The Codroy Valley is the area between the Anguille Mountains to the northwest, the Long Range Mountains in the southeast, and the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the southwest.

The valley is approximately 37 km (23 mi) long and approximately 14 km (9 mi) at its widest point at the coastline. While much of the valley was settled eventually by Scots, the coastal area was settled earlier by French fishermen and their families.

The actual name "Codroy" is believed to come from either French or Spanish. One theory is that Codroy is a corruption of an incorrect spelling of the French for Cape Ray, C. de Roy; a second French possibly is that because cod was so plentiful in the area, that "Roy" comes from roi, meaning "king", as in "king of the cod fish"!

Others have suggested it comes from the Spanish Basque, Cap D'Array or Cadarrai, both of which were recorded by James Cook.

"Codroy" is found in a number of landmarks in the area: Codroy Island, Codroy Pond, Codroy River, Grand Codroy River, Little Codroy Pond, and the Little Codroy River.

The actual valley extends inland in a northeasterly direction and can be divided into three "unofficial" sections: (1) the Southwestern Coastal, (2) the Inland Central, and (3) the Northwestern Coastal.

Codroy: The actual town that goes by the name of "Codroy" is about 2.1 km (1.3 mi) southeast of Cape Anguille. Codroy's rich history in terms of fishing is outlined in the ENL as follows:

It is not known when Codroy was first used as a fishing station but it is known that by 1764 a British adventurer, John Broom, was fishing for salmon and cod there and in the Bay of Islands. He remained at Codroy until at least 1774 and possibly later.

Following the Treaty of Versailles of 1783 the coastline of the west coast, including that of Codroy, became part of the French Shore and by the third decade of the Nineteenth Century, following the Napoleonic Wars, the French had a well-established fishing station on Codroy Island, a small island located a short distance from the present-day site of Codroy.

In 1822 W.E. Cormack reported that the harbour between the island and the mainland was teeming with activity. He went on to report: "owing to the shelter and anchorage for shipping at Codroy... and to its immediate proximity to the fine fishing-grounds about Cape Ray, it is the central point of the French fisheries in summer" W.E. Cormack (1928: p. 99).

Throughout the Nineteenth Century the French fishing station on the island continued to operate with French fishermen visiting it every summer to fish for cod and salmon. Sometimes a French fisherman would be left behind to protect the establishment in winter.

As it was one of the few good harbours on the west coast it remained an important station until the official end of the French Shore in 1904.

Overtime the town of Codroy became the "home" to a number of English speaking residents. The ENL continues to summarize the slow "transformation": Despite the French presence in the area English settlement of Codroy did occur during this period.

By 1822 there were five English families living there during the summer (in winter they reportedly lived a short distance away in the woods). Between then and 1857 the population of the village increased to 192 people and over the next twenty years to 405.

W.C. Wonders (1951) suggests that this increase was mostly the result of immigration from the south coast of the Island. A small number of French also settled there.

Although located on the fringes of an agricultural area, the Codroy Valley, Codroy was not endowed with very good agricultural land, and early in its history the emphasis was placed on the fishery.

Unlike many other parts of the Island the fishery in Codroy, which was principally for cod, seals and small amounts of herring and salmon, was conducted in the fall and winter months (though a certain amount of fishing was prosecuted during spring and summer as well).

CODROY VALLEY PROVINCIAL PARK:

Located north west of Port aux Basques, important natural features of Codroy Valley Provincial Park is the beautiful view of the Long Range Mountains from this valley location and the large beach area at the large estuary of the Grand Codroy River with an abundance of shore birds.

Composed of 925 hectares (2,285.7 acres) of wetland the area is known as one of the province's most important wetlands. The park contains picnic sites and pit toilets for day users.

As mentioned previously there are several possibilities behind the name "Codroy".

The first is that it is a corruption of an incorrect spelling of the French for Cape Ray, C. de Roy; the second that "Roy" refers to the French word for "king" as in the "king of the cod fish and finally the third that suggests it comes from the Spanish Basque, Cap D'Array or Cadarrai, both of which were recorded by James Cook.


GRAND CODROY PROVINCIAL PARK RESERVE:

Nearby to the park mentioned above, Grand Codroy Provincial Park Reserve is located on Rte. 406, 3 km (1.9 mi) off Rte. 1, near the town of Doyles. Offering a wonderful view of the Long Range Mountains it was established to protect a portion of a fluvial delta.

Used with permission from "Uncovering the Origin of 1001 Unique Place Names in Newfoundland and Labrador" 2021 Jennifer Leigh Hill

Address of this page: http://nl.ruralroutes.com/Codroy