La Malbaie, formerly known as Murray Bay, is situated on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River at the mouth of Malbaie River. Same de Champlain arrived in the area in May 1605, and, after failing to find a suitable anchorage, he named the bay Malle Bay, old French for “bad bay.” In 1763, two Scottish officers of the British Army, John Nairne and Malcolm Fraser, received concessions at the mouth of Malbaie River from the British Crown. They renamed the bay, settlement, and river “Murray Bay,” after Jams Murray, a British general and the successor to James Wolfe.

In 1853, a wharf on piles was built at Pointe-au-Pic, on the southwest side of Murray Bay, that allowed steamers to provide regular service to leisure travelers. Murray Bay Golf Club opened in 1876, just the third course to be built in North America, and is now the oldest course still operating in its original location.

In 1882, a pole light was established on the wharf at Murray Bay, and Eli Maltais was appointed the light’s first keeper at an annual salary of $40. In 1890, a wooden lantern was erected on the roof of the freight shed to replace the pole light. At that time, the burner was changed to a mammoth flat-wick lamp, which was a decided improvement over the previous light.

Keeper Maltais served until 1903, and then Henry Girard served as keeper until 1907, when the wharf light was electrified.

For nearly forty years, William Howard Taft, who served as President of the United States from 1909 to 1913, was a regular visitor at Murray Bay. He became president of the Murray Bay Golf Club in 1914, a position he held for seven years. Taft once famously remarked, “The invigorating air of Murray Bay exhilarates like champagne without the effects of the morning after.”

La Malbaie’s most noted landmark is the Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu. The hotel was first built in 1899, but had to be rebuilt in 1929 after a fire destroyed it. Known for its panoramic location on a cliff overlooking St. Lawrence River, Le Manoir Richelieu hosted the 44th G7 summit in 2018.

The light atop the freight shed was still active on the pier at Pointe au Pic through at least 1971, but by 1977, the light had been transferred to a square, skeleton tower on the pier. From around 1950 into the 1970s, a privately maintained whistle that gave a five-second blast every fifteen seconds was active on the wharf. In 2021, a flashing red light with a period of six seconds was being displayed from a square, skeletal tower on the wharf at Pointe-au-Pic.

Keepers: Eli Maltais (1882 – 1903), Henry Girard (1903 – 1907).

References

1. Annual Report of the Department of Marine and Fisheries, various years.

A modern light marks the wharf today.

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