Anticosti [key], low, flat island, 135 mi (217 km) long and 10 to 30 mi (16–48 km) wide, E Que., Canada, at the head of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The island was discovered by Cartier in 1534. Louis XIV granted it to Jolliet as a reward for his discovery of the Mississippi. Jolliet's heirs held it until 1763, when it was annexed to Newfoundland (then a separate colony). It was returned to Canada in 1774 and was privately owned (1895–1926) until it was sold to Consolidated Bathurst, Inc., which promoted lumbering for pulpwood. Forest fires and transportation costs caused this enterprise to be shut down in 1972. The island is now known for its bountiful deer hunting.
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