Roddickton is a community and former town located on the eastern side of the

Great Northern Peninsula The Great Northern Peninsula (Inuttitut: ''Ikkarumiklua'') is the largest and longest peninsula of Newfoundland, Canada, approximately 270 km long and 90 km wide at its widest point and encompassing an area of 17,483 km2. It is de ...

on the island of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. It amalgamated with the former Town of

Bide Arm Bide Arm is a community located on the Great Northern Peninsula in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It amalgamated with the former Town of Roddickton on January 1, 2009 to create the Town of Roddickton-Bide Arm. Bide Arm had a ...

on January 1, 2009 to create the Town of

Roddickton-Bide Arm Roddickton-Bide Arm is a town located in the northern peninsula of the island of Newfoundland within the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was formed on January 1, 2009 through the amalgamation of the former towns of Roddickton and Bid ...

. Roddickton was originally named Eastern Brook and was used by residents of

Englee Englee is a small fishing community on the east side of the Great Northern Peninsula in a sheltered harbour on the northern headland of Canada Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada Bay, on the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland in t ...

, a small fishing community for salmon fishing, hunting and trapping. In 1906, the

Grenfell Mission The Grenfell Mission was a philanthropic organization that provided medical and social services to people in rural communities of northern Newfoundland and Labrador. It was founded by Sir Wilfred Grenfell in 1892 as a branch of The Royal National Mi ...

began a sawmill operation here and the name was changed to Roddickton in honour of

Thomas George Roddick Sir Thomas George Roddick (July 31, 1846 – February 20, 1923) was a Canadian surgeon, medical administrator, politician, and founder of the Medical Council of Canada born in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland He is known for his work in helping ...

, a supporter of the mission. The first permanent settlers of the community were residents from Englee and Wild Cove who went there to work in the sawmill operation and to clear land for growing crops for the St. Anthony hospital. The first census was taken in 1911, and showed a population of 46, but the sawmill closed and by 1921 there were only 8 residents left and the community was abandoned the next year. Four years later, the sawmill was reopened and in the 1930s

Bowater Bowater Inc. was a paper and pulp business headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. It merged with Abitibi-Consolidated in 2007, and the combined company went on to become Resolute Forest Products. History The North American assets of Bow ...

began pulpwood cutting in the area. By 1945, the population rose to 548. Roddickton was incorporated as a town in 1953. In the 1960s, isolation ended with a road being built to the town and made it the region's service and supply centre. People from other small settlements in the area were resettled to Roddickton and in 1961 the population was 1185. In the 1970s, things began to decline. The pulpwood operations owned by Bowater closed, causing many to leave the area. In the 1980s, a crab plant was opened up to provide employment for the community, but in the late 1980s a fire destroyed it and the sawmill. By 1992, the sawmill was running again, the crab plant had been rebuilt, but was not operating.

References

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Newfoundland and Labrador Tourism
Former towns in Newfoundland and Labrador Populated coastal places in Canada

See also

References