Way Out East to Newfoundland
Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador extends from Bonavista Bay (the possible landing place of John Cabot) to the Burin peninsula from where visitors can travel easily to the French island of Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
Communities
Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador is made up of large and small communities including Bonavista, Trinity, Port Union, Elliston, Grand Bank, and Saint Lawrence.
- Bonavista
The town of Bonavista has a rich culture and interesting history. A statute of John Cabot at Cape Bonavista commemorates his landing in the area in 1497. Other communities have laid claim to John Cabot’s landing. Yet Bonavista is identified as the site of Cabot’s landing on John Mason’s map (1615-1621). Captain James Cook, a well-known cartographer, documented Bonavista as being settled prior to 1660. The Matthew, a full-sized replica of John Cabot’s ship, has its own dock in the town.
The Cape Bonavista Lighthouse is also a popular tourist attraction. Jeremiah White was the first to tend the lighthouse more than 100 years ago. The Ryan Premises National Historic Site, a merchant-run salt fish complex, provides an intriguing look at the history of fishing in the area. Other Bonavista attractions include the Mockbeggar Plantation, White Rock Murals, and much more.
- Trinity
Trinity, known as the “Pearl of Newfoundland Outports,” is just a three-hour drive from St. John’s. Besides its natural attractions (whales, scenic trails, icebergs) and historic buildings, Trinity is popular for its theatrical performances. The season’s biggest attraction is the annual Seasons in the Bight Festival – a summer and autumn event with plays and dinner theatres as well as other special events. The Hiscock House, a Provincial Historic Site in Trinity, is a typical, 1910 rural merchant's house.
- Port Union
Port Union, located in Trinity Bay, is the only union-built town in North America. Visit the home of the union’s founder, Sir William F. Coaker, and learn more about the Fishermen’s Protective Union. The tour (starts annually in May) of the restored Factory building has the period woodworking machinery, presses, and equipment used by the Fishermen's Advocate – the union newspaper.
- Elliston
Elliston, Bonavista Bay, is known as the ‘root cellar capital of the world – a community with the most root cellars carved out of the earth. Earlier Elliston residents (and even some in 2010) stored their vegetables in an outside storage area - root cellar. Potato crops, as well as cabbage, turnips, and carrots were stored in these root cellars.
These outside storage spaces prevented vegetables from freezing in winter and kept them cool in summer. Elliston has 135 documented root cellars that have survived for two centuries. Elliston root cellars are an extremely popular tourist attraction.
- Grand Bank
Grand Bank, on the southern tip of the Burin Peninsula, has a seafaring history, but is also known for its tradition of producing an annual series of plays. The annual Grand Bank Summer Festival takes place during the first week of August. With a dory race challenge, town barbecue, kid’s day, and more, the Grand Bank Summer Festival is always a hit with locals and visitors.
- Winterland
Winterland, a small Eastern community, is known for its Winterland Eco-Museum – a 3 km wheelchair-accessible trail with interactive exhibits about the area's natural attractions as well as its cultural heritage. Other features include an observation tower, wildlife blind, and outdoor classroom.
- St. Lawrence
St. Lawrence has an impressive, and sometimes, tragic history. Fluorspar mining contributed to the town’s economy but many workers suffered later from ill health attributed to the mining. There were many fatalities thought to be a result of the effects of working in the mine. The St. Lawrence Miners' Museum has artifacts, displays, and photos about the town’s mining past.
As well, during the tidal wave, which struck areas of Newfoundland in 1929, 27 people lost their lives in St. Lawrence. Others lost their houses, boats, stages, and supplies. The period was a difficult time as the community was also feeling the effects of the ‘Great Depression’ and the collapse of the salt fish trade.
The St. Lawrence coastline has seen many tragedies at sea including the 1942 sinking of two U.S. warships - the Truxton and the Pollux – at nearby Chambers Cove. The people of the area at the time made heroic efforts to rescue the survivors and nurse them back to health. Their efforts have never been forgotten by the survivors and their descendants or US officials.
Lanier Phillips, a survivor of the war-time disaster, has returned numerous times to St. Lawrence and has donated money to help build an elementary school playground. Lanier Phillips has an amazing story to tell about how his rescue at St. Lawrence changed his life. At a time in history, when racial equality was not always the reality, Lanier Phillips found a place where people accepted differences. His time in St. Lawrence inspired him to follow his dreams. The 1942 event is commemorated in a sculpture – Echoes of Valour - in the centre of town. The sculpture is intended to be a war memorial and a worker’s memorial.
Ecological Reserve
Fortune Head Ecological Reserve
Fortune Head, a rugged cape at the southwestern edge of Newfoundland's Burin Peninsula, is just 1.6 km west of the community of Fortune. The rocks in its exposed low cliffs represent the geological boundary between the Precambrian Era and the Cambrian Period. In 1992, the International Union of Geological Scientists designated Fortune Head as the world’s best example of this Precambrian-Cambrian boundary stratotype.
