Place Names

Toponymy is the study of place names. Herewith is a short list of Gatineau places and how they received their names…

Gatineau
The Gatineau River and the City of Gatineau were named after Nicholas Gatineau dit Duplessis, notary of Trois Rivières, Quebec. In about 1650, Gatineau tired of the hum-drum life and, wishing to return to his beloved France, turned to hunting and trapping on the Gatineau River to gather the needed cash for his voyage home. Gatineau did not realize his dream; legend tells us that he drowned in the river that now bears his name.