Hopedale (

Inuit language The Inuit languages are a closely related group of indigenous American languages traditionally spoken across the North American Arctic and the adjacent subarctic regions as far south as Labrador. The Inuit languages are one of the two branche ...

: ''Agvituk'') is a town located in the north of

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 ...

, the mainland portion of the

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

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 ...

. Hopedale is the legislative capital of the Inuit Land Claims Area

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 ...

, and where the

Nunatsiavut Assembly The Nunatsiavut Assembly is the legislative branch of the government of Nunatsiavut, Canada. History On January 22, 2005, the Inuit of Nunatsiavut signed the Labrador Inuit Lands Claims Agreement with the federal and provincial governments cove ...

meets. As of the 2021 census, it has a population of 596.

History

Hopedale was founded as an

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

settlement named ''Agvituk'',

Inuktitut Inuktitut ( ; , Inuktitut syllabics, syllabics ), also known as Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the North American tree line, including parts of the provinces of ...

for "place of the whales". In 1782, Moravian missionaries from

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

arrived in the area to convert the population. They renamed the settlement Hopedale (''Hoffental'' in German) shortly afterwards. The Hopedale Mission is still standing and is thought to be the oldest wooden-frame building in

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 ...

standing east of

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. As such, it was named a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada () are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being of national historic significance. Parks C ...

. It is currently run by the Agvituk Historical Society as a part of a museum on the history of missionaries in the area. From 1953 to 1968, a joint

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

's Hopedale Air Station was located on the hills above Hopedale. Civilian personnel lived in the main part of town. Since 1968, the area has remained abandoned other than maintenance of non-military communications towers nearby.

Nunatsiavut

On December 1, 2005, Hopedale became the legislative capital of the autonomous region of

which is the name chosen by the Labrador Inuit when the ''Labrador Inuit Land Claims Agreement Act'' was successfully ratified by the

Canadian Government The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes ministers of the Crown ( ...

and the Inuit of Labrador. Nain, further north, is the

administrative capital A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational division, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encom ...

. The land claim cedes limited self-rule for the Nunatsiavut government in Northern Labrador and North-Eastern

, granting title and aboriginal rights. The land that comprises the Nunatsiavut government is called the Labrador Inuit Settlement Area, or LISA, which amount to approximately . The Inuit of Labrador do not own this land per se, but they do have special rights related to traditional land use as aboriginals. That said, the Labrador Inuit will own within the Settlement Area, officially designated as Labrador Inuit Lands. The Agreement also provides for the establishment of the Torngat Mountains National Park Reserve, consisting of about of land within LISA. As legislative capital, Hopedale is the location of the Nunatsiavut Assembly Building.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population 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 ...

, Hopedale 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. The majority of people in Hopedale (79%) speak English as a first language, but a significant minority (21%) speak

. About 83% of the population identify themselves as Inuit, 16% are of mainly European descent, and 1% are of Punjabi origin. About 87% of the population belongs to a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

denomination, about 2% are

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, and another 1% are

Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...

. About 10% are not affiliated with any religion.

Transportation

There are no roads that connect Hopedale with the rest of Newfoundland and Labrador. Hopedale Airport, a small public airport, connects the area with small communities in

and connections beyond made via Goose Bay Airport. The airport was built in the mid 1960s to provide air support to former USAF Hopedale Air Station. Since 1968 the airport is used by civilians. The airport handles only small turboprop aircraft or helicopters. There is only one service building at the airport. The airport is connected to Hopedale via Airstrip Road. Between mid-June and mid-November (pending ice conditions), the ferry MV Kamutik W, operated by the Newfoundland and Labrador Government, provides weekly service from Goose Bay along the Atlantic Coast, with stops in

Rigolet Rigolet (Inuttitut: ''Tikigâksuagusik'') (population 327) is a remote, coastal Labrador community established in 1735 by French-Canadian trader Louis Fornel. The town is the southernmost officially recognized Inuit community in the world. Loca ...

, Makkovik,

Postville Postville is a city in Allamakee County, Iowa, Allamakee and Clayton County, Iowa, Clayton counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. It lies near the junction of four counties and at the intersection of U.S. Routes U.S. Route 18 in Iowa, 18 and U.S. Ro ...

, Hopedale, Nain, and Natuashish. Small boats are used to access nearby areas by water. Local land based transportation in the community is made by private vehicles (cars, trucks, ATV) and snowmobile in winter. There are only a few roads in the community, all gravel: * Airstrip Road - access to Hopedale Airport * American Road - former access road to USAF radar stations and barracks * Carpenter Road and Drive - serves new residential area * Government Road - former route home to non-military personnel for former USAF radar station * Nanuk Road * Water Road - road to main part of Hopedale

Services

Policing in Hopedale is provided by the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

which has a Hopedale Detachment staffed by four officers. The current detachment was completed in 1994. There is no hospital located in Hopedale and only basic medical services are provided by Hopedale Community Clinic. The clinic is operated by Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services and is staffed by three nurses/nurse practitioners. Physicians visit periodically, and are also available by video conference. Advanced care requires patients to be flown out of town by

air ambulance Air medical services are the use of aircraft, including both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to provide various kinds of urgent medical care, especially prehospital, emergency and critical care to patients during aeromedical evacuation an ...

to the nearest hospital, which is in

Happy Valley-Goose Bay Happy Valley-Goose Bay (Inuit: ''Vâli'') is a town in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located in central Labrador on the coast of Lake Melville and the Churchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest population centre ...

. Hopedale Volunteer Fire Department is a small fire and rescue service with a single pumper stored at the fire hall located next to the RCMP detachment near Water Road.

Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (, trading as Canada Post (), is a Canadian Crown corporation that functions as the primary postal operator in Canada. Originally known as Royal Mail Canada (the operating name of the Post Office Department of the Can ...

has a post office (19 Harbour Drive B) located in town. Amos Comenius Memorial School at Nanuk Hill, with grades Kindergarten to Grade 12, is the only school in Hopedale.

Government

AngajukKâk are equivalent of mayor in Hopedale and are elected every four years. The incumbent is Marjorie Flowers. Past AngajukKâk: * Judy Dicker, 2006–2010 * Wayne Piercy, 2010–2014 * Jimmy Tuttuak, 2014–2015

Local attractions

There are few local attractions: * Moravian Mission Complex and Museum * Mid-Canada Line Site 200 - a former American and RCAF facility and was the most easterly repeater radar station and with view of Hopedale from the highest point in town ** Tropospheric scatter antennas and concrete base of former

Radome A radome (a portmanteau of "radar" and "dome") is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna (radio), antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weathe ...

Climate

Hopedale has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Dsc'') with an August average of and February average of .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hopedale, Newfoundland And Labrador Inuit community governments in Newfoundland and Labrador Populated places in Labrador History of the Labrador Province of the Moravian Church Hudson's Bay Company trading posts Capitals of country subdivisions in Canada Road-inaccessible communities of Newfoundland and Labrador