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Saint-Constant, Quebec, incorporated as a city in 1973, population 29,954 (2021 census), 27,359 (2016 census). Saint-Constant is located some 30 km south of Montreal, on the South Shore of the St. Lawrence River.
History of Saint-Constant
The early settlement of Saint-Constant dates back to the mid-18th century, even though the parish of Saint-Constant-de-la-Prairie-de-la-Magdeleine was only officially created in 1841. The parish got its name from Constant Le Marchand de Lignery (1663–1731), a well-known French officer who came to Canada in 1687. His son Jacques was in charge of the mission at Saint-Constant for a number of years.
The small parish suddenly came into its own when the railway reached it in the 1850s. Saint-Constant and neighbouring Delson soon became important railway centres on the lines linking New York and Montreal. It was incorporated as a parish municipality in 1855.
Saint-Constant is the site of one of North America's better-known railway museums, Le Musée ferroviaire canadien, a prestigious collection of 130 railway locomotives, railway cars and tramways. Alongside the development of its residential community, most of Saint-Constant’s territory remains dedicated to agriculture. With a considerable increase in population since 1976, Saint-Constant has been one of the fastest-growing municipalities of the regional county municipality of Roussillon.
