Curé Antoine Labelle could not have developed the upper Laurentians if he had not been empowered and supported by Ignace Bourget, Bishop of Montreal. Bourget was one of the most powerful clerics in Quebec during the 19th century. From his inauguration in 1840 to his death in 1885, he led the Quebec clergy in filling a leadership vacuum in French Canada. The Laurentian colonisation and the creation of the towns north of Ste. Agathe were among the many accomplishments of the clergy, but they could not tolerate criticism. Among the critics were Sir Wilfrid Laurier and the other members of the Institut Canadien, men denounced from the pulpit as heretics. For the entire article, click here: https://www.ballyhoo.ca/regional-history.html