Potton is a township municipality of about 2,010 people in the Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality. It is located on the western shore of Lake Memphremagog in the Estrie (Eastern Townships) region of Quebec, and is one of the municipalities in Brome County. Potton is located about southeast of Montreal, to the southwest of the city of Magog, and next to the United States border, north of North Troy, Vermont.
Potton Township (Canton de Potton) consists of several villages and hamlets that include Potton Springs, Mansonville, Highwater, Dunkin, Province Hill, Leadville, Vale Perkins, Perkins Landing, and Knowlton's Landing.
Of these, Mansonville is the business center and the seat of government (Municipalite du canton de Potton) for the township. Formerly a sleepy community, Mansonville has experienced some growth and prosperity because of its proximity to the Owl's Head ski resort. Like many Eastern Townships and New England villages, Mansonville grew up around a water-powered mill which exploited a head of water above a fall on the North Branch of the Missisquoi River. The mill ceased operating with electrification in the early 20th century, which allowed economies of scale and centralized manufacturing in larger centres. It operated as a feed and grain mill until 2004, when it was destroyed by fire. Overlooking the mill site is the mansion of the Manson family that founded the town. The mansion has since become a bed and breakfast.
The Newport Subdivision of the Central Maine and Quebec Railway railroad (a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway) route from Newport, Vermont to Richford, Vermont traverses the township at Highwater and follows the Mississquoi River.
The single runway Mansonville Airport (CSK4) is located near Highwater, on chemin de l'Aeroport.
Mansonville, like many Eastern Townships communities, has long had a mixture of French and English-speaking residents and is home to over twenty nationalities and ethnic groups. Religious diversity is present, and in Mansonville, Roman Catholic, United (closed 2011) and Anglican churches are located a few yards apart. Mansonville was also the home of Russian Orthodox prelate Metropolitan Vitaly Ustinov for some five decades until his death in 2006.
History
The area encompassed by the township is part of the larger territory originally inhabited by the Abenaki tribe. There are no known permanent Abenaki habitation sites in the township. The area was used by them for hunting and fishing. Lake Memphremagog and the Missisquoi River were important trade and travel routes. Perkins Landing (approx. 45.092447, -72.295008) is considered to be one end of the portage from Lake Memphremagog to the Missisquoi River. A number of place names originate from them:
Owl's Head is the English name for the mountain called "Walowadjo". From the Abenaki language, "walo" translates as "saw-whet owl" (aegolius acadicus); "wadjo" translates as "mountain". Owl's Head was also called "Waloimudupsek": "walo" translates as "saw-whet owl" (aegolius acadicus); "imudups" translates as "head"; "ek" translates as "location". Memphremagog comes from the word "Memrahabegek", which means "where there is a big expanse of water". Memphremagog was also pronounced as "Mamphremagog". This came from the Abenakis "Mamlawbagak" which signifies "a long and large sheet of water". The prefix "mamlaw" denotes largeness or abundance; the particule "baga" denotes water; and "k" marks the name as given in local term. Missisquoi comes from the word "Masipskoik", which means "a place where there are boulders", more specifically "boulders point". Missisquoi also comes from the Abenakis "Masipskoik" which means "where there is flint".
There are several solstice sites and petroglyph sites in the township.
The Eastern Townships of Quebec were opened for settlement by the Constitutional Act of 1791. The first European settler in Potton township was Nicholas Austin. He was a Loyalist from Somersworth, New Hampshire who in 1791 settled at the site of present-day Perkins Landing. Due to a navigation error, he moved, in 1793, north to Bolton Township to the land that was allocated to him. The town of Austin remembers his name. Austin's log house at Perkins Landing was assumed by Samuel Perkins in 1793. Other early settlers of Potton Township were David Blanchard, Col. Henry Ruiter, Moses Elkins, and the Perkins, Manson, Gilman, and Coit families. The names of the early settlers remain in the toponymy of the township: Ruiter's Brook in Dunkin, Vale Perkins, Perkins Landing, Mansonville, and Knowlton's Landing.