In 1694, the first resident pastor, Father Paul Vachon, established the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary at Cap de la Madeleine.

In 1867, Father Luc Desilets, pastor at Cap-de-la-Madeleine, re-introduced the praying of the rosary and promoted it among his parishioners.

However, in mid-March 1879, despite it being an unusually mild winter, a small section of the St. Lawrence River froze sufficiently that, by adding additional snow and water, Father Louis-Eugene Duguay, and some parishioners were able to construct a narrow mile-and-a-half long ice bridge.

The ice held for a full week and allowed the building material to be hauled across on horse-drawn sledges.

[2] True to a promise made to the Blessed Virgin, instead of demolishing the old stone church, Desilets dedicated it to Our Lady, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary.

As the parish work and number of pilgrims increased, they asked the bishop to appoint a custodian to take over the shrine.

The path leads to a series of bronze statues, cast in France, each representing one of the fifteen traditional mysteries of the rosary.