Happy Valley-Goose Bay
Happy Valley-Goose Bay is a town in Labrador of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, the largest population centre in the central part of Labrador. Incoporated in 1973, the town is made up of the former town of Happy Valley and the Local Improvement District of Goose Bay. Built on a large sandy plateau in 1941, the town is home to the largest air force base in northeastern North America, CFB Goose Bay.
Geography
Happy Valley-Goose Bay lies at the southeast end of Lake Melville near the mouth of the Churchill River. The town is located on the southern shore of a peninsula created by Terrington Basin to the north and Goose Bay at the south.
History
In the summer of 1941, Eric Fry an employee of the Canadian Department of Mines and Resources on loan to the Royal Canadian Air Force, had selected a large sandy plateau near the mouth of the Goose River to build the Goose Bay Air Force Base. Docking facilities for transportation of goods and personnel was built at Terrington Basin.
Goose Air Base became a landing and refueling stop for the Atlantic Ferry route. Soon after the site was selected men from the coast of Labrador began working on the base. With World War II in bloom, it took only five months to build an operational military airport on the Leased Territory.
First settlers to the area came from coastal Labrador to work with McNamara Construction Company which was contracted to build the Goose Bay Air Force Base. Their first choice was Otter Creek where they were told that it would have been too close to the base. A new location was chosen based upon the requirement to be at least 8 kilometers from the base. In 1942 a new site was chosen that was first called Refugee Cove, it was not until 1955 that it eventually was renamed Happy Valley. [1]
The first three families to arrive to work at the construction of the base were Saunders from Davis Inlet, Broomfields from Big Bay, and Perraults from Makkovik.
Happy Valley's first school was operated by a Mrs. Perrault from her home until 1946 when the Royal Canadian Air Force donated a building. In 1949 the Air Force donated a second building which became the North Star School.
The Grenfell Mission operated the first medical facilities when they opened a nursing station in 1951. Then in 1963 the provincial government built Paddon Memorial Hospital.
Canadian Forces Base
CFB Goose Bay has seen a reduction of NATO low-level tactical flight training in the past decade and the town is facing an uncertain future as the federal government has reduced the number of permanent Canadian Forces Air Command personnel to less than 100 all-ranks. The only remaining NATO nations using CFB Goose Bay for flight training, Germany and Italy, have not renewed their leases which terminate in early 2006.
The runway at Happy Valley-Goose Bay is also an alternative landing site for the NASA space shuttle due to its size and length.
Local Improvement District of Goose Bay
Prior to its amalgamation with Happy Valley, the local improvement district of Goose Bay was set up in 1970 and included an area called Spruce Park and the Canadian Department of Transport Housing areas. It grew to include other areas of the base until 1973. After, it included all of the base area.
Demographics
The population of Happy Valley by 1945 had reached 229 people, made up mostly of workers who serviced the base. By 1956 the population had reached 1,145 and then by 1961 it had risen to 2,861 then doubled by 1966 to 4,215. Before the community of Happy Valley had amalgamated with the Local Improvement District of Goose Bay, the population was 4,937.
According to the Canadian Government's 2001 census[2], the community of Happy Valley-Goose Bay has a population of 7,969. This represents a 7.9% decrease from the 1996 population of 8,655. According to the same statistics, the median age of the community is 32.7 years with 76.5% of the population being above the age of 15 (compared with the provincial median age of 38.4 and 82.7%).
At 65%, the majority of the population is of white ethnic (Caucasian) background. There is also a sizeable population of aboriginal peoples, at approximately 35% of the population. Other ethnic groups present in Happy Valley-Goose Bay are Black and South Asian.
The community is largely Protestant at 73.9%, with a Catholic minority at 20.1%. About 1% of the population claims other religions and 5% claim "no religious affiliation"
Transportation
Road
Prior to 1954, hardly any license plates were issued to Labrador communities except for Happy Valley and the Goose Bay area. A series of small plates were issued to help fund road development. It wasn't until the mid 1960's when all of Labrador started using regular Newfoundland and Labrador license plates. [3]
Water
The town was serviced by boat and container ship to the ports from Newfoundland and the port of Montreal. Most of the town's supplies were transported by container vessels brought to the docking facilities located at Terrington Basin. These facilities were operated by Transport Canada. The shipping season usually lasted from June to December.
Air
Air Canada and Eastern Provincial Airways were the first air line carries in the area to carry passengers from outside the area. Labrador Airways Limited provided air transportation to local communities. Located at Otter Creek is a sea-plane base that also provided air lifts to local communities and tourist lodges in the interior of Labrador.
See also
References and notes
- Newfoundland's Namescape Unpublished manuscript, Floreen Carter, Phelps Publishing, London Ont. for information see Wayne Ray
- ^ Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, Volume Two, (p 797) ISBN 0-9693422-2-5
- ^ Statistics Canada, Census 2001. Statistics about Happy Valley-Goose Bay
- ^ History of Newfoundland License Plates
External link
53°18′07″N 60°25′00″W / 53.30194°N 60.41667°W
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