Interregional Migration Dynamics Within Quebec and Beyond: From the Mid-Nineteenth Century to the Early Twentieth Century

Marie-Ève Harton (Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières), Hélène Vézina (Université du Québec à Chicoutimi) et Danielle Gauvreau (Université Concordia)

Our study aims primarily to explore interregional migration dynamics within Quebec, while also considering migration outside Quebec and modes of family reproduction during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Interregional Migration Dynamics

Our research focuses on analyzing the points of departure and arrival that define migration routes, with the aim of establishing distinct profiles for migrants and sedentary individuals based on the prevailing economic, demographic, and social conditions within specific communities and regional populations. Some of the factors we consider include the local employment structure, the proportion of males among young adults of marriageable age, and the saturation of agricultural land.

This analysis is allowing us to develop sociodemographic profiles of regional populations based on mobility and sedentariness. Looking at specific regions covered by the IMPQ, we study three subgroups using data from the 1861, 1881, and 1901 censuses. This will make it possible to distinguish between (1) individuals who arrived from other parts of Quebec or elsewhere, (2) members of the local population who remained in place, and (3) those who left the community.

We will compare the profiles of individuals “returning” from the United States to those of individuals who “remained” in Quebec. Indicators of “returnee” households will include references to American-born children in the census data or to American places of residence in BALSAC entries.

We are exploring the possibility that a selection effect was operating in different communities, based on an analysis of individual characteristics. Did newcomers to the community have any distinguishing features? What about those who left? We will then move on to identifying the places of origin and destinations of migrants by matching census data from different years. Indexes published by The Canadian Peoples Project should facilitate this process by allowing us to easily track individuals. The results of our initial research into selection effects will help determine the scope of this subsequent phase.

Comparative French Canadian Family Reproduction

For this component of the study, we are undertaking one or two comparative analyses of family reproduction in Manchester and in a region covered by the IMPQ, thereby building on the latest studies conducted using the Manchester corpus of matched and referenced data.

Reproduction familiale canadienne-française comparée

Dans ce volet, nous tenterons de développer une ou deux analyses comparatives sur la reproduction familiale en comparant Manchester et un terrain de l’IMPQ, tout en nous appuyant sur de très récentes analyses menées à partir du corpus de données jumelées et référencées de Manchester.