Save the (Tannery) Village des Tanneries St-Henri, Montreal, Quebec

The early 18th Century remnants of the Village des Tanneries, or Tannery Village, in St-Henri district of Montreal, could be swept away within a few short weeks. Quebec Transport Minister Robert Poëti confirmed Sunday the vestiges, which lie in the path of a future sewer collector, will be destroyed as soon as archaeologists finish their work at the end of September. 

The prospect of destroying the site has raised consternation among “archaeologists, historians, urban planners, curators and many other professionals who care about the conservation and development of Montreal’s heritage. This worry is even shared by our fellow archaeologists in English Canada, the United States and Europe, who are all incredulous at the impending destruction of such a vast, rare and precious heritage site,” said the letter signed by Christian Gates St-Pierre, president of the association’s Public Advocacy Committee, as well as archaeology professor George Nicholas of Simon Fraser University and Ottawa curator and archaeologist Moira T. MCaffrey.