Saint-Léger-des-Vignes

Saint-Léger-des-Vignes

The church in Saint-Léger-des-Vignes
Saint-Léger-des-Vignes

Coordinates: 46°50′27″N 3°27′19″E / 46.8408°N 3.4553°ECoordinates: 46°50′27″N 3°27′19″E / 46.8408°N 3.4553°E
Country France
Region Burgundy
Department Nièvre
Arrondissement Nevers
Canton La Machine
Intercommunality Loire et Forêt
Government
 • Mayor (2014–2020) Pascal Thévenet
Area1 9.18 km2 (3.54 sq mi)
Population (2006)2 2,137
 • Density 230/km2 (600/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code 58250 / 58300
Elevation 186–265 m (610–869 ft)

1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Saint-Léger-des-Vignes is a Burgundian village located in the department of the Nièvre in central France.

Geography

Saint-Léger-des-Vignes is situated in the South of the Nièvre, on the road D981. It is located:

Saint-Léger-des-Vignes is the beginning point of the Canal du Nivernais and situated on the edge of the Loire (river). At the confluence of the Loire, the Aron and at the junction of the Canal du Nivernais and the Canal Latéral à la Loire, it is a real crossroads of waterways. The hills of Saint-Léger-des-Vignes are fully facing south. This is the place where vines were planted which gave the name to the village.

History

The name

Over the centuries, Saint-Léger-des-Vignes had several names:

The glass factories

On the 29th of May, 1724, Bernard Borniol built his glass factory on the site of Saint-Léger-des-Vignes, which was called Desize at this time. It closed much later in 1840. However, a second glass factory was created where we can currently find the Fresneau Stadium. Here we produced bottles until its shutting down, the 5th of December, 1931.

The rubber factory

The factory located in Decize (the neighbouring town) was very beneficial for Saint-Léger-des-Vignes. The Kleber factory (which is nowadays Anvis) was opened in 1942. It established the remarkable Fresneau Center where the old glass factory used to be before the 1930s.

Demography

The village had a population of 2,021 inhabitants in 2011. The evolution of the number of inhabitants is known from the population censuses conducted in the commune since 1793. From the 21st century, a census of communes with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants is held every five years, contrary to the other communes that have a sample survey every year.

Sports

Saint-Léger-des-Vignes has an important sports complex, the Fresneau Center where rugby is played in particular. The sports facilities are sometimes praised as the best of the whole Nièvre. Grandstands with a seating capacity of 3,000 spectators (including 300 covered) were built in 1951. Several sports are practiced under the aegis of Esperance Saint-Léger sports association (ESL) (athletics, boxing, canoe-kayak, climbing, gymnastics, judo, table tennis…) but the rugby XV is the most popular. The team whichis in factory’s colors (orange and blue), rose the level “National 3” in the 1990s and came close to the level “National 2”.

Personalities associated with the commune

See also

References

    Wikimedia Commons has media related to Saint-Léger-des-Vignes.