Читать книгу On the Goose - Josie Penny - Страница 4

It was difficult coming up with a title for this book.

Several titles came to mind over the course of writing the next seventeen years of my journey. Goose Bay, Labrador, was a transient military base. Once the forces moved out, people who had lived in Goose Bay for a number of years then moved on to other parts of the world. Anyone who had lived there affectionately referred to it as on the Goose. Happy Valley came to be as a result of the civilians who helped build both the Canadian and Americas bases. When talking of on the Goose, it could refer to all areas of Happy Valley and Goose Bay.

When I arrived there in 1960 it was still a pioneer town without a lot of the amenities that one expects. With the help of my publisher Dundurn, in Toronto, we selected this title from several that I’d suggested.

The seventeen years I spent on the Goose was anything but tranquil, peaceful, or fulfilling. My work as an employee and an entrepreneur, my duties as a mother, and my dedication to my husband and friends pushed me, at times, beyond my ability to cope.

This story takes place in Happy Valley and Goose Bay, located in Central Labrador. Some names have been changed to protect relatives and friends who were entangled in my life.

At age eighteen, I met and married my husband Keith and gave birth to four beautiful children before the age of twenty-four.

In recent years I’ve heard Labrador being called “The Big Land” and for good reason: three areas the size of Newfoundland Island can fit within the boundaries of Labrador, which has a total population of approximately 28,000, primarily made up of Caucasian, Inuit (Eskimo), Innu (Indian), Metis, and European settlers. These settlers married aboriginals, resulting in the majority of Métis Labradorians today.

In 1961 when I moved to Happy Valley, there were 2,861 people. It doubled in 1966 to 4,415. After the amalgamation of Spruce Park and the Department of Transport housing areas in 1970, the population grew to approximately 7,000 people.

How did Happy Valley–Goose Bay get started? It’s a long, drawn-out story, but the short of it is this: During the Second World War three countries — Great Britain, the United States, and Canada — had decided they needed airfield facilities as final stopover and re-fuelling sites before crossing to Europe, and to provide security to the Northern Hemisphere.

In May 1941, Captain Roosevelt and Dr. Forbes from the United States headed the expedition to find a suitable location for an airbase. After searching Hebron in Northern Labrador and Baffin Island they came to a place near North West River in Central Labrador, and chose the area around Lake Melville.

The Canadian Privy Council reported at the July 1941 meeting that the Minister of National Defence and its board construct a base on the Western coast. They had already been surveying the area as a possible site for their base. After much study it was decided that Goose Bay’s sandy plateau, known as the bench, was the most suitable.

Goose Bay had a relatively clear, dry climate and was accessible by sea through the Hamilton Inlet into Terrington Basin. It was decided that all three countries work jointly to build the massive airfields, which later became Goose Bay International Airport. The airfields served three distinct military bases: the Royal Canadian Air Force, the United States Air Force, and a small contingency of Royal Air Force as well. Goose Bay prided itself on having one of the largest runways for aircraft in the Western Hemisphere.

McNamara Construction offered to build the base or bases. It was a colossal job, to be sure. Shiploads of steel, wood, and all forms of building materials were off-loaded from ships in Terrington Basin, which had to be dredged to make it accessible for the ships to enter it, then transported to the newly chosen sites. Shacks were constructed for the workers, and so work began. Strong, proud individuals of all races and geographical locations left their homelands and headed for Goose Bay, Labrador, and a promise of a better life.

I would like to apologize for any inaccuracies in this story that other people may see or remember differently. My portrayal of Goose Bay in the sixties and seventies is true to my story as I saw it.

Enjoy!