As mentioned previously, we stopped here mid day. We poked around and could have spent much more time here. It is a fishing village with some lovely spots and a fascinating history! Archeological digs have found artifacts from the Dorset Paleoeskimo peoples from 1500 years ago! We also read an informational plaque that had a hand drawn map by Captain James Cook done in 1766. It was incredibly accurate! Most interesting though, was the jockeying for fishing rights by the French and English. This took place from as early as 1713 when France was given exclusive rights to fishing in the area (but not for settlement!) to as late as 1904 when France relinquished these rights. We saw recreations of the bread ovens the French would have used as well as a Basque fishing boat called a Chaloupe (Shallop). Fishing is still very prevalent in this town. Down one of the smaller roads by docks we saw some folks getting fresh fish right off the boat.
The last interesting note is that Port au Choix was the recipient of resettled communities under the Smallwood resettlement programs. It was difficult to provide services for outlying communities so they were apparently offered incentives to move. Photos show houses being floated to their new homes. Joseph Smallwood was the first premier and really pushed for confederation. Do a search on either of these topics. They are really very interesting! So there's the Newfoundland history for the day. Tomorrow we'll be hearing all about Eric the Red and his son Leif Ericson as we head to L'anse aux Meadows.
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