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To discover Dudswell is to discover a marvellous corner of the country where history, culture and nature come together daily. This municipality gathers to its breast the villages of Marbleton and Bishopton, which are situated in a vast, mountainous territory which is traversed by the Saint-François river. Moreover, the Lac d'Argent and Lac Miroir delight the magnificent landscape of Dudswell.
John Bishop
Born in 1759, John Bishop participated in the American War of Independence, and was taken prisoner by the Loyalists. Captured and brought to Quebec, he learned how to obtain a parcel of land in Lower Canada. It was in September 1800 that John Bishop envisaged relocating his family to his lot near Lac Miroir.
He died in August 1801 after a long illness and his brother, Naphtalt Bishop, obtained the quarter of a township and property titles for the Township of Dudswell. John Bishop is without a doubt considered a pioneer of Dudswell and it is, moreover, to pay him homage, that a monument was erected at the corner of roads 112 and 225.

The first family in the township of Dudswell lived in the Bishopton area around 1800. After that, various Anglophone communities, coming from the United States, England, Scotland and Ireland came to establish themselves. It was only in 1824 that a vein of chalk was discovered in Marbleton. The exploitation of this rock soon proved to be valuable and contributed to the development of the township of Dudswell. This encouraged the French Canadians, coming mostly from the Beauce, to come and settle in Dudswell. Becoming more and more numerous, the French Canadians, in 1891, obtained the creation of the parish of St-Adolphe-de-Dudswell. Marbleton then, got its name from this marble rock, mined in the region, Marble Town. It was in February 1896 that Marbleton was incorporated as a municipality. In 1917, the inhabitants of Rural Roads 3, 4 and 5 decided to form their own municipality, which took the name of Bishop's Crossing. This changed its name in 1937 and adopted that of Bishopton. Since October 11, 1998, the township of Dudswell, and the municipalities of Bishopton and Marbleton have been merged under the name of Dudswell. They remain distinct sectors.

Marble and chalk are, so to speak, the natural resource which defined the future of Dudswell. A deposit of marble was discovered in 1855, but its exploitation lasted only a short time - after 1869, inadequate means made exploration fruitless. In spite of everything, the presence of this rock in the region permitted the little village to acquire its name of Marbleton. (Marble Town) The exploitation of the limestone to obtain chalk began in 1824. Thus it was in the township of Dudswell that the first industrial chalk ovens were established in Québec. These furnaces were heated by wood supplied by the settlers. It was only in 1875 that a railway was constructed to allow the sale of local products further afield. Then new ovens were constructed and the need for manpower brought about the creation of the French Canadian village of Saint-Adolphe, beside the village of Marbleton.

Lime extraction
In 1887, the Dominion Lime Company was authorized to construct a little railway from the chalk quarry to the Québec Central Line. The little village, which was born around the industry, Lime Ridge, was very prosperous at the beginning of the 20th century. The small locality had around forty houses, a big hotel, a general store, etc. Even though Lime Ridge no longer exists, its memory remains today and the production of chalk continues.
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