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Downtown Edmundston is well renowned for its cathedral and historical churches. Take time to visit the Immaculate Conception Cathedral on de l’Église Street, a splendid temple representative of both Gothic and Roman architectures. On the other side of the Madawaska River is the church Our Lady of Sorrows (Notre-Dame-des-Douleurs) where you can see the Way of the Cross carved in wood by artist Claude Roussel.
The Foire Brayonne is one of the biggest francophone festival in the Maritime provinces.
Edmundston is Madawaska’s main business and service centre. It is also its most populous city.
In early settlement days, Edmundston was called “Petit-Sault” (small falls). The old blockhaus “Petit-Sault”, at the confluence of the St. John and Madawaska rivers, then served to protect the territory.
The city is named after a former governor of New Brunswick, Sir Edmund Walker Head, who, in 1856, visited the Madawaska region.
Before the arrival of the first settlers, Amerindians called this place “Madoueskak”, meaning “land of the porcupines”.
In 1917, Fraser built a pulp mill here and, in 1925, a paper mill across the river in Madawaska, Maine. Some two kilometres of pipelines, carrying steam and pulp, link the two border mills.
Saint-Basile neighborhood: First religious parish of the region, Saint-Basile was the hub of Madawaska for over 100 years.
Saint-Basile is well worth the detour because it offers the ultimate in heritage and history. The parish cemetery on Main Street is particularly interesting to visit. Here, you will see crosses that bear the names of the first Acadian families.
Inside the Historical Alexis Cyr House, built around 1810, you will see how rooms and walls were assembled in that era.
On Main Street, in the convent of the Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph, a small museum commemorates the first hospital ever built in the Madawaska region.
Saint-Jacques neighborhood: Saint-Jacques is the northwest gateway to Edmundston and to the province of New Brunswick.
The Antique Automobile Museum has one of the 2,880 Bricklin model built during the 15 months of existence of the only automobile manufacturer in New Brunswick.
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