Can you hear it? The faint whisper of a stream. It is the echo of the Ruisseau de Montreuil, also known as the Ru de Montreuil or the Ruisseau de la Pissotte.
We are standing on the Chemin de la Pissotte. This path holds a secret, a connection to a Paris of old. It is a history whispered by the very stones beneath our feet.
The Chemin de la Pissotte owes its name to the Ruisseau de Montreuil. This stream was once a vital part of the landscape. It began its journey in Montreuil. The stream flowed into the Lac de Saint-Mandé.
Imagine the scene. The Ru Orgueilleux joins the Ruisseau de Montreuil near a place called La Pissotte. This meeting point was near the Rue de Lagny in Montreuil. From there the combined waters flowed. They shaped the land as they made their way toward the Seine.
The Ruisseau de Montreuil played a role in Vincennes’ history. A hamlet formed along the Rue de Fontenay in the 14th century. It owed its existence to the stream. This settlement later became part of Vincennes.
In Paris, the stream’s path can still be traced. It ran roughly along what are now the Rue de Fécamp and Rue de Wattignies. Also the Rue de la Lancette and Rue des Fonds Verts mark its course. Until around 1840, the stream flowed through what became railway lines.
Later the Ruisseau de Montreuil’s course was altered. Between the Rue des Fonds Verts and its mouth, it was straightened. It ran alongside the Rue du Commerce, now Rue Proudhon. It passed the Place de l’Église de Bercy. It skirted the north side of the Rue de Bercy. The stream then flowed through the Entrepôts de Bercy between Rue de Mâcon and Rue de Bordeaux.
The stream was eventually covered. From the Lac de Saint-Mandé to the fortifications, it became a sewer in 1859-1860. By 1867, the rest of its course in Saint-Mandé was also covered.
The Chemin de la Pissotte itself has undergone changes. The old road from Paris to La Pissotte was once the Chemin de la Pissotte. In 1672, parts of it were marked on Jouvin de Rochefort’s plan. It later became the Rue de Lagny. The Croix Saint-Germain and Croix Fudon stood along this route. In 1731, the name Pissotte was written as Pissote on Roussel’s plan.
So as we stand on the Chemin de la Pissotte remember the hidden waters. The Ruisseau de Montreuil flows beneath our feet. It is a silent witness to the ever-changing story of Paris. It reminds us that even beneath the modern city, the past continues to flow.