Sables D'Olonne, LES, a seaport of France (dept. Vendée), on the Atlantic coast, 50 miles S. by W. of Nantes, owes its early importance to Louis XI., who excavated (1472) the port and erected the fortifications. There is a trade in grain, wine, salt, cattle, timber, and tar. Salt-making, ship-building, and fishing (sardines and oysters) are the chief occupations. The town is visited for its seabathing. Pop. 10,114.
Sables D'Olonne, LES,
Chambers's Encyclopaedia, Volume 9: Bound to Swansea, p. 62
Source scan(s): p. 0073