(The Sun, Jocelyn Riendeau)
The Anse-à-Cartier park has long presented visitors with a replica of the Great Ermine, the flagship of Jacques-Cartier (1535). An astonishing construction measuring 24 meters in length, built by the Davie shipyard for Expo 67.
Back in Quebec, the response got off to a difficult start. When it was launched on August 16, 1972, it poured onto its side. Then she slowly sinks, in front of the horrified public. Disaster! It appears that the “ballast” was placed in the front rather than the rear!
It doesn’t matter. Once refloated and patched up, the Great Ermine becomes a tourist attraction. The park too. After all, this is where Jacques Cartier is said to have spent the terrible winter of 1535. Twenty-five sailors are said to have died of scurvy there. The others were said to have been saved by an indigenous remedy based on white cedar.
Alas, the replica of Cartier’s ship will age poorly. Between us, she lacks maintenance. And then, the place lacks a little charm. Right next door, the banks of the Saint-Charles River were concreted. In fact, it looks like the watercourse is enclosed in a concrete sarcophagus. Like a mummy.
The years go by. Tourists are becoming rarer. To top it all off, some scholars dispute the historical accuracy of the ship. Since the early 1990s, the federal government has wanted to get rid of it.
The evil jokers renamed the ship “the Great Vermin”. A low blow!
The City of Gaspé is considering purchasing the unloved ship. Too little, too late. On June 10, 2001, the response of the Great Ermine is demolished with a mechanical excavator. The presence of a few demonstrators cannot change anything…
Today, the place has benefited from the planting of trees and vegetation. The banks of the Saint-Charles River have also become more welcoming. The whole forms a green oasis in an area where real estate projects have multiplied.
(Source: Dave Noël, Le Devoir)
We extend an invitation to all. Do you have photos in your hands representing a missing facet of Quebec City? A crossroads, a building, a business, a wooded area? Send them to us. Show us your treasures. And even if you can no longer find the photos, do not hesitate to contact us to share your memories.
