Labrador - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Labrador

Flag of Labrador Flag of Labrador The flag of Labrador, while unofficial, is used to represent the mainland part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador as distinct from the island of Newfoundland. It was designed in 1973 by Michael S. Martin... , with Coat of arms Coat of arms A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth... (de facto)
Motto Motto A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments... : Munus splendidum mox explebitur (Latin Latin Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and... ) "The splendid task will soon be fulfilled"

Geography
Area Surface area Surface area is the measure of how much exposed area a solid object has, expressed in square units. Mathematical description of the surface area is considerably more involved than the definition of arc length of a curve. For polyhedra the surface area is the sum of the areas of its faces... :	294330 square kilometre
Water area:	31340 square kilometre (4%)
Coast Coast A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs... line:	7886 km (4,900.1 mi)
Highest Point:	Mount Caubvick (1652 m (5,419.9 ft))
Longest River:	Churchill River Churchill River (Atlantic) The Churchill River is a river in Newfoundland and Labrador which flows east from the Smallwood Reservoir in Labrador into the Atlantic Ocean via Lake Melville. The river is long and drains an area of ; it is the longest river in the province... (856 km (531.9 mi))
Admin HQ:	Happy Valley – Goose Bay
Demographics
Population Population A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals... (2006):	26,364
Density Density The mass density or density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol most often used for density is ρ . In some cases , density is also defined as its weight per unit volume; although, this quantity is more properly called specific weight...	0.09 /km2
Largest City:	Happy Valley – Goose Bay 7,572 (2006)
Politics
Government of Newfoundland & Labrador http://www.gov.nl.ca
Members of the Parliament of Canada Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada is the federal legislative branch of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in the national capital, Ottawa. Formally, the body consists of the Canadian monarch—represented by her governor general—the Senate, and the House of Commons, each element having its own officers and... :	1
Members of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is one of two components of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the other being the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland and Labrador General Assembly meets in the Confederation Building at St... :	4

Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle. It is the largest and northernmost geographical region in Atlantic Canada

Atlantic Canada

Atlantic Canada is the region of Canada comprising the four provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec: the three Maritime provinces – New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia – and Newfoundland and Labrador...

.

Labrador occupies the eastern part of the Labrador Peninsula

Labrador Peninsula

The Labrador Peninsula is a large peninsula in eastern Canada. It is bounded by the Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the south-east...

, in an area slightly larger than the US state of Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

. It is bordered to the west and the south by the Canadian province of Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

. Labrador also shares a small land border with the Canadian territory of Nunavut

Nunavut

Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993...

on Killiniq Island

Killiniq Island

Killiniq Island is a small, remote island in northeastern Canada. Located at the extreme northern tip of Labrador between Ungava Bay and the Labrador Sea, it is notable in that it contains the only land border between Nunavut territory and the province of Newfoundland and Labrador...

.

Though Labrador's area is over twice that of the island of Newfoundland, it has only 6% of the province's population. The aboriginal peoples of Labrador include the Northern Inuit

Inuit

The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...

of Nunatsiavut

Nunatsiavut

Nunatsiavut is an autonomous area claimed by the Inuit in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The settlement area includes territory in Labrador extending to the Quebec border. In 2002, the Labrador Inuit Association submitted a proposal for limited autonomy to the government of Newfoundland and...

, the Southern Inuit

Inuit

-Métis

Métis people (Canada)

The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...

of Nunatukavut

Nunatukavut

Nunatuĸavut or NunatuKavut means "Our ancient land" in the ancestral Inuktitut dialect of the NunatuKavummuit people. The Inuit region encompasses Southern Labrador, from the Churchill River, South to Lodge Bay and West to the extent of the official border between Quebec and Labrador...

(NunatuKavut), and the Innu

Innu

The Innu are the indigenous inhabitants of an area they refer to as Nitassinan , which comprises most of the northeastern portions of the provinces of Quebec and some western portions of Labrador...

. The non-aboriginal population in Labrador did not permanently settle in Labrador until the natural resource developments of the 1940s and 1950s. Before the 1950s, very few non-aboriginal people lived in Labrador year round. The few European immigrants who worked seasonally for foreign merchants and brought their families were known as Settlers.

Geography

Labrador has a large, irregular, semi-triangular shape (see map at right) that encompasses the easternmost section of the Canadian Shield

Canadian Shield

The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...

, a sweeping geographical region of thin soil and abundant mineral resources. Its western border with Quebec is the drainage divide of the Labrador peninsula. Lands that drain into the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

are part of Labrador, while lands that drain into Hudson Bay

Hudson Bay

Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...

are part of Quebec. Northern Labrador's climate is classified as polar

Polar climate

Regions with a polar climate are characterized by a lack of warm summers . Regions with polar climate cover over 20% of the Earth. The sun shines 24 hours in the summer, and barely ever shines at all in the winter...

, while Southern Labrador's climate is classified as subarctic

Subarctic climate

The subarctic climate is a climate characterized by long, usually very cold winters, and short, cool to mild summers. It is found on large landmasses, away from the moderating effects of an ocean, generally at latitudes from 50° to 70°N poleward of the humid continental climates...

.

Labrador can be divided into four geographical regions: the North Coast, Central Labrador, Western Labrador, and the South Coast. Each of those regions is described below.

Nunatsiavut

From Cape Chidley to Hamilton Inlet. The long thin northern tip of Labrador holds the Torngat Mountains

Torngat Mountains

The Torngat Mountains are a mountain range on the Labrador Peninsula at the northern tip of Newfoundland and Labrador and eastern Quebec. They are part of the Arctic Cordillera. This is the peninsula that separates Ungava Bay from the Atlantic Ocean....

, named after an Inuit spirit believed to inhabit them. The mountains stretch along the coast from Port Manvers to Cape Chidley

Cape Chidley

Cape Chidley is a headland located on the eastern shore of Killiniq Island, Canada at the northeastern tip of the Labrador Peninsula.-Cape Chidley:...

, the northernmost point of Labrador. The Torngat Mountain range is also home to Mount Caubvick, the highest point in the province. This area is predominantly Inuit, with the small Innu community of Natuashish being the exception. The north coast is the most isolated region of Labrador, with snowmobile

Snowmobile

A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, or sled,is a land vehicle for winter travel on snow. Designed to be operated on snow and ice, they require no road or trail. Design variations enable some machines to operate in deep snow or forests; most are used on open terrain, including...

s, boats, and planes being the only modern modes of transportation. The largest community in this region is Nain

Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador

Nain or Naina is the northernmost town of any size in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located about 370 kilometres by air from Happy Valley-Goose Bay. The town was established as a Moravian mission in 1771 by Jens Haven and other missionaries...

.

Nunatsiavut

Nunatsiavut

is an Inuit self-government region in Labrador created on June 23, 2000. The Settlement area comprises the majority of Labrador's North Coast, while the land-use area also includes land farther to the interior and in Central Labrador. Nain is the administrative center of Nunatsiavut.

Central Labrador

The most populous region of Labrador, Central Labrador extends from the shores of Lake Melville

Lake Melville

Lake Melville is a saltwater tidal extension of Hamilton Inlet on the Labrador coast in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Comprising 3,069 square kilometres, and stretching 140 kilometres inland to Happy Valley-Goose Bay, it forms part of the largest estuary in the province,...

into the interior. It contains the Churchill River

Churchill River (Atlantic)

The Churchill River is a river in Newfoundland and Labrador which flows east from the Smallwood Reservoir in Labrador into the Atlantic Ocean via Lake Melville. The river is long and drains an area of ; it is the longest river in the province...

, the largest river in Labrador and one of the largest in Canada. The hydroelectric dam at Churchill Falls

Churchill Falls

Churchill Falls are waterfalls named after former British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. They are high, located on the Churchill River in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada....

is the second largest underground power station in the world, but most of the supply is bought by Hydro-Québec

Hydro-Québec

Hydro-Québec is a government-owned public utility established in 1944 by the Government of Quebec. Based in Montreal, the company is in charge of the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity across Quebec....

under a long-term contract. The Lower Churchill Project

Lower Churchill Project

The Lower Churchill Project is a planned hydroelectric project in Labrador, Canada, to develop the remaining 35 per cent of the Churchill River that has not already been developed by the Churchill Falls Generating Station...

will develop the remaining potential of the river and supply it to provincial consumers. Known as "the heart of the Big Land", the area's population comprises people from all groups and regions of Labrador.

Central Labrador is also home to Happy Valley – Goose Bay, the largest community in Labrador. Once a refueling point for plane convoys to Europe in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, CFB Goose Bay

CFB Goose Bay

Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay , is a Canadian Forces Base located in the town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador....

is now a NATO tactical flight training site and was an alternate landing zone for the Space Shuttle

Space Shuttle

The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...

Western Labrador

The highlands above the Churchill Falls was once an ancient hunting ground for the Innu First Nations and settled trappers of Labrador. After the construction of the hydroelectric dam at Churchill Falls in 1970, the Smallwood Reservoir

Smallwood Reservoir

The Smallwood Reservoir is a large reservoir located in the western part of Labrador in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The reservoir is the source of the Churchill River. Unlike other reservoirs, water is contained not by a single large dam, but by a series of 88 dikes that...

has flooded much of the old hunting land, and submerged several gravesites and trapping cabins. Western Labrador is also home to the Iron Ore Company of Canada

Iron Ore Company of Canada

Iron Ore Company of Canada is a Canadian-based producer of iron ore. The company was founded in 1949 from a partnership of Canadian and American M.A. Hanna Company...

, which operates a large iron ore mine in Labrador City. Together with the small community of Wabush, the two towns are known as “Labrador West”.

NunatuKavut

From Hamilton Inlet to Cape Charles/St. Lewis. Nunatukavut

Nunatukavut

is the territory of the Central-Southern Labrador Inuit, formerly known as the Labrador Métis. The region is peppered with tiny Inuit fishing communities, of which Cartwright

Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador

-Further reading:*Buckle, Francis Labrador Diary, 1915-1925: the Gordon journals. Cartwright: Anglican Parish ISBN 0-9733448-0-6 -External links:*...

is the largest. The Wonderstrands

Wonderstrands

Wonderstrands refers to the Furðustrandir, a stretch of coastline mentioned in the Icelandic "Eiríks saga" of Erik the Red.Some believe that it refers to the extended beaches located on the coast of Labrador, province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada....

, miles of sandy white beaches at the mouth of the Hamilton Inlet

Hamilton Inlet

Hamilton Inlet is a fjord-like inlet on the Labrador coast of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Together with Lake Melville, it forms the province's largest estuary, extending over 140 kilometres inland to Happy Valley-Goose Bay and primarily draining the Churchill River and...

south to Sandwich Bay, were mentioned in the ancient Viking

Viking

The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...

sagas.

The Straits

From Cape Charles to the Quebec/Labrador coastal border. Like NunatuKavut, the straits is also known for its Labrador seagrass and the multitude of icebergs that pass by the coast via the Labrador Current

Labrador Current

The Labrador Current is a cold current in the North Atlantic Ocean which flows from the Arctic Ocean south along the coast of Labrador and passes around Newfoundland, continuing south along the east coast of Nova Scotia...

. Red Bay is known one of the best examples of a preserved 16th Century Basque Whaling Station. It is also the location of four 16th-Century Basque Spanish Galleons. The lighthouse

Lighthouse

A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....

in L’Anse Amour is the second largest lighthouse in Canada. Passenger Ferry service to the island of Newfoundland is out of St. Barbe near the Quebec/Labrador border.

Modern Labrador

As with its island neighbour Newfoundland, early settlement in Labrador was tied to the sea as demonstrated by the Montagnais, Innu and Inuit, although these peoples also made significant forays throughout the interior as well. European settlement was largely concentrated in coastal communities, particularly those south of St. Lewis and Cape Charles, and are among Canada's oldest European settlements. The Moravian Brethren of Herrnhut

Herrnhut

Herrnhut is a municipality in the district of Görlitz, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.It has access to Bundesstraße 178 between Löbau and Zittau...

, Saxony

Saxony

The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....

, first came to the Labrador Coast in 1760 to minister to the migratory Inuit tribes there. They founded Nain, Okak, Hebron, Hopedale and Makkovik. Extremely poor, both European and First Nations settlements along coastal Labrador came to benefit from cargo and relief vessels that were operated as part of the Grenfell Mission

Grenfell Mission

Grenfell Mission is a medical and religious mission founded by Sir Wilfred Grenfell in the late 19th century in St. Anthony, Newfoundland and Labrador....

(see Wilfred Grenfell

Wilfred Grenfell

Sir Wilfred Thomason Grenfell, KCMG was a medical missionary to Newfoundland and Labrador.He was born at Parkgate, Wirral, England, the son of Algernon Grenfell, headmaster of Mostyn House School, and Jane Georgiana Hutchison and married Anne Elizabeth Caldwell MacClanahan of Chicago, Illinois, in...

). Throughout the 20th century, coastal freighters and ferries operated initially by the Newfoundland Railway

Newfoundland Railway

The Newfoundland Railway was a railway which operated on the island of Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow gauge railway system in North America.-Early construction:...

and later Canadian National Railway

Canadian National Railway

The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....

/CN Marine

CN Marine

CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...

/Marine Atlantic

Marine Atlantic

Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...

became a critical lifeline for communities on the coast, which for the majority of that century did not have any road connection with the rest of North America.

Labrador played strategic roles during both World War II

World War II

and the Cold War

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

. In October 1943, a German U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

crew installed an automated weather station on the northern tip of Labrador near Cape Chidley, code–named Weather Station Kurt

Weather Station Kurt

Weather Station Kurt was an Automatic weather station, erected by a German U-boat crew in Northern Labrador, Newfoundland in October 1943. This was the only armed German military operation on land in North America during the Second World War.-Background:Weather in the Northern Hemisphere...

; this was the only armed, German military operation on the North American mainland during the war. The station broadcast weather observations to the German navy for only a few days, but was not discovered until the 1980s when a historian, working with the Canadian Coast Guard

Canadian Coast Guard

The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...

, identified its location and mounted an expedition to recover it. The station is now exhibited in the Canadian War Museum

Canadian War Museum

The Canadian War Museum is Canada’s national museum of military history. Located in Ottawa, Ontario, the museum covers all facets of Canada’s military past, from the first recorded instances of death by armed violence in Canadian history several thousand years ago to the country’s most recent...

.

The Canadian government built a major air force base at Goose Bay, at the head of Lake Melville during the Second World War, a site selected because of its topography, access to the sea, defensible location, and minimal fog. During the Second World War and the Cold War, the base was also home to American, British, and later German, Dutch, and Italian detachments. Today, CFB Goose Bay is the largest employer for the community of Happy Valley – Goose Bay.

Additionally, both the Royal Canadian Air Force

Royal Canadian Air Force

The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...

and United States Air Force

United States Air Force

The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...

built and operated a number of radar stations along coastal Labrador as part of the Pinetree Line

Pinetree Line

The Pinetree Line was a series of radar stations located across the northern United States and southern Canada at about the 50th parallel north, along with a number of other stations located on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Run by NORAD , over half were manned by United States Air Force...

, Mid-Canada Line

Mid-Canada Line

The Mid-Canada Line, also known as the McGill Fence, was a line of radar stations across the "middle" of Canada to provide early warning of a Soviet bomber attack on North America. It was built to supplement the less-advanced Pinetree Line, which was located further south...

and DEW Line

Distant Early Warning Line

The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland...

systems. Today the remaining stations are automated as part of the North Warning System

North Warning System

The North Warning System is a joint United States and Canadian radar system for the atmospheric air defense of North America. It provides surveillance of airspace from potential incursions or attacks from across North America's polar region...

, however the military settlements during the early part of the Cold War surrounding these stations have largely continued as local Innu and Inuit populations have clustered near their port and airfield facilities.

During the first half of the 20th century, some of the largest iron ore deposits in the world were discovered in the western part of Labrador and adjacent areas of Quebec. Deposits at Mont Wright, Schefferville

Schefferville, Quebec

Schefferville is a town in the Canadian province of Quebec. Schefferville is in the heart of the Naskapi and Innu territory in northern Quebec, less than 2 km from the border with Labrador on the north shore of Knob Lake. The town has an incorporated area of . It is located within the...

, Labrador City, and Wabush drove industrial development and human settlement in the area during the second half of the 20th century.

The present community of Labrador West

Labrador West, Newfoundland and Labrador

Labrador West refers to a region in western Labrador in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador containing the twin towns of Labrador City and Wabush...

is entirely a result of the iron ore mining activities in the region. The Iron Ore Company of Canada operates the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway

Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway

The Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway is a Canadian regional railway that stretches through the wilderness of northeastern Quebec and western Labrador. It connects Labrador City, Labrador, with the port of Sept-Îles, Quebec, on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River...

to transport ore concentrate 800 kilometres (500 mi) south to the port of Sept-Îles, Quebec

Sept-Îles, Quebec

For the islands in north of Brittany, see JentilezSept-Îles is a city in the Côte-Nord region of eastern Quebec, Canada. It is the northernmost town in Quebec with any significant population...

, for shipment to steel mills in North America and elsewhere.

During the 1960s, the Churchill River

Churchill River (Atlantic)

(Labrador name: Grand River) was diverted at Churchill Falls, resulting in the flooding of an enormous area – today named the Smallwood Reservoir after Joey Smallwood, the first premier of Newfoundland. The flooding of the reservoir destroyed large areas of habitat for the threatened Woodland Caribou. Both a hydroelectric generating station and a transmission line were built in the neighbouring province of Quebec.

From the 1970s to early 2000s, the Trans-Labrador Highway

Trans-Labrador Highway

The Trans-Labrador Highway is a Canadian highway located in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primary public road in Labrador and one of the few in that part of the province....

was built in stages to connect various inland communities with the North American highway network at Mont Wright, Quebec (which in turn is connected by a highway running north from Baie-Comeau, Quebec

Quebec

). A southern extension of this highway has opened in stages during the early 2000s and is resulting in significant changes to the coastal ferry system in the Strait of Belle Isle and southeastern Labrador. These "highways" are so called only because of their importance to the region; they would be better described as roads, and are not completely paved.

A study on a fixed link

Newfoundland-Labrador fixed link

The Newfoundland-Labrador fixed link refers to various proposals for constructing a fixed link consisting of bridges, tunnels, and/or causeways across the Strait of Belle Isle, connecting the province of Newfoundland and Labrador's mainland Labrador region with the island of Newfoundland...

to Newfoundland, in 2004, recommended that a tunnel under the Strait of Belle Isle, being a single railway that would carry cars, buses and trucks, was technologically the best option for such a link. However, the study also concluded that a fixed link was not economically viable. Conceivably, if built with federal aid, the 1949 terms of union would be amended to remove ferry service from Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

to Port aux Basques

Channel – Port aux Basques

Channel-Port aux Basques is a town at the extreme southwestern tip of the island of Newfoundland fronting on the eastern end of the Cabot Strait. A Marine Atlantic ferry terminal is located in the town which is the primary entry point onto the island of Newfoundland and the western terminus of...

across the Cabot Strait

Cabot Strait

Cabot Strait is a strait in eastern Canada approximately 110 kilometres wide between Cape Ray, Newfoundland and Cape North, Cape Breton Island. It is the widest of the three outlets for the Gulf of Saint Lawrence into the Atlantic Ocean, the others being the Strait of Belle Isle and Strait of Canso...

.

Although a highway link

Trans-Labrador Highway

The Trans-Labrador Highway is a Canadian highway located in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primary public road in Labrador and one of the few in that part of the province....

has, as of 16 December 2009, been completed across Labrador, this route is somewhat longer than a proposed Quebec North Shore highway

Quebec route 138

Route 138 is a major highway in the Canadian province of Quebec, following the entire north shore of the Saint Lawrence River past Montreal to the eastern terminus in Natashquan on the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The western terminus is in Elgin, at the border with New York State south-west of Montreal...

that presently does not exist. Part of the "highway", Route 389

Quebec route 389

Quebec's Route 389 connects Route 138 adjacent to Baie-Comeau with the Newfoundland and Labrador border, connecting with the Trans-Labrador Highway to Wabush and Labrador City, and beyond to Goose Bay...

, starting approximately 212 kilometres (131.7 mi) from Baie-Comeau to 482 kilometres (299.5 mi), is of an inferior alignment, and from there to 570 kilometres (354.2 mi), the provincial border, is an accident-prone section notorious for its poor surface and sharp curves. Quebec in April 2009 announced major upgrades to Route 389 to be carried out.

Route 389 and the Trans-Labrador Highway were added to Canada's National Highway System in September 2005.

Labrador constitutes a federal electoral district electing one member to the House of Commons of Canada. Due to its size, distinct nature, and large Aboriginal population, Labrador has one seat despite having the smallest population of any electoral district in Canada. Formerly, Labrador was part of a riding that included part of the Island of Newfoundland. Labrador is divided into four provincial electoral districts in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly

The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly is one of two components of the General Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador, the other being the Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Newfoundland and Labrador General Assembly meets in the Confederation Building at St...

Time zone

Officially, all of Newfoundland and Labrador uses Newfoundland Time

Newfoundland Standard Time Zone

Newfoundland Standard Time ' is a geographic region that keeps time by subtracting 3½ hours from Coordinated Universal Time , resulting in UTC−3:30, or 2½ hours during daylight saving time...

(UTC-3:30 in winter, UTC-2:30 in summer). However, in practice, most of Labrador (from Cartwright

Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador

-Further reading:*Buckle, Francis Labrador Diary, 1915-1925: the Gordon journals. Cartwright: Anglican Parish ISBN 0-9733448-0-6 -External links:*...

north and west) uses Atlantic Time

Atlantic Standard Time Zone

The Atlantic Standard Time Zone is a geographical region that keeps time by subtracting four hours from either Coordinated Universal Time or Greenwich Mean Time , resulting in UTC-4 or GMT-4...

(UTC-4 in winter, UTC-3 in summer). The southwestern tip nearest the Island of Newfoundland uses Newfoundland Time to stay coordinated with the island.

Boundary dispute

The border between Labrador and Canada was set March 2, 1927, after a tortuous five-year trial. In 1809 Labrador had been transferred from Lower Canada

Lower Canada

The Province of Lower Canada was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...

to Newfoundland, but the landward boundary of Labrador had never been precisely stated. Newfoundland argued it extended to the height of land, but Canada, stressing the historical use of the term "Coasts of Labrador", argued the boundary was 1 smi inland from the high-tide mark. As Canada and Newfoundland

Dominion of Newfoundland

The Dominion of Newfoundland was a British Dominion from 1907 to 1949 . The Dominion of Newfoundland was situated in northeastern North America along the Atlantic coast and comprised the island of Newfoundland and Labrador on the continental mainland...

were separate Dominions, but both members of the British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...

, the matter was referred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is one of the highest courts in the United Kingdom. Established by the Judicial Committee Act 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King in Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is one of the highest courts in the United...

(in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

), which set the Labrador boundary mostly along the coastal watershed. One of Newfoundland's conditions for joining Confederation in 1949 was that this boundary be entrenched in the Canadian constitution. While this border has not been formally accepted by the Quebec government, the Henri Dorion Commission (Commission d'étude sur l'intégrité du territoire du Québec) concluded in the early 1970s that Quebec no longer has a legal claim to Labrador.

In 2001, Québec Natural Resources Minister and Québec Intergovernmental Affairs Minister reasserted that Québec has never recognised the 1927 border:

"Les ministres rappellent qu'aucun gouvernement québécois n'a reconnu formellement le tracé de la frontière entre le Québec et Terre-Neuve dans la péninsule du Labrador selon l'avis rendu par le comité judiciaire du Conseil privé de Londres en 1927. Pour le Québec, cette frontière n'a donc jamais été définitivement arrêtée."

(The ministers reiterate that no Quebec government has ever formally recognized the drawing of the border between Quebec and Newfoundland in the Labrador peninsula according to the opinion rendered by the privy council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...

in 1927. For Quebec, this border has thus never been definitively defined.)

Possible separation from Newfoundland

A Royal Commission in 2002 determined that there is a certain amount of public pressure from Labradorians to break off from Newfoundland and become a separate province or territory. Some of the Innu nation would have the area become a homeland for them, much as Nunavut is for the Inuit; a 1999 resolution of the Assembly of First Nations

Assembly of First Nations

The Assembly of First Nations , formerly known as the National Indian Brotherhood, is a body of First Nations leaders in Canada...

claimed Labrador as a homeland for the Innu and demanded recognition in any further constitutional negotiations regarding the region. The northern Inuit self-government region of Nunatsiavut

Nunatsiavut

was recently created through agreements with the provincial and federal governments. The Southern Inuit of Nunatukavut

Nunatukavut

(NunatuKavut), who are also seeking self-government, have their land claim before the federal government. The provincial government of Newfoundland refuses to recognize or negotiate with the Inuit of NunatuKavut until their claim has been accepted by the federal government.

Timeline

11th century: Probable visit by Leif Ericson
Leif Ericson
Leif Ericson was a Norse explorer who is regarded as the first European to land in North America , nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus...

. See Markland
Markland
Markland is the name given to a part of shoreline in Labrador, Canada, named by Leif Eriksson when he landed in North America. The word Markland is from the Old Norse language for "forestland" or "borderland". It is described as being north of Vinland and south of Helluland...

.
1498: Sighted by João Fernandes Lavrador
João Fernandes Lavrador
João Fernandes Lavrador was a Portuguese explorer of the late 15th century. He was the first modern explorer in the coasts of the Northeast of Northern America, including the Labrador peninsula, which bears his name.-Expeditions:Fernandes was granted a patent by King Manuel I in 1498 given him...

, who gave "Labrador" its name
1498: Visited by John Cabot
John Cabot
John Cabot was an Italian navigator and explorer whose 1497 discovery of parts of North America is commonly held to have been the first European encounter with the continent of North America since the Norse Vikings in the eleventh century...
1500: Visited by Gaspar Corte-Real
Gaspar Corte-Real
Gaspar Corte-Real was a Portuguese explorer.He was the youngest of three sons of João Vaz Corte-Real, also a Portuguese explorer, and had accompanied his father on his expeditions to North America...
1534: Visited by Jacques Cartier
Jacques Cartier
Jacques Cartier was a French explorer of Breton origin who claimed what is now Canada for France. He was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, which he named "The Country of Canadas", after the Iroquois names for the two big...
1763: Labrador is transferred from the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

colony Canada
Canada, New France
Canada was the name of the French colony that once stretched along the St. Lawrence River; the other colonies of New France were Acadia, Louisiana and Newfoundland. Canada, the most developed colony of New France, was divided into three districts, each with its own government: Quebec,...

to the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...

colony Newfoundland as per the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1763)
The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on 10 February 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. It ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...

.
1774: Labrador is transferred (along with Anticosti Island
Anticosti Island
Anticosti Island is an island at the outlet of the Saint Lawrence River into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, in Quebec, Canada, between 49° and 50° N., and between 61° 40' and 64° 30' W. At in size, it is the 90th largest island in the world and 20th largest island in Canada...

and the Magdalen Islands
Magdalen Islands
The Magdalen Islands form a small archipelago in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence with a land area of . Though closer to Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, the islands form part of the Canadian province of Quebec....

) to the Province of Quebec.
1791: Labrador becomes part of Lower Canada
Lower Canada
The Province of Lower Canada was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence...

when Quebec is divided into two colonies.
1792: George Cartwright
George Cartwright (trader)
George Cartwright , trader, explorer, born in Marnham, England, died unmarried in nearby Mansfield, England....

publishes his Journal of Transactions and Events, During a Residence of Nearly Sixteen Years on the Coast of Labrador.
1809: Labrador (from Cape Chidley
Cape Chidley
Cape Chidley is a headland located on the eastern shore of Killiniq Island, Canada at the northeastern tip of the Labrador Peninsula.-Cape Chidley:...

to the mouth of the Saint-Jean River) is transferred back to Newfoundland.
1825: The north shore of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence
Gulf of Saint Lawrence
The Gulf of Saint Lawrence , the world's largest estuary, is the outlet of North America's Great Lakes via the Saint Lawrence River into the Atlantic Ocean...

west of Blanc-Sablon, Quebec
Blanc-Sablon, Quebec
Blanc-Sablon, Quebec is the easternmost community in the province of Quebec, Canada, between the municipalities of Côte-Nord-du-Golfe-du-Saint-Laurent and L'Anse-au-Clair, in Labrador...

, and south of 52° north is separated from Labrador and transferred back to Lower Canada.
1892: Wilfred Grenfell
Wilfred Grenfell
Sir Wilfred Thomason Grenfell, KCMG was a medical missionary to Newfoundland and Labrador.He was born at Parkgate, Wirral, England, the son of Algernon Grenfell, headmaster of Mostyn House School, and Jane Georgiana Hutchison and married Anne Elizabeth Caldwell MacClanahan of Chicago, Illinois, in...

, medical missionary and social activist, first came to Labrador.
1927: The Labrador boundary dispute is settled.
1941: Canada builds the air base at Goose Bay.
1949: Labrador becomes part of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

when Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

joins Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...

.
1964: The province's government began to refer to itself as the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador,
2001: The province officially changes its name to Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

by a Canadian constitutional amendment.
2007: The province and Federal Government of Canada sign an agreement to establish Nunatsiavut
Nunatsiavut
Nunatsiavut is an autonomous area claimed by the Inuit in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The settlement area includes territory in Labrador extending to the Quebec border. In 2002, the Labrador Inuit Association submitted a proposal for limited autonomy to the government of Newfoundland and...

Demographics

Largest towns in Labrador (incorporated towns only)
Town	2006	2001
Happy Valley – Goose Bay	7,572	7,969
Labrador City	7,240	7,744
Wabush	1,739	1,894
Nain Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador Nain or Naina is the northernmost town of any size in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located about 370 kilometres by air from Happy Valley-Goose Bay. The town was established as a Moravian mission in 1771 by Jens Haven and other missionaries...	1,034	1,159
L'Anse-au-Loup	593	635
Cartwright Cartwright, Newfoundland and Labrador -Further reading:Buckle, Francis Labrador Diary, 1915-1925: the Gordon journals. Cartwright: Anglican Parish ISBN 0-9733448-0-6 -External links:...	552	629
Hopedale Hopedale, Newfoundland and Labrador Hopedale is a town located in the North of Labrador, the mainland portion of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Hopedale is the legislative capital of the Inuit Land Claims Area Nunatsiavut, and where the Nunatsiavut Assembly meets...	530	559
North West River	492	551
Port Hope Simpson	529	509
Forteau	448	477

Demographic Factors (2001 Census)
Factor	Labrador	Canada
Male/Female split	50.6/49.4	49.0/51.0
Median age	32.6	37.6
Percent foreign-born.	1.5%	18.4%
Aboriginal pop.	34.9%	3.3%
Religion - Catholic	28.4%	43.6%
Religion - Protestant	67.4%	29.2%
Religion - other	0.8%	10.6%
No religion	3.4%	16.5%
Median income (age 15+)	$19,229	$22,120
Unemployment rate	19.1%	7.4%

Natural features

Labrador is home to a number of fauna and flora species. Most of the Upper Canadian and Lower Hudsonian mammal

Mammal

Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...

ian species are found in Labrador. Notably the Polar bear

Polar Bear

The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...

, Ursus maritimus, reaches the southeast of Labrador on its annual migration.

External links

Audio recording of a traditional ghost story from Labrador, Canada
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...

e-text of Dillon Wallace's The Lure of the Labrador Wild
Labrador information page
Trans-Labrador Highway website - detailed information about traveling in Labrador.
http://collections.lib.uwm.edu/cdm4/results.php?CISORESTMP=results.php&CISOVIEWTMP=item_viewer.php&CISOMODE=thumb&CISOGRID=thumbnail,A,1;title,A,1;captio,A,0;para,200,0;none,A,0;20;relevancy,none,none,none,none&CISOBIB=title,A,1,N;captio,A,0,N;para,200,0,N;none,A,0,N;none,A,0,N;20;relevancy,none,none,none,none&CISOTHUMB=20%20(4x5);identi,none,none,none,none&CISOTITLE=20;title,none,none,none,none&CISOHIERA=20;para,title,none,none,none&CISOSUPPRESS=0&CISOTYPE=link&CISOOP1=all&CISOFIELD1=origin&CISOBOX1=Alexander+Forbes+Collection&CISOOP2=all&CISOFIELD2=para&CISOBOX2=&CISOOP3=all&CISOFIELD3=data&CISOBOX3=&CISOOP4=all&CISOFIELD4=CISOSEARCHALL&CISOBOX4=&c=all&CISOROOT=%2FagsnorthAlexander Forbes Collection: Aerial photo survey of Labrador from 1931, 1932, and 1935 expeditions] - University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries Digital Collections

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The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Geography

Nunatsiavut

Central Labrador

Western Labrador

NunatuKavut

The Straits

Modern Labrador

Time zone

Boundary dispute

Possible separation from Newfoundland

Timeline

Demographics

Natural features

See also

Further reading

External links