Newfoundland and Labrador

The Province of Newfoundland and Labrador is one of the ten provinces of Canada. A British colony from the time of Elizabeth the First, Newfoundland joined confederation in 1948. Since 2001 the official name of the province has incorporated the names of the island of Newfoundland and its mainland territory of Labrador. Most Canadians still refer to the province in everyday conversation as Newfoundland. According to the 2006 Canadian Census, The province has a population of 505,469. Newfoundland and Labrador cover 405,720 square kilometres in total.

Economy

Whale hunting was an important industry in the first half of the 10th century. At first slow whales were caught by men armed with handheld harpoons in small open boats. Mechanization copied from Norway included cannon-fired harpoons, strong cables, and steam winches mounted on maneuverable, steam-powered catcher boats. They made possible the targeting of large and fast-swimming whale species that were taken to shore-based stations for processing. The industry was highly cyclical, with well-defined catch peaks in 1903–05, 1925–30, 1945–51, and 1966–72, after which world-wide bans shut it down.

When Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949, it relinquished jurisdiction over its fisheries to Ottawa; the Supreme Court ruled in 1983 that the federal government also has jurisdiction over offshore oil drilling.

In 1992, the northern cod fishery off Newfoundland and Labrador (the world's largest ground fishery) was shut down. The northern cod had been reduced to 1% of their historic spawning biomass and cod fishing as a way of life had come to an end after a 500 year history as a main industry.

The fishing industry crisis of the 1990s saw the already precarious economic base of the many towns further eroded. The situation was made worse by both federal and provincial pursuit of programs of economic liberalization that sought to limit the role of the state in economic and social affairs. As the effects of the crisis were felt, and established state supports were weakened, tourism was embraced by a growing body of local development and heritage organizations as a way of restoring the shattered economic base of many communities. Limited, short-term funding for some tourism-related projects was provided mostly from government programs, largely as a means of politically managing the structural adjustment that was being pursued.

History

17th-18th centuries

By 1620, 300 fishing vessels a year worked the banks, employing some 10,000 sailors. They dried and salted the cod on the coast and sold it to Spain and Portugal. A triangular trade with New England, the West Indies, and Europe gave Newfoundland an important economic role.

The "admiral" system, by which the first captain arriving in a particular bay was in charge of allocating suitable shoreline sites for curing fish, was slowly replaced after 1700. Fishing-boat captains tried to arrive early from Europe each season in an attempt to become the admiral; soon merchant companies left crewmen behind at the prime shoreline locations to lay claim to the sites. This was a precursor to the establishment of private property and led to "bye-boat" fishing, wherein local, small-boat crews fished certain spots for the summer, claimed a strip of land as their own, and sold their catches to the migratory fishers. Bye-boat fishing then led to increased residency on the island, which in turn led to the elimination of migratory fishing enterprises as resident fishing became more profitable in the 18th century.

20th century

The First World War was supported with near unanimity in Newfoundland. Recruiting was brisk, with 6,240 men joining the Newfoundland Regiment for overseas duty, 1,966 joining the Royal Navy, 491 in the Forestry Corps (which did lumberjack work at home), plus another 3,300 men who joined Canadian units, and 40 women who became war nurses.

During the great Battle of the Somme in 1916, the British assaulted the German trenches near Beaumont Hamel, in France. The eight-hundred-man Royal Newfoundland Regiment attacked as part of a British brigade. Most of the Newfoundlanders were killed or wounded without anyone in the regiment having fired a shot. The state, church, and press romanticized the sacrifice Newfoundlanders had made in the war effort through ceremonies, war literature, and memorials, the most important of which was the Beaumont Hamel Memorial Park, which opened in France in 1925. The story of the heroic sacrifice of the regiment in 1916 served as a cultural inspiration throughout the turbulent years from 1916 to 1925 in which six successive Newfoundland governments failed, widespread corruption was uncovered, and the postwar economy plummeted.

The 1920 Education Act called for the establishment of a Department of Education, to oversee all state schools, including the processes of teacher training and certification. The act provided for four grades of certificated teachers. There was also a category of other "ungraded" teachers, who were unqualified and employed on a temporary basis.

Commission on Government 1934

Newfoundland's economic crash in the Great Depression, coupled with a profound distrust of politicians, led to the abandonment of self-government. The government had borrowed very heavily and had a weak tax base; 1933 interest payments on the public debt amounted to 63% of government revenue. There was no more credit; a short-lived plan proposed to sell Labrador to Canada; Canada offered no help. In return for British financial assistance, the newly elected government of Frederick Alderdice agreed to the appointment by London of a three-member royal commission, including British, Canadian, and Newfoundland nominees, "to examine into the future of Newfoundland and in particular to report on the financial situation and prospects therein." The Newfoundland Royal Commission was chaired by Lord Amulree, recommended that Britain "assume general responsibility" for Newfoundland's finances. Newfoundland would give up self-government in favour of administration by an unelected Commission of Government, having both executive and legislative authority. The commission, appointed by the Colonial Office in Londom, would provide "a rest from politics" and government free of corruption. The legislature accepted the deal, formalized when the British Parliament passed the Newfoundland Act, 1933. The seven-member commission began operations in 1934, and disbanded in 1949.

Newfoundland remains the only nation that ever voluntarily relinquished democracy.

World War II

In 1940 Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt agreed to an exchange of American destroyers for access to British naval bases in the Atlantic, including Newfoundland. The result was sudden prosperity as American money flooded the island, where 25% had been on relief; even more influential was the sudden impact of a large modern American population on a traditional society. American ideas regarding food, hygiene (and indoor plumbing), entertainment, clothing, living standards and pay scales swept the island. Fears of a permanent American presence in Newfoundland prompted the Canadian government to push the island to join the Canadian Confederation.

Joining Canada

Joseph Smallwood (1900–91) was a well-known radio personality, writer and organizer; he was a nationalist who long had criticized British rule. In 1945 London announced that a National Convention would be elected in Newfoundland to advise on what constitutional choices should to be voted on by referendum. Smallwood was elected to the convention where he became the leading proponent of confederation with Canada. Displaying a mastery of propaganda technique, courage and ruthlessness, he carried his cause in two hard-fought referendums in 1948. The promise of cash family allowances from Canada proved decisive. We was elected the Liberal party premier of Newfoundland (1949 to 1972), and promoted promoted economic development, championed the welfare state, and attracted favorable attention across Canada. Smallwood dropped his youthful socialism and collaborated with bankers, but his efforts to promote industrialization failed. He was narrowly defeated in the 1971 elections, and failed in several comeback attempts. He left politics in 1977 to create an outstanding Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador with over 200 authors.

National identity

Nationalist sentiment in the 21st century is a powerful force in Newfoundland politics and culture. But that was a development of the late 20th century, for in the 1940s it was not strong enough to stop confederation with Canada. A Newfoundland identity was first articulated in the 1840s, embodied in a distinction between English-born and native-born Newfoundland residents.The relative absence of a strong sense of belonging to an independent country was the underlying reason for Joseph Smallwood's referendum victory. Most islanders were descendants of immigrants from either Ireland or the English West Country. It took centuries for them to view themselves as Newfoundlanders first and foremost. Gregory (2004) tried to date the transition from old (European) to new (Newfoundland) in the outport communities using vernacular song texts. Use of three collections of Newfoundland songs demonstrates how by 1930 or so a Newfoundland song culture had replaced earlier cultural traditions. These songs suggest that the island was still a cultural mosaic; some outports were completely Irish, others were English, and in a few ethnically mixed communities, including St. John's, there was an emergent, home-grown, patriotic song culture. Cultural nationalism was still a minority tradition in the Newfoundland of 1930. After joining Canada in 1949, Newfoundland culture underwent a significant transformation, notably in the cultural revival of the 1970s, which extolled the virtues of efficiency, centralization, and modernityTraditional Newfoundland heritage enjoyed a renaissance in the arts and crafts. For example, Wayne Johnston's novel The Colony of Unrequited Dreams (1999) develops insights into the unique identity of the islanders and challenges prevailing misconceptions about the area among both residents and outsiders. The protagonist of the book is premier Joseph R. Smallwood, with focus on his advocacy of confederation with Canada. Chafe (2003) sees the novel in terms of postcolonial literature with its attendant themes of displacement, identity, and history. Chafe explores Johnston's use of the phrase "scuttlework of empire" and its many interpretations of the often troubled relationship between the British Empire and Newfoundland settlers.

Further reading

• Harris, Leslie. Newfoundland and Labrador: A Brief History (1968),
• Hempstead, Andrew. Frommer's Newfoundland and Labrador (2008) excerpt and text search 2006 edition
• Jackson, Lawrence. Newfoundland & Labrador (1998)
• Smallwood, Joseph, et al. eds. The Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador (St. John's: Newfoundland Book Publishers, (5 vol 1981-94) 3900 pages
• Walls, Martha, and John MacIntyre. Newfoundland and Labrador Book of Everything (2006)

Bibliography

Surveys

• Harris, Leslie. Newfoundland and Labrador: A Brief History (1968),
• Jackson, Lawrence. Newfoundland & Labrador (1999)
• Smallwood, Joseph, et al. eds. The Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador (St. John's: Newfoundland Book Publishers, (5 vol 1981-94) 3900 pages

Specialized studies

• Bannister, Jerry. The Rule of the Admirals: Law, Custom, and Naval Government in Newfoundland, 1699-1832. U. of Toronto Press for Osgoode Society, 2003.
• Birkenhead, Lord. The story of Newfoundland (2nd ed. 1920) 192pp online edition
• Blake, Raymond B. Canadians at Last: Canada Integrates Newfoundland as a Province. U. of Toronto Press, 1994. 252 pp.
• Casey, G.J., and Elizabeth Miller, eds., Tempered Days: A Century of Newfoundland Fiction St. John's: Killick Press, 1996.
• Earle; Karl McNeil. "Cousins of a Kind: The Newfoundland and Labrador Relationship with the United States" American Review of Canadian Studies Vol: 28. Issue: 4. 1998. pp: 387-411. online edition
• English, Christopher, ed. Essays in the History of Canadian Law. Vol. 9. Two Islands: Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. (2005). 419 pp.
• Fay, C. R. Life and Labour in Newfoundland University of Toronto Press, (1956) online edition
• Greene, John P. Between Damnation and Starvation: Priests and Merchants in Newfoundland Politics, 1745-1855.McGill-Queen's U. Press, 2000. 340 pp.
• Hale, David. "The Newfoundland Lesson," The International Economy. v17#3 (Summer 2003). pp 52+. online edition
• Handcock, Gordon W. "So Longe as There Comes Noe Women": Origins of English Settlement in Newfoundland (Breakwater, 1989)
• Harvey, M. Newfoundland in 1900. A treatise of the geography, natural resources and history of the Island, embracing an account of recent and present large material movements, finely illustrated with maps and half-tone engravings (1900) 187 pp.edition
• Head, Grant C. Eighteenth Century Newfoundland: A Geographer’s Perspective (1976)
• Hiller, J. K. and Harrington, M. F., ed. The Newfoundland National Convention, 1946-1948. 2 vols. McGill-Queen's U. Press, 1995. 2021 pp.
• Hiller, James K. "Robert Bond and the Pink, White and Green: Newfoundland Nationalism in Perspective." Acadiensis 2007 36(2): 113-133. Issn: 0044-5851
• House, J.D. The Challenge of Oil: Newfoundland's Quest for Controlled Development. ISER Books (1985)
• House, J.D. Against the Tide: Battling for Economic Renewal in Newfoundland and Labrador. (1999)
• Kealey, Linda, ed. Pursuing Equality: Historical Perspectives on Women in Newfoundland and Labrador. St. John's: Institute of Social and Economic Research, 1993. 310 pp.
• Long, Gene. Suspended State: Newfoundland Before Canada Breakwater Books Ltd; (1999)
• McCann, Phillip. Schooling in a Fishing Society: Education and Economic Conditions in Newfoundland and Labrador, 1836-1986. St. John's: Institute of Social and Economic Res., 1994. 277 pp.
• MacKay, R. A. Newfoundland: Economic, Diplomatic, and Strategic Studies, (Oxford University Press, 1946) online edition
• Mannion, John J. Irish Settlements in Eastern Canada: A Study of Cultural Transfer and Adaptation (1974)
• Mannion, John J. ed., The Peopling of Newfoundland: Essays in Historical Geography (Institute of Social & Economic Research, Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1977)
• Neary, Peter. Newfoundland in the North Atlantic world, 1929-1949. McGill-Queen's University Press, 1996
• O'Flaherty, Patrick. Old Newfoundland: A History to 1843. St John's: Long Beach, 1999. 284 pp.
• Overton, James. "Nationalism, Democracy, and Self-determination: Newfoundland in the 1930s and 1940s." Canadian Review of Studies in Nationalism 2005 32(1-2): 31-52. Issn: 0317-7904
• Pope, Peter E. Fish into Wine: The Newfoundland Plantation in the Seventeenth Century. U. of North Carolina Press, 2004. 464 pp.
• Prowse, D.W. A History of Newfoundland (1895) 744pp 1895 edition online
• Sider, Gerald M. Between History and Tomorrow: Making and Breaking Everyday Life in Rural Newfoundland. (2nd ed. Broadview, 2003); first edition was Culture and Class in Anthropology and History: A Newfoundland Illustration, (1986). 344 pp.
• Sweeny, Robert C. H. "What Difference Does a Mode Make? A Comparison of Two Seventeenth-century Colonies: Canada and Newfoundland." William and Mary Quarterly 2006 63(2): 281-304. Issn: 0043-5597 Fulltext: History Cooperative
• Wright, Miriam. A Fishery for Modern Times: The State and the Industrialization of the Newfoundland Fishery, 1934-1968. Oxford U. Press, 2001. 176 pp.
• Writers' Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador. Desperate measures: the Great Depression in Newfoundland and Labrador (1996) 55 pages; essays by Carmelita McGrath and Kathryn Welbourn. online edition

Primary sources

• Neary, Peter, and Patrick O'Flaherty, eds. By Great Waters: A Newfoundland and Labrador Anthology (1974)
• Rompkey, Ronald, ed. Terre-Neuve: Anthologie des Voyageurs Français, 1814-1914 [Newfoundland: anthology of French travelers, 1814-1914]. Presse University de Rennes, 2004. 304 pp.

External links

• Newfoundland and Labrador Studies from Memorial University Library