Serving as the western entrance to the Straits of Belle-Isle, the geographical setting for this community is a long strip of land that protrudes several kilometres out from the normal coastline. It is easy to comprehend why it was once called Longue-Pointe-de-Blanc-Sablon until 1907, rechristened Lourdes de Blanc-Sablon, and is so refered to by local inhabitants to this day. On most fine days, one can easily discern the coastline and dwellings along the northern tip of Newfoundland’s Northern Peninsula, just a few kilometres to the South across the narrow straits.

Settling of the area goes as far back as the modern Amerindian and Inuit ancestors. More recently, the area was settled on a seasonal basis by fishing and whaling fleets from maritime European countries such as France, Britain, Portugal and Spain as early as the 16th century. As was the case for most of the Province of Quebec following the British Conquest of 1760, changes in land ownership and natural resource harvesting rights permitted permanent settlement to the remote areas and regions of the province. The Mid nineteenth century saw an influx of French -Canadian families such as the Beaudoins, Joncas, Lavallees and Dumas.

The Bishop Scheffer Museum is a room in Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Church dedicated to celebrating the life and work of Bishop Lionel Scheffer. Scheffer was largely responsible for the construction of the first hospital in Lordes-de-Blanc-Sablon as well as the construction of the church that now holds much of his memorabilia. The museum is open daily year-round, 8am to 9pm.

Community Events

• Spring: Hockey tournament, winter Carnival, Church sales and darts tournament
• June: Iceberg festival; St. Jean Baptiste Day celebration and bonfire.