View source for Wakefield, Quebec

{{Short description|Village in Quebec}}
{{About|the village in Canada|the city in Yorkshire, United Kingdom|Wakefield}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
'''Wakefield''' is one of many villages of the municipality of [[La Pêche, Quebec|La Pêche]], with the village centre on the western shore of the [[Gatineau River]], at the confluence of the [[La Pêche River]] in the [[Outaouais (region)|Outaouais]] region of the province of [[Quebec]] in [[Canada]]. It is thirty-five kilometres northwest of [[Ottawa]], [[Ontario]]. The village, named after the city of [[Wakefield]] in [[West Yorkshire]], [[England]], is now the southern edge of the municipality of La Pêche, and was founded in 1830 by Irish, Scottish, and English immigrants. Wakefield is approximately a twenty-five-minute drive north of the [[Macdonald-Cartier Bridge]] that divides [[Gatineau]] and Ottawa (Ontario), along the [[Quebec Autoroute 5|Autoroute 5]], a modern four lane divided highway which has recently been extended to the village. Wakefield is unique as a primarily Anglophone town in a primarily Francophone province.

[[File:WakefieldQuebec.jpg|thumb|right|Wakefield in winter]]

==History==
[[File:Black Sheep Inn.jpg|thumb|right|Black Sheep Inn / ''Le Mouton Noir'']]

The village's primary industry is [[tourism]]. Attractions in the region include the Gendron [[covered bridge]] spanning the Gatineau River; the [[Wakefield Documentary Film Festival]]; the Black Sheep Inn (Auberge Mouton Noir), a legendary live music venue; The Wakefield Mill Hotel and Spa, a 4-star hotel, restaurant and spa with views of the Maclaren Falls,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wakefieldmill.com/ |title=Home |website=wakefieldmill.com}}</ref> and Eco-Odyssee, a navigable water maze.

The village provides access points to [[Gatineau Park]] near the junction of Route Principale and Highway 5, and also at the Wakefield Mill.  During the summer months until 2011, a tourist steam train ran daily from Gatineau to Wakefield via Chelsea along the Gatineau River.

[[File:WakefieldBridge.jpg|thumb|left|Covered bridge]]
Recreational activities in and around the village include [[horse|horseback riding]], [[skiing]], [[snowboarding]], [[snowshoe]]ing, [[Tubing (recreation)|tubing]], [[snowmobiling]], [[dog sled]]ding, [[golf]], [[canoe]]ing, and [[kayak]]ing. There is an unsupervised and unofficial swimming area beneath the covered bridge that attracts thousands of people from the surrounding area every summer.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

The Wakefield community <ref>[http://wakefield.ca Wakefield community]</ref> has a "thriving arts scene".{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

''[[Grey Owl (film)|Grey Owl]]'' was partially filmed here in 1999.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0128239/ Grey Owl], IMDb</ref>

Since 2011 the village has hosted the Wakefield Covered Bridge Run. The Marathon of Health along with the Wakefield community created the running event to raise money for organizations that promote healthy and active lifestyles through sports.

The village has developed a reputation for a somewhat [[Bohemianism|bohemian]] lifestyle and boasts a number of small cafes, pubs, and galleries. Many young families live in the area, enjoying its lifestyle, services, and resources. Many artists live in the surrounding mountains and valleys.

Public buildings include the Wakefield Memorial Hospital, an elementary school, the MRC des Collines Police Station, the Daycare Centre Éveil de la nature, the Wakefield Retirement Home, and a municipal library. A weekly regional [[newspaper]], ''The Low Down to Hull and Back News'' (a play on the Gatineau River communities from [[Low, Quebec|Low]] downstream to [[Hull, Quebec|Hull]]), is also published in the village.

Former Canadian [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] [[Lester B. Pearson]] is buried in [[Maclaren Cemetery]] in Wakefield.

== See also ==
* [[Chemin de fer de l'Outaouais]]
* [[Hull-Chelsea-Wakefield Railway]]
* [[List of former municipalities in Quebec]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://villelapeche.qc.ca/en/info.shtml Municipality of La Pêche]

{{coord|45.633|N|75.933|W|display=title|type:city_region:CA_source:GNS-enwiki}}
{{Administrative divisions of Quebec region|Outaouais (region)|Outaouais}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Communities in Outaouais]]
[[Category:1830 establishments in Lower Canada]]
[[Category:Populated places disestablished in 1975]]