to the erection of new townships, mining exploration and the construction of railways in Beauce[2]

The toponym "Pozer River" was made official on December 5, 1968, at the Commission de toponymie du Québec.[3]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Atlas of Canada from the Department of Natural Resources Canada - Characteristics extracted from the geographic map, the database and the site instrumentation". Retrieved 2020-08-29..
  2. ^ Source: "Names and places of Quebec", work of the Commission de toponymie du Québec, published in 1994 and 1996 in the form of a printed illustrated dictionary, and in that of a CD-ROM produced by Micro-Intel Company, in 1997, from this dictionary.
  3. ^ Commission de toponymie du Québec - Bank of place names - Toponyms: "rivière Pozer".