Founded in 1888, the Club Chasse et Pêche St-Maurice is a historic organization located on the shores of the great Lac Wayagamac in La Tuque. In 1890, Commodore Parker, an intimate friend of W.H. Drummond, the Club’s first president, acquired the hunting and fishing lands and leases, thereby bringing the Club’s founding to life. Originally, members traveled there by steamboat from the wharf at Grandes-Piles. Once they reached near Lac-à-Beauce, they would do a portage to the great Lac Wayagamac, where the main building (Club House) had been erected.
On January 31, 1908, a fire completely destroyed the original building.
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Only the chimney withstood the disaster and was incorporated into the new camp rebuilt the same year. While the Club’s first presidents were all originally from Montreal or New York, it would take until 1928 to see the election of a president native to La Tuque, Mr. Simmons Brown.
The Club has also been shaped by many fishing legends, with catches from the great Lac Wayagamac sometimes reaching around 12 pounds. Among its notable figures is Mme Fabiola (Faby) Roy, manager of the Club in 1955 and the only woman to hold such a position in Quebec at that time. Internationally renowned painter Stanley Cosgrove, a member until his death in 2002, drew inspiration there to immortalize the exceptional landscapes of the surrounding forest. Even today, the Club continues its activities and preserves the heritage and natural character of its territory.
