La Collette

La Collette

For a long time St Helier did not have a proper harbour. Although there was a jetty on the west side of Mont de la Ville, in the area where today's South Pier stands, it was little used, being in such a state of disrepair that it offered more danger than protection from the elements. The other side of the hill at La Collette offered much greater protection from the prevailing westerly winds, and a small jetty there seems to have served as the town's principal harbour, at least until a better pier was built at St Aubin, adjoining the fort. There are records in the 16th century and 17th centuries of various comings and goings at Havre des Pas, although the reefs which stretched from close inshore well out to sea would have prevented vessels of any size using the facility, and it is perhaps likely that small boats would have been sent inshore to collect and disembark passengers and load and unload limited amounts of cargo. Neither the date this picture was drawn, nor the era it depicts are known, but it is supposed to show a jetty at La Collette. This presents something of a problem, however, because maps of the time show an l-shaped jetty, with south and east arms, facing inwards from the point of La Collette, which would mean that there was no view of Elizabeth Castle. Perhaps a degree of artistic licence has been used, perhaps this is not La Collette at all; either way, it is a superb image of sea travel 400 or more years ago.

An Edwardian family pauses for a photograph on La Collette promenade

The structure behind the rocks is the men's diving board. In the Victorian era men's and women's bathing sites were separated. The men swam at La Collette and the women had changing rooms and a bathing area at Havre des Pas. Even when the sea water pool was built at Havre des Pas in the 1890s it was at first only for use by women

La Collette is the southernmost point of the town of St Helier, stretching from the Harbour around to Havre des Pas. It was once an unspoilt coastal walk, with the road passing above it along Mount Bingham, but in post-war years a new power station was built, followed by a tanker berth and fuel farm on reclaimed land, and then the coastline was extended still further with a large land reclamation scheme, which now contains the island's refuse incinerator.

In the mid-19th century the States embarked on an ambitious project to build a large deep-water harbour with an arm stretching out from La Collette towards Elizabeth Castle, which would meet another arm from the castle. The latter was built and survives to this day, but as work progressed on the three-quarter mile long pier from La Collette it was breached in severe storms in the winters of 1874, 1875 and 1876 and the project was abandoned.

A contemporary report of a failed harbour development

The La Collette land reclamation scheme of the 1970s in pictures

La Collette, a pictorial timeline

La Collette Gardens

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Green Street slipway between Havre des Pas and La Collette

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  1809
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  19th century
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  A 19th century drawing showing the two diving stages
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  The tower in 1875
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  The storm of December 1876
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  The storm of December 1876
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  Another storm in 1911
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  A picture by Edwin Dale
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  1900
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  1905
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The promenade before it was levelled and surfaced. The steps and platform in the foreground were formerly a diving place for men

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  La Collette in the 1930s
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  A view from the sea
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  A flat walk for a lady with a pram
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  An Albert Smith photograph
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  1950s
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  1893 painting by Paul Martin in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection
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  The barracks seen from an unusual angle

The diving stages at La Collette in 1910 - separate facilities for ladies and gentlemen

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  Looking out over Green Street, La Collette and Havre des Pas from the eastern side of Fort Regent
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  The ladies' diving stage at La Collette in 1910
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  The men's diving stage in 1889
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1945, and the German railway line remains on the seaside walk

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  1950, and the tracks have disappeared
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  A 19th century painting of La Collette by John Young
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  A photograph of La Collette by Albert Smith
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  Families on a day out at La Collette
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  The walk
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  Vraic collecting in 1893 - a picture in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection
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  La Collette House
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  La Collette round tower
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  The slipway at the bottom of Green Street is the dividing line between the La Collette and Havre des Pas districts
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  Slipway at the bottom of Green Street
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  La Collette round tower
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  La Collette barracks

Drone photograph by Paul Lakeman

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  1880
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  The men's bathing area in 1890
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  The men's bathing area photographed by Albert Smith
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  1940s
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  1978
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  Cars parked on reclaimed land in the 1970s
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  The house on the hill leading to South Hill is The Nest
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  Looking down on the seaside walk in 1935
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  Early 20th century photograph
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  Newly planted trees at the bottom of the road up to South Hill
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  Gentlemen's bathing area at high tide
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  1971
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  1907
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  Aerial photograph, 1968

20th and 21st century land reclamation

1977, and the power station has been built, but major land reclamation has yet to start

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  La Collette reclamation phase 1
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  La Collette reclamation phase 1
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  La Collette reclamation phase 2
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  La Collette reclamation phase 2
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  La Collette reclamation phase 2
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  The island's power station at La Collette, little used today because most of Jersey's electricity needs are supplied via an undersea cable from France
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  An aerial photograph taken before the reclaimed area was extended to take in the rocky area in the foreground
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  The Jersey Electricity power station in 1997
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  The land reclamation boundary in 1996
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  The area of reclaimed land has spread by 2011
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  La Collette reclamation

Reclamation under way in 1976 - Picture Jersey Evening Post

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  La Collette reclamation
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  Fuel farm
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  Fuel farm
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  Fuel farm
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  Power station
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  Power station
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  Reclamation site phase 2
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  2011
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  Work on the new tanker berth
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  Reclaimed land in the 1980s
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  Army barracks
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The latest reclamation area, almost filled