This watercolour by Cockburn illustrates the importance of the timber trade at anse au Foulon in the first half of the 19th century. The company run by Scottish brothers David and John Gilmour operated the largest site in the area. Their workers lived in modest wooden homes north of Foulon Street, as shown in the 1829 image. Fire prone, these houses burned down in 1870.

1808 - 1832

Sillery, the small industrial hub

Located just west of Québec City, the town of Sillery had a distinctive personality in the region in the early 19th century. It lies along a cliff where British aristocrats made their home. At the foot of the cliff is a cove that was surrounded by work sites at the time. Every year, workers, mostly French and Irish, readied thousands of logs for export. Sillery also had many major shipbuilding sites. Discover this town through the artworks of the period!

anse au Foulon construction site

James Pattison Cockburn This watercolour by Cockburn illustrates the importance of the timber trade at anse au Foulon in the first half of the 19th century. The company run by Scottish brothers David and John Gilmour operated the largest site in the area. Their workers lived in modest wooden homes north of Foulon Street, as shown in the 1829 image. Fire prone, these houses burned down in 1870.

Chronoscope What elements do you think of in connection to the timber trade? (unilingual French for a limited time)

Depicted period: 1829

Source: Library and Archives Canada Document in the public domain (free of copyright) - Acc. No. R9266-130 - Peter Winkworth Collection of Canadiana - Date: 1829

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