The Lost Code

City vs. Country

A Canadien

Musée de la civilisation, bibliothèque du Séminaire de Québec.
Raphael, William. « An old habitant » in : Picturesque Canada : the country as it was and is. Toronto : Belden Bros., c1882. Vol. 1, p. 65. Loc. 291.7.21

Sundays Shalt Thou Observe

Musée de la civilisation. Postal card. Les Dimanches tu garderas. Maison de la Bonne Presse. N° 80-2745-2

The Québec elite promoted the traditional image of the “good French Canadian” Catholic who lived off of the land by the sweat of his brow. The Catholic clergy portrayed the city as a den of iniquity full of temptation, Protestants, and unwholesome distractions.

At the same time, farming was on the decline, and rural Quebecers were growing poorer. This rural crisis forced many French Canadians to forsake the country for the city, where they hoped to find factory work. In the second half of the 19th century, 10% of the Québec population emigrated to New England, where manufacturing jobs were abundant. Many others gravitated towards Québec's cities, especially Montréal.