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The Klondyke and the Coish
The
Klondyke is a causeway between the Bay Roberts Peninsula and the Coley's Point Peninsula.
The Coish, which comes from the Gaelic, is name the area at the bottom of the harbour, inside the Klondyke. It was named by the early Irish residents who settled there.
Park Bench
On the Coish |
The Coish
Bottom of Harbour |
The Story behind the Klondyke Causeway
The
Klondyke was once considered a "gold mine" to local families that were paid to complete it in 1897.
Before the construction of the Klondyke, passengers and
freight were ferried from Water Street in Bay Roberts to
Coley's Point. In the 1890's, a petition sent to government
for the construction of a causeway was turned down due to
lack of funds. Two Coley's Point women went from door to
door with a petition and a public meeting held shortly thereafter
resulted in the decision that the residents would build
the causeway themselves. Construction began in the winter
months. Rock and gravel were carried to the site in hand-barrels,
by horse and sled, and by hand. Men cut a channel through
the ice and dumped the rock into the open water.
When the
Labrador fishery failed in 1897 and many families faced
severe hardship, the government agreed to pay the men, women
and children who worked on the construction of the causeway
$1 a week to finish the work. Their wage was enough to buy
one barrel of flour or one keg of molasses - a welcome relief
for people facing a winter of hunger. One store owner in
the area (reportedly Mrs. Bursell) likened the project to
the Klondyke Gold Rush and, thus, the causeway got its name
- The Klondyke.
Since
1996, Bay Roberts has celebrated the construction of the Klondyke
and the unique bond between the two communities in the annual
Klondyke Days festivities.
Telephone:
(709) 786-2126 Fax: (709) 786-2128
E-mail: info@bayroberts.com
© 2002, Town of Bay Roberts
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