Conche is a fishing community on the Great Northern Peninsula’s eastern shore in White Bay, Newfoundland. There are several possibilities for the name “Conche” including its derivation from the French family Chilon. Local people believe it was given its name because of the shape of the peninsula, which resembles that of the shellfish, the conch.
From 1713-1904 Conche was within the boundary of the French Shore fishing activities. It was used by French and English fishermen for about a century before the French employed some English settlers to stay there as gardiens (year-round inhabitants who protected gear and premises in winter). (H.A.Innis, 1940)
