The Story of Labrador

Book excerpt: Newfoundland and Labrador are like two uneasy stepsisters, each with its own distinct identity, trying to share a common house. Using original research, including personal interviews, and drawing on his forty-year association with Labrador, Bill Rompkey explores this relationship in the context of the region's unique racial, geographical, political, and social history. Rompkey charts the rise of Labrador as a giant in Canada's near north. He looks at the impact of the region's vast natural resources, which includes the recently discovered nickel mine at Voisey's Bay, the largest in the world, and Ramah chert, a choice stone the Aboriginals traded thousands of years ago. The Story of Labrador is also the story of Innuit caribou hunters and people of the seal, French fishermen and Basque whalers, settlers, traders, and absentee governors. It is the story of great Canadian construction projects like the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway, the rich iron ore operations at Labrador City and Wabush, and Chuchill Fall, which was the largest hydro project in the world when it was created.