Magog is a town in Quebec. Located at the northern end of Lake Memphremagog, this hamlet flourished in the 19th century thanks to the contruction of flour, saw and card mills by Ralph Merry III, the founder of Magog. Arriving in the region around 1797, he constructed the first dam on the north side of the river, between an island and a stream, where the railway now lies.
The town’s original name was “Outlet,” as it is located where the lake drains. For the same reason, the parish of Saint-Patrice-de-Magog, founded in 1861, carried the name Saint-Patrice-d’Outlet at the time. Outlet was the official name for many decades, although Magog started appearing on official documents in 1783.
In 1850, Outlet became Magog, which was officially incorporated on January 28, 1888 as a village, and in 1890 as a town.
Magog became a city in autumn 2002 when it merged with Magog Township, which covers a large area divided into three districts by two shores of Lake Memphremagog and the Town of Omerville, formerly a parish attached to Magog. The merger increased the municipality’s population to 23 540 residents. In a historical context, this merger appealed to a strong sense of mutual ownership based on over 200 years of sharing and developing a common land.
