A French-language newspaper, Le Cultivateur was published in Québec City from 1874 to 1906, an era of economic upheaval for the region. Québec City began losing its primacy as a transfer point for the fur and timber trade, losing out to Montréal, which had a rail link. Shipbuilding, another major industry, also slowed in this period. Meanwhile, the city suffered from seven significant fires between 1845 and 1881. Nonetheless, Québec remained an important city, having served as the capital city for a number of jurisdictions (New France, Lower Canada, Canada) and in 1867 began its tenure as capital of the province of Québec. Laval University was established there in 1852. When Le Cultivateur began publishing, there were over 60,000 inhabitants in Québec City, over 60% of whom were Francophone. It covered political and economic issues, particularly in relation to the rest of Canada, industry, agriculture, legislation, and migration and settlement. Scattered issues of the newspaper are available here.
Contributed by Multicultural History Society of Ontario.