Baie-Saint-Paul is a city in the Province of Quebec, Canada, on the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River. Baie-Saint-Paul is the seat of Charlevoix Regional County Municipality. The city is situated at the mouth of the Gouffre River. It is known for its art galleries, shops and restaurants.The place gained some prominence in the 1770s when Doctor Philippe-Louis-François Badelard named a disease he was researching the "Baie-Saint-Paul maladie". This illness was the subject of one of the first medical publications done in Lower Canada. It is also where Cirque du Soleil originated back in the early 1980s and the location of the first show using the name Cirque du Soleil during "La Fete Foraine de Baie-Saint-Paul" in 1984.A visitor in the early 1800s noticed mineral springs and mineral resources in the area.DemographicsPopulation trend:  Population in 2011: 7332 (2006 to 2011 population change: 0.6%) Population in 2006: 7288 Population in 2001: 7290 Population in 1996: Baie-Saint-Paul: 3733 Baie-Saint-Paul (parish): 2297 Rivière-du-Gouffre (municipality): 1305 Private dwellings occupied by usual residents: 3,187 (total dwellings: 3,617)