Hant's Harbour ( NST) is an incorporated

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

located on the east side of Trinity Bay on the

Bay de Verde Peninsula The Bay de Verde Peninsula is the largest peninsula that makes up part of the Avalon Peninsula, of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The peninsula separates both Trinity and Conception Bay. Geography Starting from the Conception ...

in the province of

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. It has a population of 318 according to the

2021 Canadian census The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canada, Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, whic ...

Geography

Hant's Harbour is a small fishing village built around a small harbour which opens on the north to Trinity Bay. The harbour waters are able to accommodate vessels up to 100 tons, the landscapes which surround it are low hills which are rocky and barren.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Hant's Harbour had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

History

During

King William's War King William's War (also known as the Second Indian War, Father Baudoin's War, Castin's War, or the First Intercolonial War in French) was the North American theater of the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), also known as the War of the Grand Allian ...

(1688–1697), the village was destroyed in the Avalon Peninsula Campaign. Like most of the early settlements around the coast of Newfoundland, the population grew very slowly during the eighteenth century. Hant's Harbour early residents were mostly of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

, during the eighteenth century they depended upon the services of clergy on the irregular visits of the missionaries for the

Society of the Propagation of the Gospel United Society Partners in the Gospel (USPG) is a United Kingdom-based charitable organisation (registered charity no. 234518). It was first incorporated under Royal Charter in 1701 as the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Pa ...

, stationed at

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

. The rise and rapid growth of

Methodism Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

in Hant's Harbour caused the Church of England community to remain small, its members being served the clergy stationed at nearby parishes. In the early twentieth century the

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

came to Hant's Harbour and gradually built up a substantial membership, and constructed a citadel there.

Timeline

* 1697 – Abbe Baudoin reports that there are four houses at Hant's Harbour. * 1801 – Five families are listed as living in Hant's Harbour. * 1813 – T.E. and Mary Pelley die. The gravestone recording this still stands. * 1820s – The first known church is built in the community. * 1830s – The population consists of 400 people. * 1847 – Ten vessels carrying 271 men are engaged in the

seal hunt Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of Pinniped, seals. Seal hunting is currently practiced in nine countries: Canada, Denmark (in self-governing Greenland only), Russia, the United States (above the Arctic Circle ...

. * 1853 – Eight vessels totalling 767 tons carry 294 men to the seal hunt. * 1868 – 1870 – A second and much larger church is built, serving the circuit until 1907 when it is destroyed to build a new one. * 1871 – Lovell's Newfoundland Dictionary lists 81 of the 104 householders in Hant's Harbour as fisherman. Two others are listed as farmers. * 1880s – The population grows to its peak of about 750 residents. * 1961 – Fire destroys the vegetation which formerly covered the low hills which surround the harbour.

Climate

Relatively mild winters with considerable variation in snow cover. Heavy rainfalls from October through December. Summers cooled by low clouds and fogs near coasts, considerably brighter and warmer inland.

Economy

From the beginning, the economy of Hant's Harbour was based mainly on the fisheries, until the nineteenth century when it was the inshore

cod Cod (: cod) is the common name for the demersal fish genus ''Gadus'', belonging to the family (biology), family Gadidae. Cod is also used as part of the common name for a number of other fish species, and one species that belongs to genus ''Gad ...

fishery and the

Labrador Labrador () is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its populatio ...

fishery during the latter half of the century. This was also an important source of seasonal income during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Attractions

* Willow Tree Museum * Hant's Harbour Lighthouse * Willow Tree Fishing Stage * Willow Tree Site * Little Islands Hiking Trail * Trinity South D'Iberville Trail

References

External links

Baccalieu TrailPicture of the lighthouseHant's Harbour - Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, vol. 2, p. 792-795.

Aids to Navigation
''Canadian Coast Guard'' {{Authority control , additional=Q106088228 Populated coastal places in Canada Towns in Newfoundland and Labrador Lighthouses in Newfoundland and Labrador