LABRADOR TOWNS

                                                 Small and Rural

Red Bay was discovered in 1978. At the Discovery Center we saw a 400-year old Basque fishing boat. Mud and the very cold water had preserved it quite well. The Basque people lived at the foot of the Pyrenees Mountains between Spain and France. In the 16^th century Basque whalers fished waters in this area. In 1565 the San Juan sunk in 10 meters of water after breaking loose from her anchor in a storm. Many believe this boat is the San Juan.

Whale oil was a valued prize not only for light, but also for use in paint, varnish, soap, and for lubrication. Of the fifteen ports along the Labrador and Quebec coast that were involved in the whaling industry Red Bay is the best preserved. During the season, May to October, there were as many as 1000 whalers in Red Bay. Today the population is 300. Whaling ended along this coast in 1585 primarily because of the Spanish-English War when many of the Basque ships were destroyed. By the 17^th century the Basque had totally abandoned the Labrador coast.

     Whale boats were 26-feet long. Red ceramic roof tiles were used as ballast in the sea going ships and as the barrels of whale oil were loaded the tile pieces were thrown into the harbor. Our local guide told us she and her friends would find tile pieces and play with them. Little did they know they were playing with ancient artifacts!

In the lower building of the Center another Parks Canada guide showed us a miniature replica of the oil processing system saying, “It took two and a half days to process the oil from a whale. On average a whale yielded 40 barrels of oil. This was the largest whale oil processing area in the world. It was a very profitable business as a barrel of oil was valued at $4-6000 dollars.

     Whalers were after the Right and Bowhead whales because they were slow movers and had a lot of blubber so they floated after being speared. The Right whales are no longer seen in these waters. A whaling crew consisted of 50-120 men and boys who were divided into three groups: officers and skilled sailors, craftsmen seamen, and apprentice seamen. The captain of the ship was in charge of the whale venture and the master was responsible for the ship. The crew was generally not paid but given a percentage of the cargo.

     Once whale oil fueled the 109-foot Amour Lighthouse that is made of local limestone. It is the last lighthouse built before the province joined the federation.

    Steeped in history, the past invades the present and life of so long ago. The island has 5000 miles of coastline. The small population is richly diverse. Colorful fishing villages are scattered along the coast. Goods are delivered to coastal areas in summer by steamer and in winter by small planes or snowmobiles.

     The ferry left L’anse au Clair at 8AM for the Port Au Choix Historic Site. The 18^th and 19^th centuries Port au Choix was a center of French fishing. A 1713 treaty gave Britain sovereignty over Newfoundland. However, the French maintained its right to fish along the French shore and set up shore stations for fish processing, but they were not permitted to settle year round.

     The area has a 5000 year history. In 1967 when a fellow was excavating to build a movie theater in the center of town human bones were discovered. That resulted in a three-year archaeological dig. An ancient cemetery revealed 117 bodies buried in a fetal position. The bodies were covered with a mound of rocks. Also found were 15,000 artifacts. The lead archaeologist was Dr. Jim Tuff.

     Maritime Archaic Indians, who crossed over from Labrador, first settled this land some 5,000 years ago. The earliest evidence of their fully maritime lifestyle comes from L’Anse Amour in southern Labrador, which is also the site of the oldest known burial mound in the Americas. The major Maritime Archaic site discovered so far in Newfoundland is at Port au Choix, 160 kilometers north of Gros Morne National Park. Cooler times brought an arctic folk, the Palaeo-Eskimos to these shores. These people specialized in hunting marine mammals and intensely used whatever resources were abundant. Seals were their most important food, and when seals were scarce starvation resulted. For 16 centuries they hunted these shores, then disappeared.

    There are traces of ancient Indian occupation within Gros Morne National Park at Cow Head and at Broom Point.

See post: Beothuks 5-2--12