Page 68 - Annuaire Statistique Québec - 1918

IV-- POPULATION

A-CLASSIFICATION OF THE POPULATION.
The first settler in New France was Louis Hebert, an apothecary
from Paris, who came to Quebec, with h~s family, in 1617. At that time,
t,he number of Indians in the limits of the Province was not known
exactly, but the estimated number of the various tribes was placed at
10,000. At the origin of the colony,' the settlement proceeded slowly
owing to the inaction of companies which were charged with recruiting
settlers in return for certain trading privileges; the associates feared
Iosing control of the fur trade should they send too large a number of
families to the new colonization regions. The incessant warfare with
the Indians as well as with the English was an impediment to the rapid
increase in population. The first census taken dates back to 1665, when
there were only 3,215 inhabitants in the Governments of Quebec, Mon-
real and Three Rivers. Other enumerations, made at various periods
xed by the Governors, give a population of 3,918 inhabitants for the
year 1667; 9,400 in 1679 and 12,263 in 1685, including 1,538 Indians who
had settLed in the vicinity of the French people. The census of 1692
shows a population of 12,341 of which there wel'e 1 356 Indians.
1
The census of 1921 shows an increase of popu.lation of 355,423
inhabitants, equivalent to 17.7%over the previous decade. The increase in
1911, was greater by 3.9%. The population of the whole country is increa-
sing in a gl'eater proportion owing to immigrants who settle mostly in the
Western Provinces. For this reason Saskatchewan and Alberta show
respectively an increase of 54 and 57 pel' cent in 1921, and of 439 and
412 pel' cent in 1911. Further particulars on the population will be found
in previous volumes of the Year Book which are not published this year
60 as to avoid repetition which was deemed superfluous.

1.-Popul8lion of the Province of Quebec.

Increnf'e over pre'Vious Perc~ntage
În(',rCA.8e
YEAR OF CENSUS Popula~ion cen8UB of tbe
population
--------- o[
Nurnber Per('entage Canada
_____.k.·.··
1921 ..... " ...•.............•................. 2,361,199 355,423 17,72 21.7
1911 .....•.............. , ., .•................. 2,00.5.776 35(;.878 21.64 34.1
1901 . 1,648.898 160,363 10,77 11.1
IB91 . 1.488,535 129,508 9.53 11.8
IBSl . 1.359.027 167,511 101.06 17.2
1871 " . 1,191,516 79.950 7. ~9
HI61 00'" 1.111,1;66 221,305 24.B6
IBol ......•.....••......•.......•.•...•... , . 890,261 193,177 27.67
18H . 697.084 143,950 26.02
1831 . 1;53.134 125,669 29.39
1822 00 00 00 . 427.465 92.465 27.60
IBI4 , ....•.•....•.............•.•. 33.;,000 85,000 34.00
1806 00 " 00 . 250.0J 0 8B,689 54.9S
1790 .............•.. '..............•........... 161,311 !~,2HQ 42.74
1784..... .. .. 113,012 4~.20:l Ill. BS
1765 , . (;9,810 14,801 211.90
Edract lrom tIJe shlb IleIl8Wl ,>f C"oada, 1921; Bulletin IX. Ottawa.