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The ice bridge linking Québec City and Lévis was a fascinating emblem of the locals’ adaptation to winter. When the ice had frozen solid, it became a public space where communities from both shores could gather more easily than in the rest of the year. Bars, skating rinks and gathering places were set up on the ice.
1823 - 1836

A destiny bound by ice!

Before the Québec Bridge opened in 1917, residents had two ways of crossing the river. In summer, they could take a boat across. In winter, however, they crossed on the ice bridge that formed when the river froze over. It was then that the crossing—by horse-drawn sleigh—was the quickest and easiest, and that the residents of Québec City and Lévis, on the opposite bank of the St. Lawrence River, spent the most time together. Rediscover this bygone era!

The ice bridge between Québec City and Lévy Point

After James Pattison Cockburn The ice bridge linking Québec City and Lévis was a fascinating emblem of the locals’ adaptation to winter. When the ice had frozen solid, it became a public space where communities from both shores could gather more easily than in the rest of the year. Bars, skating rinks and gathering places were set up on the ice.
Chronoscope What do you notice in the image? (unilingual French for a limited time) Source: Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec Document in the public domain (free of copyright) - Date: 1831