Placentia is a town located in 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 ...
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 ...
. It consists of the amalgamated communities of Placentia ("Townside"), Southeast Placentia,
Freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...
,
Dunville and Jerseyside and also includes the
Argentia
Argentia ( ) is a Canadian commercial seaport and industrial park located in the Town of Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador. It is situated on the southwest coast of the Avalon Peninsula and defined by ...
Industrial Park.
History
There is considerable evidence that Placentia Bay was intermittently occupied by Little Passage people.
[I. Marshall, ''A History and Ethnography of the Beothuk'' (Montréal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2014): 273.] Their descendants, the
Beothuk
The Beothuk ( or ; also spelled Beothuck) were a group of Indigenous peoples in Canada, Indigenous people of Canada who lived on the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland.
The Beothuk culture formed around 1500 CE. This may have been ...
, continued to settle there until the 17th century. Remnants of Beothuk occupation from the surrounding area has been carbon dated back to as far as 1500 CE.
[ Whether the Beothuk had come to permanently settle or just to fish has proved difficult to ascertain.][ By the late 17th century, the English and French settlers and fishermen had claimed the bays of Placentia.][Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Web Site, accessed March 5, 2019]
Disappearance of the Beothuk
/ref> This effectively cut the natives off from salmon, seal, and other valuable coastal resources. This is one of several reasons attributed as to why the Beothuk eventually disappeared from Placentia, as well as several other areas of Newfoundland.
It is unclear when Placentia terrain was first settled by Europeans, but Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
fishermen from Biscay
Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...
were fishing in the area as early as the beginning of the 16th century, using Placentia as a seasonal centre of operations. The last will of a Basque seaman has been discovered in an archive in Spain in which Domingo de Luca asks in 1563, “that my body be buried in this port of ''Plazençia'' in the place where those who die here are usually buried.” It is believed to be the oldest original civil document written in Canada.
Contemporary scholars think that the land called Vinland
Vinland, Vineland, or Winland () was an area of coastal North America explored by Vikings. Leif Erikson landed there around 1000 AD, nearly five centuries before the voyages of Christopher Columbus and John Cabot. The name appears in the V ...
extending from Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
to L'Anse aux Meadows
L'Anse aux Meadows () is an archaeological site, first excavated in the 1960s, of a Norse colonization of North America, Norse settlement dating to approximately 1,000 years ago. The site is located on the northernmost tip of the island of Newf ...
consisted of at least a few settlements; probably on the Avalon Peninsula
The Avalon Peninsula () is a large peninsula that makes up the southeast portion of the island of Newfoundland in Canada. It is in size.
The peninsula is home to 270,348 people, about 52% of the province's population, according to the 2016 Ca ...
too. "Placentia" may be derived from the similarly named village of Placencia de las Armas (Basque
Basque may refer to:
* Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France
* Basque language, their language
Places
* Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France
* Basque Country (autonomous co ...
: ''Soraluze''), which is located in the Gipuzkoa
Gipuzkoa ( , ; ; ) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French department of Pyrénées-Atlantiqu ...
province of the Basque Country.
Placentia may also be derived from the Latin ''placentia'' ("smooth"), a name also probably given by the Basques. Placentia's large, rocky beach meant that fish could be salted and dried on the beach rocks rather than on a constructed wooden fishing stage A fishing stage is a wooden vernacular building, typical of the rough traditional buildings associated with the cod fishery in Newfoundland, Canada. Stages are located at the water's edge or "landwash", and consist of an elevated platform on the sh ...
, saving both time and effort.
In 1655, the French, who controlled more than half of the island of Newfoundland
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 population ...
, and most of Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising four provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. As of 2021, the landma ...
, made Placentia (French: ''Plaisance'') their capital. They built Fort Plaisance in 1662, which was followed by Fort Royal in 1687, and Fort Saint Louis in 1691. The establishment of a fort with a garrison allowed fishermen to pursue their activities with greater safety in neighbouring harbours. The French garrisons at Plaisance were small, but despite that fact, the soldiers and French privateers managed to hold their own in the face of numerous English attacks during the two major conflicts of the Nine Years' War
The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...
and the War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...
, which marked the colony's history. Recollect (Franciscan) friars from New France built a friary here in 1689, which lasted until the expulsion of the French in 1714. In 1692, Louis-Armand de Lom d'Arce de Lahontan, Baron de Lahontan
Louis Armand, Baron de Lahontan (9 June 1666 – before 1716) was a French aristocrat, writer, and explorer who served in the French military in Canada, where he traveled extensively in the Wisconsin and Minnesota region and the upper Mississip ...
defended the French port.
In 1711, the British Rear-Admiral Hovenden Walker
Rear-Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker (1656 or 1666 – 1725 or 1728) was a British naval officer noted for, during Queen Anne's War, having led an abortive 1711 expedition against Quebec City, then the capital of New France.
Early career
Walker ...
considered attacking the French at Placentia with a Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
fleet containing fifteen ships, armed with a total of nine hundred cannons, and transporting 4,000 soldiers. However, he decided that doing so was not a viable option.
In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht
The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaty, peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vac ...
forced the French to abandon their Placentia Bay settlements and migrate to Louisbourg
Louisbourg is an unincorporated community and former town in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia.
History
The harbour had been used by European mariners since at least the 1590s, when it was known as English Port and Havre à l'An ...
, and Placentia became a British possession. Many of the French fishermen who had to abandon the fisheries in Placentia ended up at the fisheries in Isle Royale, otherwise known as Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada.
The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...
.[Peace Treaty at Utrecht Changes Map of North America](_blank)
Parks Canada - Archives, January 17, 2017, accessed March 5, 2019 In the spring of 1714, the governor of Plaisance began organizing the emigration. Three royal ships accompanied by merchant vessels took the French residents of Placentia to the future site of Louisbourg. The group consisted of 116 men, 10 women and 23 children. The Miꞌkmaq
The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...
who had resided there also abandoned Placentia following the Treaty of Utrecht.[I. Marshall, ''A History and Ethnography of the Beothuk'' (Montréal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2014): 45.] William Taverner suggested that the Miꞌkmaq left because they had been deprived of their French trading partners.
For a time in the 18th century, it still rivalled St. John's in size and importance, as evidenced by the future King William IV
William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...
's summering at Placentia in 1786 and using it as his base of operations when acting as surrogate judge in Newfoundland. The town was described by the then-Prince as "a more decent settlement than any we have yet seen in Newfoundland" and was reported as having a population between 1,500 and 2,000 people.[
Considering that the population of Newfoundland was reported as 8,000 11 years earlier, in 1775, Placentia's relative size and importance becomes apparent.
]
By the 19th century, it was more fully eclipsed by St. John's and Harbour Grace
Harbour Grace is a town in Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. With roots dating back to the 16th century, it is one of the oldest towns in North America.
It is located about northwest of ...
, Placentia continued to be an important town, regional centre to the southern Avalon Peninsula and the eastern Burin Peninsula
The Burin Peninsula ( ) is a peninsula located on the south coast of the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Marystown is the largest population centre on the peninsula.Statistics Canada. 201 ...
.
From the mid-18th century through to the 1830s, numerous Irish immigrants from Waterford
Waterford ( ) is a City status in Ireland, city in County Waterford in the South-East Region, Ireland, south-east of Ireland. It is located within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster. The city is situated at the head of Waterford H ...
, Wexford
Wexford ( ; archaic Yola dialect, Yola: ''Weiseforthe'') is the county town of County Wexford, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the ...
, Kilkenny
Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...
and Cork
"Cork" or "CORK" may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
*** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine
Places Ireland
* ...
settled in Placentia, so that the population of the modern town is largely of a mixture of West Country
The West Country is a loosely defined area within southwest England, usually taken to include the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Bristol, with some considering it to extend to all or parts of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and ...
English and south-eastern Irish background. In the 18th century there were also a large number of settlers from the Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...
, from which Jerseyside, a prominent section of the town, derives its name. Some time after 1810 General George Garth was appointed as Lieutenant Governor of Placentia, a post he held until his death in 1817.
In 1940, via an agreement between the British and American governments (Newfoundland not joining Canada until 1949), a large American military base was constructed at nearby Argentia
Argentia ( ) is a Canadian commercial seaport and industrial park located in the Town of Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador. It is situated on the southwest coast of the Avalon Peninsula and defined by ...
(which is now within the town of Placentia's boundaries). For a time, this was the largest American military base outside of the United States, and it played an integral role in World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, earning the nickname "the Gibraltar of the Atlantic."
This huge development revolutionized the Placentia area both economically and culturally. Essentially, the American base introduced a widespread cash-based economy. Suddenly, people who had fished all of their lives (engaging in a type of barter called the truck system
Truck wages are wages paid not in conventional money but instead in the form of payment in kind (i.e. commodities, including goods and/or services); credit with retailers; or a money substitute, such as scrip, chits, vouchers or tokens. Truc ...
) had access to good-paying jobs on the American base. American technology enriched the living standards of Placentia residents, while the local culture was influenced strongly by the American presence. Similarly, it prompted a huge population boom, growing from 1,900 people in 1935 to well over 8,000 in the 1960s (note: these figures account for the current boundaries of Placentia, which at the time consisted of four separate towns: Placentia, Dunville, Jerseyside, and Freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...
).
The post office was established in 1851. The first postmistress in 1863 was Mary Morris.
Ecclesiastical history
On September 16, 1870, it became the seat of the Catholic pre-diocesan Apostolic Prefecture of Placentia, but instead of becoming a diocese it was suppressed in 1891, its territory being merged into the Diocese of St. John's, Newfoundland.
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 ...
, Placentia 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.
In the 2016 census, Placentia's population was reported as 3,496, down significantly from the 2001 figure of 4,426. This population decline
Population decline, also known as depopulation, is a reduction in a human population size. Throughout history, Earth's total world population, human population has estimates of historical world population, continued to grow but projections sugg ...
has been ongoing since the early 1990s; in the 1996 census, Placentia was, proportionately, the 2nd fastest shrinking town in Canada, dropping from 5,515 to 5,013 between 1991 and 1996.
Historical demographics
Economy
From the outset, it was fish that brought the Europeans to Newfoundland, as well as their patterns of settlement.[Fisheries](_blank)
Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Web Site, accessed February 27, 2018. While Placentia was considered a military base, it was also a colony with an economy based on the cod fishery and 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 ...
trade. Fishing was a consistently shared activity between French ships and resident boatkeepers. The fisheries of Placentia played a large role in ultimately securing Newfoundland as the world's largest exporter of salt codfish. After the war of 1689 had set back the colonial fishing industry, Placentia quickly renewed its seasonal fisheries, and in 1698 had sent more than 3,916 tonnes of cod to France. Following the Treaty of Utrecht, Placentia's residential fisheries met their ultimate demise.
The American base at Argentia was scaled back in the 1970s, and closed totally in 1994. This, along with the collapse of the Atlantic northwest cod fishery
In 1992, Atlantic cod, Northern cod biomass (ecology), populations fell to 1% of historical levels, in large part from decades of overfishing. The Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans (Canada), Federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, John ...
and the moratorium introduced by the Canadian government a few years earlier, left the town of Placentia without an economic base for some time, although recent developments by Vale Inco
Vale Canada Limited (formerly Vale Inco, CVRD Inco and Inco Limited; for corporate branding purposes simply known as "Vale" and pronounced in English) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Brazilian mining company Vale. Vale's nickel mining and ...
are beginning to stabilize the town's rocky economic situation.
Education
Placentia is home to one primary education school: St. Anne's Academy, a K-6 school in Dunville. There currently exists one high school, Laval High School, which educates students from grades 7 to 12. The original Laval High School was demolished in 2010, with a new state of the art facility replacing it in September 2010. All schools are home to many extracurriculars, including student council, sports, drama and music, and volunteer organizations.
Placentia is also home to a post-secondary institution; a campus of the College of the North Atlantic, offering programs in heavy duty equipment mechanics, heavy equipment operation, welding, machinist, and industrial machinery.
Tourism and culture
Placentia has many features that make it a popular tourist attraction in Newfoundland and Labrador. It has a unique lift-bridge named the Sir Ambrose Shea Lift Bridge that spans the tumultuous tides of 'the gut' (the narrow opening to the harbour). Around Placentia, countless buildings and sites reflect the deep history of the area. In 1893, Harry Verran who was a mining engineer from Cornwall
Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
, England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, worked for Cyrus Field. He built a historic house that now operates as a bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house.
''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...
called Rosedale Manor.
There are many archaeological sites (some partially re-constructed), several excellent examples of late-19th century Newfoundland architecture, two museums ( O'Reilly House and Castle Hill), and one of the two Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. () is an independent Canadian federal Crown corporation which is mandated to operate ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.
Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St. John ...
ferry links from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
(via Argentia). The local historical society owns both the O'Reilly House and St. Luke's Cultural Heritage Centre (formerly ''St. Luke's Anglican Church'') which is used to host workshops, presentations, performances, and even an escape room
An escape room, also known as an escape game, puzzle room, exit game, or riddle room, is a game in which a team of players discover clues, solve puzzles, and accomplish tasks in one or more rooms in order to accomplish a specific goal in a limit ...
. It is from the capital city, St. John's, and is within easy distance of the scenic Cape Shore (including the Cape St. Mary's Ecological Reserve), and St. Mary's Bay, Conception Bay
Conception Bay (CB) is a bay on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
The population (in 2011) of people living in municipalities (or unincorporated census subdivisions) located along the coast of Conception Bay was 90,490 making it ...
, and the inner reaches of Placentia Bay
Placentia Bay () is a body of water on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada. It is formed by Burin Peninsula on the west and Avalon Peninsula on the east. Fishing grounds in the bay were used by native people long before the first Europ ...
.
In 2009, Placentia celebrated the opening of the Placentia Bay Cultural Arts Centre with a month of artistic events, including drama productions, art exhibitions (three shows recognizing art from elementary students, high school students, and adults), and musical performances.
The town has an established summer stock theatre troupe, Placentia Area Theatre D'Heritage (PATH), which performs historical plays of significance in the Placentia area. The primary production is Faces of Fort Royale, performed at Castle Hill National Historic Site, depicting the lives of the early inhabitants of Placentia under the leadership of Governor De Broullion. They also perform a dinner theatre cabaret set in the 1950s during the Argentia Base heyday, and a ghost walk. The troupe generally consists of post-secondary students under the direction of the province's finest theatre producers.
Placentia in literature
*''Hannah: The Lighthouse Girl of Newfoundland'' by Don Ladolcetta
*''The Garden Gate: Argentia's Sacrifice for WWII'' by Darrell Duke
*''Thursday's Storm: The August Gale of 1927'' by Darrell Duke
*''Swept Away'' by Darrell Duke
Notable people
* Rex Murphy, commentator and journalist (born in Carbonear but raised in the area)
* Patricia Murphy, restaurateur who operated nine Patricia Murphy Candlelight restaurants in New York and Florida
* Greg Power, lyric poet and influential promoter of confederation with Canada
* Leonard J. Miller, businessperson and politician
* Harry Verran, politician and member of the House of Commons of Canada
The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...
for South West Nova
* Alastair Ralphs, known as A-1 (wrestler), professional wrestler
* Sylvana Tomaselli, married to George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews
* Shannon Tweed, actress
* Agnes Walsh, poet and playwright
* Ray Guy
William Ray Guy (December 22, 1949 – November 3, 2022) was an American professional football punter who played for the Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Guy was a first-team All-American selection in 1972 ...
, humorist and journalist
* Pat and Joe Byrne, Newfoundland traditional folk music group
See also
* List of municipalities in Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the Population of Canada by province and territory, ninth-most populous provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada, with 510,550 residents recorded in the 2021 Canadian Census, and is the List of Canadian ...
* Newfoundland Railway
The Newfoundland Railway was a narrow-gauge railway that operated on the island of Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow-gauge system in North America.
History
Early con ...
* Governors of Placentia
References
External links
Town of Placentia's official site
Around the Cape Shore Loop
Placentia Area Event Calendar on placentiabay.ca
The Charter, Placentia's local newspaper
Placentia Area Historical Society
Placentia - Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, vol. 4, p. 317-318.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Placentia, Newfoundland And Labrador
Populated coastal places in Canada
Towns in Newfoundland and Labrador