Passer le cap / Keeping on course

Passer le cap / Keeping on course (HM2E90)

Location: Gaspé, Québec G4X 6G7 La Côte-de-Gaspé
Country: Canada
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N 48° 51.371', W 64° 12.094'

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Cap-des-Rosiers : Selon plusieurs, c'est à Champlain que l'on doit le nom de notre village. Il l'aurait nommé ainsi, en 1632, en raison de l'abondance des rosiers sauvages qui recouvraient la falaise...
Or, malgré cette appellation des plus charmantes, Cap-des-Rosiers est l'un des lieux oú l'on dénombre le plus de naufrages en Gaspésie. En effet, la navigation y fut longtemps périlleuse en raison de la grande force et de l'irrégularité des courants et de l'absence d'aide à la navigation lumineuse. Ce sont donc des dizaines de bâtiments de toutes dimensions et de toutes contrées qui touchèrent le « cap des Rosiers » ou ses environs immédiats, par gros temps, surtout dans les nuits de tempêtes et de brouillard.
Pour illustrer l'ampleur de ce phénomène, mentionnons qu'entre les mois d'avril 1840 et août 1848, huit (8) vaisseaux y firent naufrage ou s'y échouèrent, occasionnant pour la plupart de graves pertes humaines et matérielles. Un monument funéraire, érigé sur le « banc du cap », rappelle l'une de ces tragédies : le naufrage du CARRICK'S OF WHITEHAVEN, survenu le 28 avril 1847.
Aussi, en vertu des dangers que créait l'approche



de ce secteur par les navigateurs, plusieurs autorités revendiquèrent l'érection d'un phare à Cap-des-Rosiers. De multiples arguments militaient en faveur du choix de ce site qui constitue la porte d'entrée du fleuve Saint-Laurent sur sa rive sud : création d'un point de repère représentant le premier signe de la présence du continent, augmentation de la sécurité des navigateurs, accroissement de l'efficacité et de la rapidité du trafic maritime permettant ainsi de concurrencer les ports de New York, de Boston et de Portland (importants ports d'entrée pour le commerce de l'Ouest), etc.
Ces nombreuses considérations amenèrent donc les commissaires des Travaux Publics à recommander le choix de Cap-des-Rosiers pour l'établissement d'une « lumière de première classe ». Ce choix fut à bien des égards stratégique comme en fait foi un article paru dans La Presse du 28 octobre 1950 indiquant que monsieur Joseph Ferguson, alors gardien du phare de Cap-des-Rosiers, reçut une citation pour vigilance ayant repéré, en septembre 1942, le premier U-Boat allemand dans les eaux canadiennes. Cette importante contribution permis sans aucun doute de freiner l'invasion allemande en territoire canadien...
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Cap-des-Rosiers: Some say that in 1632,



Champlain named our village after the many wild roses that covered the cliff...
Now, in spite of that very charming name, Cap-des-Rosiers is one of the places where there have been the most shipwrecks on the Gaspé coast. Navigating was perilous there for a long time, because of the powerful, erratic currents, and because there was no light to guide ships. Dozens of ships of all sizes and origins had a brush with the "wildrose cape" or its immediate surroundings in heavy weather and especially on stormy or foggy nights.
This happened often, as the period between April 1840 and August 1848 shows: eight (8) vessels were shipwrecked or were washed ashore there, resulting for the most part in serious human and material losses. A funeral monument was built on the beach ridge as a reminder of one of those tragedies: the shipwreck of CARRICK'S OF WHITEHAVEN, which happened on April 28, 1847.
And so, in view of the dangers to ships that approached the area, many authorities demanded that a lighthouse be built at Cap-des-Rosiers. There was much to be said in favour of this site, the entrance to the St. Lawrence River on the south shore: creation of a landmark indicating the first sign of the continent; more safety for ships, and better efficiency and speed for maritime traffic, making it possible to compete with the ports of New York Boston, and Portland (important ports of entry for western trade), etc.
For all these reasons, Public Works decided to recommend Cap-des-Rosiers for a "first-class light". This was quite a strategic choice, as seen in an article published in La Presse on October 28, 1950, which said that Mr. Joseph Ferguson, then lighthouse keeper at Cap-des-Rosiers, had received a mention for his vigilance in spotting the first German U-boat in Canadian waters, in September 1942. This important contribution definitely made it possible to stop the Germans from invading Canada...
Details
HM NumberHM2E90
Tags
Placed ByArchives publiques Canada / Public Archives Canada
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, February 11th, 2019 at 7:01pm PST -08:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)20U E 411862 N 5412164
Decimal Degrees48.85618333, -64.20156667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 48° 51.371', W 64° 12.094'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds48° 51' 22.26" N, 64° 12' 5.64" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 1325 Boulevard de Cap des Rosiers, Gaspé Québec G4X 6G7, CA
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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