The Codroy Valley is a valley in the southwestern part of the island of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

in the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

. The Codroy Valley is a

glacial valley U-shaped valleys, also called trough valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They are characteristic of mountain glaciation in particular. They have a characteristic U shape in cross-section, with steep, straight s ...

formed in the

Anguille Mountains The Anguille Mountains ( ) are a section of the Long Range Mountains located on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland, Canada, along the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Covering the first area from Cape Anguille along St. George's Bay (Newfoundland ...

, a sub-range of the

Long Range Mountains The Long Range Mountains are a series of mountains along the west coast of the Canadian island of Newfoundland. The Long Range Mountains are a subrange which forms the northernmost section of the Appalachian mountain chain on the eastern seab ...

which run along Newfoundland's west coast fronting the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The valley runs inland at a perpendicular angle from the coast along a bearing of 45° (northeast), carrying the Codroy River and its tributaries to the gulf. The mouth of the Codroy Valley at the coast is extremely windy and is the location of

Wreckhouse Wreckhouse is a geographic location in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador that is well known for extremely high winds. Situated at the southern end of the Long Range Mountains at the western mouth of the Codroy Valley, the name ori ...

, so-named by employees of the historic

Newfoundland Railway The Newfoundland Railway was a narrow-gauge railway that operated on the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow-gauge system in North America. History Early con ...

for the wind's ability to blow railway cars off the tracks. The area was settled families of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, Irish,

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

, and Scots. The Scots were Highlanders who arrived between the 1840s and 1860s, most of them secondary migrants who had been living on

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

in Inverness County,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

. Of the roughly 171 households at Codroy Valley in the 1880s, 67 (38%) belonged to people of Scottish descent. The

Scottish Gaelic language Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

was once commonly spoken here, with some families continuing to speak Gaelic at home until the 1960s.

References

External links

Community Accounts - Codroy Valley - Well-Being Account
Valleys of Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian Gaelic European-Canadian culture in Newfoundland and Labrador Mi'kmaq in Canada First Nations in Atlantic Canada Scottish diaspora in Canada * {{Newfoundland-geo-stub

See also

Further reading

References

External links