Aubin (French pronunciation: [obɛ̃] ; Languedocien: Aubinh) is a commune in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie of southern France.

Geography

Aubin is located some 20 km south-east of Figeac and immediately south of Decazeville. Access to the commune is by road D 5 from Viviez in the north-west which passes through the centre of the commune and the town and continues south to Montbazens. The D221 goes from the town north to Decazeville. The D 11 goes east from the town to Cransac. The minor D 513 road branches off the D 5 on the north-western border of the commune and goes east through the north of the commune to Firmi. The Capdenac-Gare to Rodez railway line passes through the commune and there is a station at the town: Aubin station. Apart from the town there are the hamlets and villages of Severac, Ruffies, Cerons, La Croix du Broual, Combes, Tramons, Ruau, Les Escabrins, and Saugiere. The commune is mixed forest and farmland with significant sized urban areas.

The Riou Morte flows through the north-eastern corner of the commune as it flows north-west before turning west at Decazeville. The Enne river flows through the commune and the town from the east and continues north-west to join the Riou Morte at Viviez. The Ruisseau du Banel flows from the east north of the village and joins the Enne on the north-western border of the commune.

History

Classical Antiquity

Lucien Mazars, an author of numerous books on local history, wrote in Aubin; its history, from its origins to the Revolution of 1789: "tradition [says] that Aubin, which bore the name Albin until the end of the 18th century, was founded by the Roman General Declus Clodius Albinus or in his honour". However, General Albinus did not exercise the functions of a legate in Gaul but rather in Roman Britain. His control of Gaul was probably too short to be able to found a town.

Middle Ages

Fort Aubin initially served as a fortress and then was occupied during the Middle Ages by the Lords of Rouergue. The town became the center of important coal mines, and also had iron mines.

Contemporary era

The commune was the capital of the District of Aubin from 1790 to 1800.

In October 1869 soldiers fired on a demonstration of miners killing 14 and injuring 20. This was the second strike in the Second Empire after the one in June 1869 at La Ricamarie. Captain Bernard Gosseran who gave the order to fire on strikers was later made a chevalier of the Legion of Honour. This tragedy inspired the Ode à la Misère (Ode to Misery) and the Aubin poems to Victor Hugo.

Aubin railway station on the Capdenac-Gare to Rodez line opened in 1858.

Heraldry

Blazon: Gules, a lion of Or, in chief Sable, a pick-axe to sinister and a hammer to dexter of Argent handled of Or posed saltirewise debruised by a miner's lamp of Argent lighted in Gules.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Mayors from 1939

From	To	Name	Party
1939	1944	Prosper Vergnes
1944	1944	Jean Nicot
1944	1963	Edmond Ginestet
1963	1965	Jean Martin
1965	1971	René Gres
1971	1989	Lucien Mazars
1989	1995	Robert Debuchy
1995	2008	Pierre Beffre	PS
2008	2020	André Martinez
2020	2022	Laurent Alexandre
2022	2024	Michel Baert
2024	2026	Christine Teulier

Demography

The inhabitants of the commune are known as Aubinois in French.

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 3,150 —     1800 2,935 −1.00% 1806 2,954 +0.11% 1821 2,364 −1.47% 1831 3,392 +3.68% 1836 3,017 −2.32% 1841 3,078 +0.40% 1846 3,321 +1.53% 1851 4,413 +5.85% 1856 8,048 +12.77% 1861 7,856 −0.48% 1866 8,863 +2.44% 1872 8,832 −0.06% 1876 9,864 +2.80% 1881 9,317 −1.13% 1886 9,054 −0.57% 1891 9,052 −0.00% 1896 9,781 +1.56%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 9,973 +0.39% 1906 9,986 +0.03% 1911 9,574 −0.84% 1921 9,740 +0.17% 1926 9,387 −0.74% 1931 8,322 −2.38% 1936 7,495 −2.07% 1946 7,982 +0.63% 1954 8,275 +0.45% 1962 7,821 −0.70% 1968 6,635 −2.70% 1975 6,283 −0.78% 1982 5,782 −1.18% 1990 4,846 −2.18% 1999 4,360 −1.17% 2007 4,237 −0.36% 2012 3,937 −1.46% 2017 3,761 −0.91%
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.
Source: EHESS and INSEE

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has two buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:

• 2 Factory Chimneys (1847)
• The Jules Ferry du Gua School (1876). Designed by Emmanuel Brune and built between 1876 and 1880. It is 59 metres long and 12 metres wide built on a terrace overlooking the small houses which make up the suburb of Gua.
• The Town Hall contains several items that are registered as historical objects:
  • A Statue: Maid of Honour at the Court of Francis I (1870)
  • A Painting with frame: Miners of the Saar (1950)
  • A Painting with frame: Unnamed abstract (1973)
  • A Painting with frame: Confidences (1950)

Other sites of interest

• The Departmental House of Memory: Museum of resistance, deportation, and citizenship
• The Museum of Mines

Religious heritage

The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments:

• The Church of Notre-Dame-des-Mines (1942). The Church also contains many items that are registered as historical objects:
  • A set of monumental paintings: Resurrection and Appearance of Christ, Ascension of Christ, Crowning of the Virgin (20th century)
  • A painting: Wayside Cross (1952)
  • A set of monumental paintings: Virgin and Child, Calvary and episodes of life of miners, Saint Famille (1951)
  • A set of monumental paintings and Wayside Cross: Cycle of the Passion of Christ, Episodes of life of miners (1951, 1952)
• The Church of Saint-Blaise (1486). The Church also contains many items that are registered as historical objects:
  • A Statue: Virgin and Child (16th century)
  • A Group Sculpture: The Resurrection (15th century)
  • A Statue: Christ on the Cross (12th century)
  • A Group Sculpture: The Baptism of Christ (15th century)
  • A Baptismal font (13th century)
  • A Consecration Cross (12th century)
  • An Altar (12th century)
• The Church of Gua (1865)

Facilities

Sports

• The Étoile Sportive de Combes, a football club since 1921.

Notable people linked to the commune

• François Cogné, sculptor.
• Marie-Claire Bancquart, university professor, writer and poet, born in Aubin in 1932.
• Serge Mesonès, French footballer, born in 1948, died in 2001 at Aubin.
• Lilian Bathelot, novelist, author, born at Aubin in 1959.

• 
  François Cogné in 1931.
• 
  Marie-Claire Bancquart in 2010.
• 
  Lilian Bathelot in 2010.

See also

• Communes of the Aveyron department

Bibliography

• Lucien Mazars, Aubin, its history from its origins to the Revolution of 1789, L. Mazars, Aubin, 1982, 119 pages, Cov. ill., ill., 22 cm, BnF 34761590s (in French)
• Lucien Mazars, Mining Land, Aubin-Decazeville basin, Fil d'Ariane, Rodez, 1999, 285 pages, ill., cov. ill., 22 cm, ISBN 2-912470-16-1, BnF 36978991r (in French)
• Lucien Mazars and Francis Mazars, Mining Land in pictures, Decazeville-Aubin basin, Association des amis du Musée de la mine Lucien Mazars, Aubin, 2009, 265 pages, ill. in b&w and colour., cov. ill., 24 cm, ISBN 978-2-7466-0685-2, BnF 41491412h (in French)
• Madeleine Raygade-Panassié, Memories of Combes, coal and fire country, Association des amis du Musée du Rouergue, Rodez, 1994, 99 pages, ill., cov. ill., 24 cm, BnF 366921465 (in French)
• Christian-Pierre Bedel, preface by Pierre Beffre, Aubinh, Cransac, Firmin, Vivièrs / Christian-Pierre Bedel e los estatjants del canton d'Aubinh, Al canton collection, Mission départementale de la culture, Rodez, 1998, 247 pages, ill., cov. ill., 28 cm, ISBN 2-907279-38-6, ISSN 1151-8375, BnF 36708370b (in Spanish)
• Michel Girval, Aubin, Le Gua, Combes in the time of old postcards, Amicale laïque et républicaine de la commune d'Aubin, Aubin, 1999, 200 pages, ill., cov. ill. in colour, 30 cm, ISBN 2-9513481-0-X, BnF 37038703v (in French)
• Engineer Senez, Aubin - Geological Map of the coal basin of Aubin (Aveyron) made in 1840, Cartographic Manuscript Document, s.n., s.l., 1840, 1 flle: ms., 40x48 cm, BnF 407204575 (in French) See online
• Marie-Line Montbroussous, History of a successful integration, the Spaniards in the Decazeville basin, Éd. du Rouergue, Rodez, 1995, 199 pages, ill., cov. ill., 23 cm, ISBN 2-905209-99-2, BnF 36685891f (in French)
• Gérard Pertus and Michel Herranz, Basin of Decazeville, Aubin, Cransac, Firmi, Viviez, factories and metalworkers. Vol. 1, Association de sauvegarde du patrimoine industriel du Bassin de Decazeville, Decazeville, 2010, 238 pages, ill., cov. ill., 31 cm, ISBN 978-2-9531052-3-0, BnF 42307098h (in French)
• Gérard Pertus and Michel Herranz, Basin of Decazeville, Aubin, Cransac, Firmi, Viviez, factories and metalworkers. Vol. 2, Association de sauvegarde du patrimoine industriel du Bassin de Decazeville, Decazeville, 2012, 237 pages, ill., cov. ill., 31 cm, ISBN 978-2-9531052-4-7, BnF 43520392g (in French)
• Gérard Pertus and Michel Herranz, Mines and miners, Decazeville basin: Aubin, Cransac, Firmi, Viviez, Association de sauvegarde du patrimoine industriel du Bassin de Decazeville, Decazeville, 2008, 211 pages, ill., cov. ill., 31 cm, ISBN 978-2-9531052-1-6, BnF 41420313w (in French)
• Gérard Pertus and Michel Herranz, Mine Pits, Decazeville basin: Aubin, Cransac, Firmi, Viviez, Association de sauvegarde du patrimoine industriel du Bassin de Decazeville, Decazeville, 2007, 117 pages, ill., cov. ill., 31 cm ISBN 978-2-9531052-0-9, BnF 411843247 (in French)
• Christian-Pierre Bedel, preface Pierre Beffre, Aubinh, Cransac, Firmin, Vivièrs / Christian-Pierre Bedel e los estatjants del canton d'Aubinh, Rodez, Mission départementale de la culture, 1998, Al canton coll., 247 pages, ill., cov. ill., 28 cm, ISBN 2-907279-38-6, ISSN 1151-8375, BnF 36708370 (in French)

External links

• Aubin official website (in French)
• Church of Notre-Dame website (in French)
• Aubin on the old IGN website (in French)
• The Miner on the sculptor's website (in French)
• Aubin on Géoportail, National Geographic Institute (IGN) website (in French)
• Albin on the 1750 Cassini Map

Notes and references