The neighbourhood takes its name from chemin Saint-Louis and the Saint-Louis-de-France parish. The road, laid out in the 17th and 18th centuries as chemin de Cap-Rouge, took its current name in 1929. Around 1920, a settlement called Neilsonville lined chemin Saint-Louis near the Québec Bridge, completed in 1917. Until the 1950s, this road was the only route linking the bridge to the capital.
The neighbourhood at a glance
BoroughSainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge
Sainte-Foyat the bridgehead
Life in Saint-Louis
The vibe
A mostly residential neighbourhood with a major hotel and commercial hub along boulevard Laurier.
The housing
Apartments in buildings under five storeys, single-family homes and a notable share of recent construction.
Nearby
Bibliothèque Monique-Corriveau · Marché public de Sainte-Foy · Centre hospitalier de l’Université Laval
Good to know
The Sainte-Foy station, for trains and intercity buses, is in the neighbourhood, as is access to both bridges to the South Shore.
Landmarks
- Boulevard Laurier
- Chemin Saint-Louis
- Aquarium du Québec
History
The history of Saint-Louis
- 1928The Bois-Gomin aerodrome opens
- 1954The Hôpital Sainte-Foy opens
- 1961Saint-Louis-de-France church is completed
- 1970The Pierre-Laporte Bridge opens
- 2013The Monique-Corriveau library opens
In 1928, the Bois-Gomin aerodrome, or Saint-Louis aerodrome, the first in the Québec City region, was built on the Sainte-Foy plateau, in the area of today’s CHUL. Roméo Vachon, chief pilot of Canadian Transcontinental Airways, helped it grow. Too costly to run, the aerodrome closed in 1938. In 1946, the land was sold to the Department of Veterans Affairs for $43,500.
The construction of boulevard Laurier, between 1949 and 1951, opened the area to development. The Hôpital Sainte-Foy, built for veterans, opened on May 16, 1954; it became the Centre hospitalier de l’Université Laval in 1968. The Saint-Louis-de-France parish was founded in 1956; its church, completed in 1961 to plans by Robert Blatter and G.-Fernand Caron, was the first centrally planned church in the Québec City region.
The Aquarium du Québec welcomed its first visitors in 1959. The Pierre-Laporte Bridge opened to traffic on November 7, 1970, less than 200 m west of the Québec Bridge. Sainte-Foy’s city hall, today the Édifice Andrée-P.-Boucher, opened in 1996. In 2013, the former Saint-Denys-du-Plateau church, designed by Jean-Marie Roy, became the Monique-Corriveau library; the Saint-Louis-de-France church was destroyed in 2021.
Frequently asked questions about Saint-Louis
Where is the Saint-Louis neighbourhood?
In the Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge borough, in the south of the city, at the north end of the Québec and Pierre-Laporte bridges. It should not be confused with the faubourg Saint-Louis, near Old Québec.
Where does the name Saint-Louis come from?
From chemin Saint-Louis and the Saint-Louis-de-France parish, founded in 1956 and named after Louis IX, King of France from 1226 to 1270.
How do I get to Saint-Louis?
By the Henri-IV and Duplessis highways, boulevard Laurier or chemin Saint-Louis. From the South Shore, the Québec and Pierre-Laporte bridges lead straight into it, and the Sainte-Foy station serves trains and intercity buses.
How do I find an apartment for rent in Saint-Louis?
Rental units managed by Lease Lane in Saint-Louis will soon be listed on the site, along with the online rental application. In the meantime, Cléo can notify you as soon as a unit is posted.
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