A space for hawkers at the entrance to the village

Harrieville-Les-Chanters

a little history

Around 1750, about forty Harréville residents practiced the profession of street vendors by selling from village to village objects of their own making, rosaries, rings, and Saint-Hubert horns (a type of medal representing the trumpet, a primitive musical instrument, attached to the end of a rod) It was heated to an intense red temperature to distinguish dogs from the ear for a treatment or even immunization against rabies. They did their business and attracted the population by singing and very quickly, one of them spoke of “Chanteurs d’Harréville”, so that on March 7, 1907, the municipal council and the mayor, Albert Bickel, officially decided that the municipality should take the name “Harréville-les-Chanteurs”.

“L’Espace des colporteurs” officially opened, a landscaped site at the entrance to the city.

On Saturday 2 July, Pierre-Jean Lambert, Mayor of Harville, and his municipal advisors invited the various authorities, elected officials, business implementers, villagers as well as those who collaborated in creating this “space for peddlers”. This, at the entrance to the village, is a landscaped area, including a safe path allowing pedestrians and people with reduced mobility to reach the cemetery, a relaxation area with tables and whitewashing, and a petanque area, creating the Paul’s Section. Inside the village seniors club, as well as social connections and a specific layout for the receipt of waste sorting containers. The painting “Espace des colporteurs” was created by sculptor Thierry Chretien of Harréville.

In preparation for this opening, guests began a visit to the Grand Rue, where the sewage works were carried out as well as the displacement of individual water meters and the burial place of the air networks. The visitors then headed to the square at the end of the village where great earthworks and landscaping were done. Nicolas Lacroix, Chair of the Department Council, Chair of the Public Interest Group, and Head of the Meuse Rognon Municipal Community, thanked the municipality for realizing the “Hawkers Space” and the companies for the work done. Sophie DeLonge, a member of the regional council, congratulated the municipality on this very successful entry into the village. Bruno Seydoux, Senator, expressed his satisfaction with the municipality’s funding. Maxines Dean Heeger, the county’s general secretary, emphasized his gratitude for this regional development. The municipality was able to obtain subsidies of 54% on all works amounting to approximately 520 thousand euros, which allowed the implementation to be self-financed without any resort to borrowing.