Municipality of Aumond

Municipality of Aumond

Homeland, Liberty, Unity, Dignity, Work

Welcome to Aumond

The history of the Municipality of Aumond dates back to 1861, with the opening of logging camps by French-Canadian lumberman Joseph-Ignace Aumond (1810–1879).

Originally from L’Assomption, Joseph-Ignace Aumond began his career in the lumber industry in Ottawa, then known as Bytown. He became the first French Canadian to compete with the English-speaking lumber barons of the Gatineau, who controlled much of the region’s forestry industry at the time.

In partnership with John Egan, he helped establish the Ottawa Lumber Association. As early as 1840, even before opening his logging operation in Aumond, his company employed a thousand men. Aumond’s name is also associated with the famous French Canadian Jos Montferrand (1802–1864), who worked as a foreman in several logging camps throughout the Gatineau.

One of Montferrand’s close friends, Vital Potvin (1809–1881), fought alongside him in the conflicts against the “shriners” in Bytown and Hull. Potvin settled in Aumond in 1874, in an area then known as Castor or St-Cajétan.

The parish of Sainte-Famille-d’Aumond was founded in 1861, more than 11 years after the first Mass was celebrated at the Joseph River. Like the municipality, the river was named after Joseph-Ignace Aumond.

Aumond was also known as “Moulin des Pères,” a name recalling the Oblate Fathers, who built a sawmill there in 1861. The first flour mill began operating in 1868. These mills were powered by hydroelectric energy generated by a dam built on the Joseph River. Beginning in 1927, the same dam also generated electricity for the village.

The water-powered sawmill remained in operation until it closed in 1993 and was dismantled in 1998. Aumond officially became a municipality in 1877, the year the township of the same name was incorporated.

Attractions:

• Moulin des Pères