Baie-des-Sables

48°43′N 67°51′W / 48.717°N 67.850°W / 48.717; -67.850^[1]CountryCanadaProvinceQuebecRegionBas-Saint-LaurentRCMLa MatanieConstitutedJanuary 1, 1859Government • MayorGérald Beaulieu • Federal ridingHaute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia • Prov. ridingMatane-MatapédiaArea • Total65.37 km² (25.24 sq mi) • Land65.07 km² (25.12 sq mi)Population • Total613 • Density9.4/km² (24/sq mi) • Pop (2016-21) 2.4% • Dwellings336Time zoneUTC−5 (EST) • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)Postal code(s)Area codes418 and 581Highways R-132 R-297Websitewww.municipalite.baiedessables.ca

Baie-des-Sables is a municipality in La Matanie Regional County Municipality in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region of Quebec, Canada.

Its elevation is 176 metres (577 ft).^{[citation needed]}

The area was originally part of the Mitis seignory, purchased by Mathew MacNider in 1802, and acquired by his brother John MacNider in 1807. MacNider encouraged settlement of Scottish families there. Upon John Macnider's death in 1829, the seignory was inherited by the 2 sons of Adam Lymburner Macnider, nephew of John. In 1842, the geographic township of MacNider was created.^[4]

In 1853, the Mission of L'Assomption-de-Notre-Dame was established, and in 1859, the Township Municipality of MacNider was formed when it ceded from the Municipality of Métis. In 1864, the MacNider Post Office opened.^[1][5]

The Scottish settlers began to call the place Sandy Bay, or also Sandy Beach, in reference to a prominent sandbank on the western edge of the municipality. In 1902, the post office was renamed to Sandy Bay, and renamed to the French equivalent, Baie-des-Sables, in 1925. In 1932, the township municipality followed suit and changed name and statutes from Township Municipality of MacNider to the Municipality of Baie-des-Sables.^[1][5]

Historical census populations – Baie-des-Sables

Year Pop. ±% 1861 1,235 —     1871 2,265 +83.4% 1881 2,364 +4.4% 1891 1,881 −20.4% 1901 1,908 +1.4% 1911 1,769 −7.3% 1921 1,703 −3.7% 1931 1,965 +15.4%	Year Pop. ±% 1941 2,001 +1.8% 1951 1,793 −10.4% 1956 1,279 −28.7% 1961 1,394 +9.0% 1966 1,207 −13.4% 1971 1,068 −11.5% 1976 910 −14.8% 1981 895 −1.6%	Year Pop. ±% 1986 763 −14.7% 1991 698 −8.5% 1996 657 −5.9% 2001 654 −0.5% 2006 614 −6.1% 2011 609 −0.8% 2016 628 +3.1% 2021 613 −2.4%
Population counts are not adjusted for boundary changes. Source: Statistics Canada[11]

Mother tongue language (2021)^[12]

Language	Population	Pct (%)
French only	605	98.4%
English only	0	0.0%
Both English and French	5	0.8%
Other languages	0	0.0%

List of former mayors:^[5]

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (September 2024)

• List of municipalities in Quebec