Grandios/St. Juliens
French map of the Petit Nord fishing harbours
St. Julien’s and nearby St. Julien’s island are two of the oldest place names on European maps of Newfoundland. The harbour and outlying islands were considered excellent for fishing and drying cod. That, along with its proximity to the French fishing admiral’s headquarters at Croque, made St Julien’s one of the premier harbours of the French Shore. In 1707 it was the site of a land and sea battle between French fishermen and Major Lloyd of the British Navy (see more info – Conche).
St. Julien’s is not inhabited today, most of the settlers who lived there in the mid – 1900s moved to nearby harbours such as Grandois (from the French Les grand oise, meaning great goose). Grandois is also listed in some documents as English Harbour and it is where George McGrath settled as a guardian in the 1820s. Almost a hundred years before McGrath arrived, another man set up a fishing premises and dwelling. Because no settlement was allowed on the French Shore, he was driven off by an English naval patrol.
The fish plant at Grandois is now closed and the habour path is growing over, but the tiny Catholic chapel still boasts a beautiful altarpiece, handcarved by Mr. Jack Fitzgerald in the early 1900s. In 1970s, a road was finally built to Grandois from Croque. Today, both the names St. Julien’s and Grandois are used to describe the modern community, which has lost most of its population since the Cod Moratorium of 1992. Today there is a rough trail from Grandois to St. Julien’s and a small cemetery housing several French graves.
Grandios/St. Juliens Photos : ( Click each for full size )
1980 photo of Grandois harbour with fish plant.
All that remains of a cod liver factory in St. Julien's is this 1975 photo of the doorway
Grandios/St. Juliens : The Story of Breton Fisherman Jean Conan
Normal">In 1787, a Breton fisherman named Jean Conan was rescued from drowning near St. Julien’s by a group of aboriginal people. In a long biography written in the years after Conan's return to France,he described his experience in the French cod fishery, including several encounters with indigenous people,Conan’s story begins with his ship getting caught in the ice of Notre Dame Bay. Many crewmembers were lost, but Conan and 19 others made it to land. Afraid of the aboriginal people (most likely Beothuks), they stayed mostly in their small boat but almost starved. Finally Conan made it to Fogo Island. From there they travel north to the French fishing station at St. Julien’s, but not before they spent time in a Beothuk camp. He described his overnight in the camp, particularly mentioning the hospitality of the band and their way of life. By the time Conan was picked up by a French boat, he was almost ready to stay among the aboriginal people, so great was their hospitality.
Once back to their business of catching fish off St. Julien’s, Conan got into trouble again. Caught in a storm, he and the crew were rescued once more by another group of Beothuks. This time some of the women were dressed in European clothes, suggesting that this was certainly not their first encounter with fishermen.
For more on this story see: Adventures with the Beothuks in 1787: A Testimony from Jean Conan’s Autobiography in Vingt-Cinquieme Congres des Algonquinistes, edited by William Cowan. Carleton University, 1994