LaSalle

William Fleming’s first mill, built in 1815, became the subject of a lengthy lawsuit with the Sulpicians, the island of Montréal’s seigneurs. The Scottish immigrant erected the present mill in 1827; the City of LaSalle bought it and its grounds in 1947. When LaSalle incorporated in 1912, farming and numerous orchards still shaped local life. The municipality later developed into an industrial centre and a major shopping district. The Lachine Rapids lie within LaSalle.

Timber rafters known as cageux took enormous floating platforms of wood through the rapids on their way to Québec City. A hydroelectric station and its dyke preceded the creation of Parc des Rapides; after the power station was demolished, the dyke was filled in as part of the park’s development. Héritage Laurentien helps restore the site’s natural environment through ecological management and research. The Île-aux-Hérons sanctuary, established in 1937 to protect great blue heron nesting, also includes neighbouring islands and their surrounding waters. Black-crowned night herons and great egrets nest there too.

Key places

• Fleming windmill : present mill erected in 1827.
• Lachine Rapids : passage used by timber rafters travelling to Québec City.
• Parc des Rapides : park developed on a former hydroelectric site.
• Île-aux-Hérons sanctuary : protected nesting habitat.