Soumagne

Soumagne
Municipality
Coat of arms
Soumagne Location in Belgium
Location of Soumagne in Liège province
Coordinates: 50°37′N 05°45′E / 50.617°N 5.750°ECoordinates: 50°37′N 05°45′E / 50.617°N 5.750°E
Country	Belgium
Community	French Community
Region	Wallonia
Province	Liège
Arrondissement	Liège
Government
• Mayor	Charles Janssens
• Governing party/ies	PS
Area
• Total	27.14 km^2 (10.48 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2013)[1]
• Total	16,302
• Density	600/km^2 (1,600/sq mi)
Postal codes	4630-4633
Area codes	04
Website	www.soumagne.be

Soumagne is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege. On September 1, 2008, Soumagne had a total population of 15,894.^[2] The total area is 27.14 km² which gives a population density of 585 inhabitants per km².

The actual Soumagne is made of several municipalities that were merged in 1977 during the reorganization of the Belgian territory:

• Ayeneux
• Cerexhe-Heuseux
• Évegnée-Tignée
• Mélen
• Micheroux
• Soumagne

History

From the end of the 19th century until the 1960s, due to a lot of coal mines and a large production factory (called "Cooperative"), Soumagne was a flourishing municipality. After the end of coal mining, the mines were cleaned and residences as well as shopping areas were built on. Some buildings are kept and transformed into touristical activities (such as "le domaine du Bas-Bois").

Since 1980, due to the higher number of people leaving big cities (Liège and Verviers) to more rural municipalities, and due to the highway E40 (European route E40) passing on its territory, Soumagne recovers from the loss of coal mining and the end of the "Cooperative". In that period, houses are built due to a new, and young, population settling down in Soumagne. A lot of new shops and commercial centers are opened and small companies are emerging.

Attractions

There are a few touristic points in Soumange (among others):

• the Evegnée fountain (natural fountain in a rural landscape)
• Saint-Lambert church (built during the 13th century, burnt in 1694 and rebuilt)
• "Domaine du Bas-Bois" (a former coal mine site)
• Wégimont Castle (14th century construction changed through the centuries with a park transformed into a family amusement area)

Soumagne, church: église Saint Lambert

See also

• List of protected heritage sites in Soumagne

References

1. Population per municipality on 1 January 2013 (XLS; 607.5 KB)
2. Direction Generale Institutions et Population, http://www.ibz.rrn.fgov.be/fileadmin/user_upload/Registre/fr/statistiques_population/stat_1_f.pdf

External links

• Media related to Soumagne at Wikimedia Commons
• Domaine Provincial de Wégimont (in French)