Dole, Jura

Not to be confused with La Dôle.

Dole
Subprefecture and commune
Old Dole
Coat of arms
Country	France
Region	Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Department	Jura
Arrondissement	Dole
Canton	Dole-1 and 2
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Jean-Baptiste Gagnoux
Area1	38.38 km2 (14.82 sq mi)
Population (Jan. 2018)2
INSEE/Postal code	39198 / 39100
Elevation	196–341 m (643–1,119 ft)
Website	www.doledujura.fr
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.

Dole (French: [dɔl] sometimes pronounced [dol]) is a commune in the Jura department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, in eastern France, of which it is a subprefecture (sous-préfecture).

History

Dole was the capital of Franche-Comté until Louis XIV conquered the region; he shifted the parlement from Dole to Besançon. The university, founded by Duke Philippe le Bon of Burgundy in 1422, was also transferred to Besançon at that time.

In January 1573, Gilles Garnier was put to death after being found guilty of lycanthropy and witchcraft. He had confessed to murdering and cannibalizing at least six children. The 1995 film Happiness Is in the Field was set in Dole and The Widow Couderc was also partially filmed there.

Geography

Dole is located on the river Doubs. The commune has a land area of 38.38 km² (14.82 sq mi).

Population

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 9,000 —     1800 8,235 −1.26% 1806 8,678 +0.88% 1821 9,647 +0.71% 1831 9,927 +0.29% 1836 10,137 +0.42% 1841 10,713 +1.11% 1846 10,519 −0.36% 1851 10,830 +0.58% 1856 10,985 +0.28% 1861 10,605 −0.70% 1866 11,093 +0.90% 1872 11,679 +0.86% 1876 12,924 +2.56% 1881 13,190 +0.41% 1886 13,293 +0.16% 1891 14,253 +1.40% 1896 14,437 +0.26%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 14,627 +0.26% 1906 14,838 +0.29% 1911 16,294 +1.89% 1921 16,208 −0.05% 1926 18,093 +2.22% 1931 18,066 −0.03% 1936 18,117 +0.06% 1946 18,250 +0.07% 1954 22,022 +2.38% 1962 24,525 +1.35% 1968 27,188 +1.73% 1975 29,295 +1.07% 1982 26,889 −1.22% 1990 26,577 −0.15% 1999 24,949 −0.70% 2007 25,051 +0.05% 2012 23,685 −1.12% 2017 23,708 +0.02%
Source: EHESS and INSEE (1968-2017)

It is the largest commune in Jura, although the préfecture is Lons-le-Saunier.

Transport

Dole-Ville station has rail connections to Dijon, Paris, Lausanne and Besançon. Dole – Jura Airport is located in the commune of Tavaux, 7 km southwest of Dole.

Famous residents

• Simon Bernard (28 April 1779 – 5 November 1839)- Napoleonic aide de camp and notable engineer in the United States.
• Marie Émile Antoine Béthouart (17 December 1889 – 17 October 1982), soldier.
• Louis Pasteur (27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895), microbiologist and chemist
• Suzanne Douvillier, pioneer dancer and choreographer.
• Michel Chapuis (15 January 1930 – 12 November 2017), organist
• Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine (21 July 1948 − ), pop-rock singer and songwriter, born in Dole

Museums

The Museum of Fine Arts, Dole founded in 1821, is located in the House of the Officers, an example of military architecture of Franche-Comté at the 18th century.

Twin towns - sister cities

Dole is twinned with:

• Carlow, Ireland
• Chaohu, China
• Kostroma, Russia
• Lahr, Germany
• Northwich, England, United Kingdom
• Sestri Levante, Italy
• Tábor, Czech Republic

See also

• Arrondissement of Dole
• Communes of the Jura department

External links

• Official website (in French)