Casey Store (Conche)

A small wood building with a steep gable roof, this structure was built by Michael Casey Sr. in 1904, the year in which France relinquished its rights on the Treaty Shore. At the time of construction, the Casey Store was one of many such saltfish stores in the community, and was part of a large complex of structures known as the Casey Rooms.

Casey Store
Casey Store, Conche, NL, before Restoration
Casey Store is a good surviving example of the French Shore's traditional fisheries architecture.
© 1998 Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador

The Casey Store was built as a saltfish store and twine loft adjoining the family stage. Provisions and fresh meat were also stored there. The north doorway gave access by a ramp to 320 square feet of flakes attached to the store. When the fish plant opened in the 1960s the flakes were abandoned and only the family's salt cod was kept there. It was later used for storing fishing gear.

The Caseys were one of the original settler families of Conche. Their rooms were first occupied by the builder's father, Captain Tom Casey (1799-1880) who was immortalized in one of the earliest extant ballads describing a Newfoundland sealing voyage. His ship's clock, parallel rule, chart case and navigational charts are still held in the community.

Casey Store
Casey Store, Conche, NL, after Restoration
Casey Store reflects a method of construction for the area that was typical of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Reproduced by permission of Jamie Dower. ©2004.

One of the oldest remaining fisheries buildings left on the French Shore, Casey Store was restored by the French Shore Historical Society. It was designated as a Registered Heritage Structure by the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador on March 31, 2001.

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Registered Heritage Structures Table of Contents

Also view the Casey Store Registered Heritage Structure, and the Casey Store and House Municipal Heritage Site on the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador web site. The Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Web Site has on its site only a portion of the registered heritage structures in Newfoundland and Labrador. To view a complete list or search for a particular structure visit the Heritage Foundation's Property Search page.