An "Abri" for French Migratory Fishermen? The Evolution of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon’s Salt-Cod Fisheries, 1670-1970.

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "From the Bottom Up: Socioeconomic Archaeology of the French Maritime Empire" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

Traditionally viewed as a marginal French settlement, the small islands of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon were in fact an essential component to French colonial expansion. Afterall, the transatlantic migratory salt-cod fishery was how European nations first made commercial use of North America. Saint-Pierre et Miquelon, long considered an ideal place for shore-based activities associated with the fishery, was known to have year-round settlers by 1670 and would become the last remaining French permanent settlement within the region after 1763. These small islands significantly continued to supply cod to France and its other Atlantic overseas territories well into the 20th century, beyond the end of Newfoundland’s French migratory fishery in 1904. This presentation focuses on the individuals, that is the transatlantic migratory fishermen, the graviers, and eventually the Petit Pêcheurs, who formed the backbone of this historic industry, and supplied a storable, nutrient-rich food to the French Empire for centuries.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• From the Bottom Up: Socioeconomic Archaeology of the French Maritime Empire   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 202