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Dorval
City
Train station and Trudeau Airport in Dorval
Train station and Trudeau Airport in Dorval
Location on the Island of Montreal.  (Outlined areas indicate demerged municipalities).
Location on the Island of Montreal.
(Outlined areas indicate demerged municipalities).
Dorval is located in Southern Quebec
Dorval
Dorval
Location in Southern Quebec
Country Canada
Province Quebec
Region Montréal
RCM None
Founded 1667
Village 1892
Town 1903
City 1956
Merged into Dorval–L'Île-Dorval January 1, 2002
Reconstituted January 1, 2006
Area
 • Total 20.9 km2 (8.1 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)
 • Total 18,980
 • Density 910.3/km2 (2,358/sq mi)
 • Pop 2011-2016
Increase 4.2%
 • Dwellings
8,390
Time zone UTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Postal code(s)
H4S, H4Y, H9P, H9S
Area code(s) 514 and 438
Highways
A-13
A-20

A-40 (TCH)
A-520

Dorval is an on-island suburb on the island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. In 2016, the Canadian Census indicated that the population increased by 4.2% to 18,980. Although the city has the largest surface area in the West Island, it is among the least densely populated. Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport constitutes about 60% of the city's land, forcing all of Dorval's population to be concentrated in the southern part of the city.

Dorval is the oldest city in the West Island, having been founded in 1667, and one of the oldest in Canada and North America.

History

The history of Dorval dates back more than 350 years to 1665 when Sulpician priests established a mission on the outskirts of Ville-Marie, a French settlement which later became known as Montreal. Dorval was originally named Gentilly. It was later renamed La Présentation-de-la-Vierge-Marie and finally Dorval. It was incorporated as a village in 1892, a town in 1903, and a city in 1956. (In French it was termed a cité, an old term used to translate the English legal term "city.")

Dorval (Île de Montréal) 2006-01-22
Residential street in Dorval.

As with many other settlements on the island of Montreal, the Grand Trunk Railway, which came to Dorval in 1855, was highly instrumental in attracting many wealthier families, mostly English-speaking, in search of a summer refuge in proximity to their downtown residence and place of work. Access to Dorval from Montreal was also facilitated by the extension of streetcar service to Dorval's eastern city limits in the interwar period. After the Second World War many middle-class families migrated to Dorval from the city of Montreal and from other parts of Canada. This migration was made possible by the widening of highway 20 and by the large-scale construction of new dwellings. This new housing consisted mostly of single family homes with some townhouses and low-rise apartment buildings, built on lands previously used for agriculture and recreational activities. The post-war period also saw the construction of Dorval Gardens shopping centre in 1954, one of Greater Montreal's first mall-style shopping centres. Today the shopping centre remains the city's principal centre of retail trade.

The island named Île Dorval, settled in 1860 and located less than one kilometre offshore from Dorval, constitutes the separate city of L'Île-Dorval despite being a summer cottage community with only five permanent residents as of the Canada 2011 Census. The island is connected to the city of Dorval by a private ferry service.

On January 1, 2002, as part of the 2002–2006 municipal reorganization of Montreal, Dorval was merged into the city of Montreal, being combined with L'Île-Dorval to form the Dorval–L'Île-Dorval borough of Montreal. After a change of government and a 2004 referendum, Dorval was reconstituted as a city on January 1, 2006. Although Dorval had the legal status of cité prior to the merger, the reconstituted city has the status of ville (see Types of municipalities in Quebec). Nevertheless, the municipal government refers to itself as the "Cité de Dorval".

Demographics

Historical populations
Year Pop. ±%
1966 20,905 —    
1971 20,469 −2.1%
1976 19,131 −6.5%
1981 17,722 −7.4%
1986 17,354 −2.1%
1991 17,249 −0.6%
1996 17,572 +1.9%
2001 17,706 +0.8%
2006 18,088 +2.2%
2011 18,208 +0.7%
2016 18,980 +4.2%
Home Language (2016)
Language Population Percentage (%)
English 10,045 58%
French 5,090 29%
Other 2,270 13%
Mother Tongue (2016)
Language Population Percentage (%)
English 7,795 44%
French 5,540 31%
Other 4,545 23%
Visible Minorities (2016)
Ethnicity Population Percentage (%)
Not a visible minority 14,215 76.6%
Visible minorities 4,350 23.4%

Economy

Air Inuit and La Senza have their headquarters in Dorval. Bombardier Inc. houses the headquarters of its Bombardier Aerospace division in Dorval.

Previously Inter-Canadien had its headquarters in Dorval.

Air Canada Centre, the headquarters of Air Canada, are located on the grounds of Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport and in Saint-Laurent, Montreal, near Dorval.

Education

The Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys operates Francophone public schools, but were previously operated by the Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys until June 15, 2020. The change was a result of a law passed by the Quebec government that changed the school board system from denominational to linguistic.

Schools include:

  • Centre d'éducation des adultes Jeanne-Sauvé (adult school)
  • École secondaire Dorval-Jean-XXIII (secondary school)
  • École primaire Gentilly (primary school)

The Lester B. Pearson School Board (LBPSB) operates Anglophone public schools.

  • Dorval Elementary School, formerly known as Courtland Park Elementary School until 2006.

Infrastructure

Aéroports de Montréal, the Greater Montreal airport authority, has its headquarters in Leigh-Capreol Place (French: place Leigh-Capreol) in Dorval.

Trudeau Airport

YUL.U.S. Departures.Sector.Control.Tower
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport

Most of Montreal's principal airport, Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (previously known as Dorval Airport), is in Dorval. Originally a military airfield used mainly to refuel new fighters and bombers being flown to Great Britain during the Second World War, Trudeau Airport today serves over 18 million passengers annually.

Notable residents

  • Jason Demers (born 1988), NHL ice hockey player

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Dorval para niños

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