Happy Valley-Goose Bay | |
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Town | |
.jpg) Goose Bay Labrador in May 2008 | |
 Seal .png) | |
| Motto: "A World of Opportunities" | |
  Happy Valley-Goose Bay | |
| Coordinates:53°20′30″N60°26′56″W / 53.34167°N 60.44889°W /53.34167; -60.44889[1] | |
| Country | Canada |
| Province | Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Census division | 10 |
| Provincial electoral district | Lake Melville |
| Federal electoral district | Labrador |
| Settled | 1942 |
| Incorporated | 1973 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Town Council |
| • Mayor | W. Bert Pomeroy |
| • MHA | Keith Russell (LIB) |
| • MP | Philip Earle (LIB) |
| • Nunatsiavut Assembly members | Gerald Asivak Wally Andersen[2] |
| Area (2021)[3] | |
• Total | 305.69 km2 (118.03 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Population (2021)[3] | |
• Total | 8,040 |
| • Density | 26.4/km2 (68/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC−04:00 (AST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−03:00 (ADT) |
| Postal Codes | |
| Area code | 709 |
| Highways |  Route 500 (Trans-Labrador Highway)
 Route 520 (North West River Road) |
| Website | townhvgb |
Happy Valley-Goose Bay (Inuit:Vâli)[4] is a town in the province ofNewfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Located in centralLabrador on the coast ofLake Melville and theChurchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest population centre in the region with an estimated 8,040 residents in 2021.
Incorporated in 1973, it comprises the former town of Happy Valley and the Local Improvement District of Goose Bay. Built on a large sandy plateau in 1941, the town is home to the largest military air base in northeastern North America,[5]CFB Goose Bay.[6]
In the summer of 1941, Eric Fry, an employee of theCanadian Department of Mines and Resources on loan to theRoyal Canadian Air Force, selected a large sandy plateau near the mouth of theGoose River to build the Goose Bay Air Force Base. Docking facilities for transportation of goods and personnel were built at Terrington Basin.[7]
Goose Air Base became a landing and refuelling stop for theAtlantic Ferry route. Soon after the site was selected, men from the coast ofLabrador began working on the base. With World War II in bloom, it took only five months to build an operational military airport on the leased territory.
The first settlers to the area came from coastal Labrador to work with McNamara Construction Company, which was contracted to build the Goose Bay Air Force Base. Their first choice was Otter Creek, where they were told that it would be too close to the base. A new location was chosen based upon the requirement to be at least 8.0 km (5 mi) from the base. In 1942, a new site was chosen that was first called Refugee Cove; it was not until 1955 that it eventually was renamed Happy Valley.[8]
The first three families to arrive to work at the construction of the base were the Saunders fromDavis Inlet, the Broomfields from Big Bay, and the Perraults fromMakkovik.
Happy Valley's first school was operated by a Mrs. Perrault from her home until 1946, when the Royal Canadian Air Force donated a building. The old one-room school was bought by Bella and Clarence Brown in early 1962 and turned into a family residence. In 1949, the Air Force donated a second building which became the North Star School. Mrs. Perrault also became Happy Valley's first librarian. Bella Brown took over as Happy Valley's librarian when the North Star School's second building was donated as the new library.
TheGrenfell Mission operated the first medical facilities when it opened a nursing station in 1951. In 1963, the provincial government built Paddon Memorial Hospital.
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CFB Goose Bay saw a reduction ofNATO low-level tactical flight training in the decade 1996–2005, and the town faced an uncertain future as the federal government reduced the number of permanentRoyal Canadian Air Force personnel to fewer than 100 all-ranks. The last NATO nations to use CFB Goose Bay for flight training, Germany and Italy, did not renew their leases after terminating in early 2006.
The runway at Happy Valley-Goose Bay was also an alternative, but unused, landing site forNASA's now-decommissionedSpace Shuttle, because of its size and length.[6][9]
Prior to its amalgamation with Happy Valley, the Local Improvement District of Goose Bay was set up in 1970 and included an area called Spruce Park and the Canadian Department of Transport Housing areas. It grew to include other areas of the base until 1973, when it comprised all of the base area.
Happy Valley-Goose Bay lies at the southwest end ofLake Melville near the mouth of theChurchill River. The town is located on the southern shore of a peninsula created by Terrington Basin to the north and Goose Bay at the south.
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Happy Valley-Goose Bay displays a borderlinehumid continental climate (KöppenDfb), close to asubarctic climate (KöppenDfc), marked by significant snowfall in the winter, which has average highs around −12 °C (10 °F). Summer highs, on the other hand, average 20 °C (68 °F). The average high temperature stays at or below freezing for five months of the year and the low does so for six months.[10] Snowfall averages nearly 406 cm (160 in) per year, and can occur in all months except July and August.[10] Precipitation, at nearly 940 mm (37 in), is significant year-round and is heavy for a subarctic climate at its latitude.[10]
| Climate data for Happy Valley-Goose Bay (CFB Goose Bay) WMO ID: 71816; coordinates53°19′N60°25′W / 53.317°N 60.417°W /53.317; -60.417 (CFB Goose Bay); elevation: 48.8 m (160 ft); 1991−2020 normals, extremes 1941−present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 11.2 (52.2) | 10.6 (51.1) | 16.4 (61.5) | 21.7 (71.1) | 32.7 (90.9) | 36.2 (97.2) | 37.8 (100.0) | 36.5 (97.7) | 33.6 (92.5) | 25.8 (78.4) | 17.4 (63.3) | 11.7 (53.1) | 37.8 (100.0) |
| Mean maximum °C (°F) | 2.1 (35.8) | 1.3 (34.3) | 7.5 (45.5) | 14.3 (57.7) | 24.2 (75.6) | 29.6 (85.3) | 31.2 (88.2) | 30.6 (87.1) | 25.5 (77.9) | 17.8 (64.0) | 10.7 (51.3) | 4.2 (39.6) | 32.9 (91.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −12.3 (9.9) | −10.4 (13.3) | −3.6 (25.5) | 3.6 (38.5) | 11.0 (51.8) | 17.3 (63.1) | 21.2 (70.2) | 20.8 (69.4) | 15.3 (59.5) | 7.5 (45.5) | 0.0 (32.0) | −7.3 (18.9) | 5.3 (41.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −17.0 (1.4) | −16.0 (3.2) | −9.5 (14.9) | −1.4 (29.5) | 5.6 (42.1) | 11.7 (53.1) | 15.8 (60.4) | 15.6 (60.1) | 10.3 (50.5) | 3.8 (38.8) | −3.6 (25.5) | −11.6 (11.1) | 0.3 (32.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −21.7 (−7.1) | −21.5 (−6.7) | −15.3 (4.5) | −6.4 (20.5) | 0.1 (32.2) | 6.1 (43.0) | 10.5 (50.9) | 10.3 (50.5) | 5.4 (41.7) | 0.1 (32.2) | −7.3 (18.9) | −15.7 (3.7) | −4.6 (23.7) |
| Mean minimum °C (°F) | −31.8 (−25.2) | −31.0 (−23.8) | −27.1 (−16.8) | −16.8 (1.8) | −5.3 (22.5) | −0.1 (31.8) | 4.9 (40.8) | 3.9 (39.0) | −1.0 (30.2) | −7.1 (19.2) | −17.2 (1.0) | −27.2 (−17.0) | −32.9 (−27.2) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −38.9 (−38.0) | −39.4 (−38.9) | −35.6 (−32.1) | −29.7 (−21.5) | −15.0 (5.0) | −4.2 (24.4) | 0.1 (32.2) | 0.0 (32.0) | −6.7 (19.9) | −17.0 (1.4) | −26.1 (−15.0) | −36.7 (−34.1) | −39.4 (−38.9) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 66.7 (2.63) | 55.9 (2.20) | 63.9 (2.52) | 63.2 (2.49) | 69.9 (2.75) | 87.7 (3.45) | 111.8 (4.40) | 107.2 (4.22) | 86.0 (3.39) | 88.1 (3.47) | 74.9 (2.95) | 62.6 (2.46) | 937.8 (36.92) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 2.0 (0.08) | 3.3 (0.13) | 4.5 (0.18) | 20.7 (0.81) | 51.1 (2.01) | 86.9 (3.42) | 111.8 (4.40) | 107.2 (4.22) | 85.8 (3.38) | 67.2 (2.65) | 26.3 (1.04) | 6.6 (0.26) | 573.4 (22.57) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 75.0 (29.5) | 60.4 (23.8) | 67.4 (26.5) | 45.8 (18.0) | 19.1 (7.5) | 0.8 (0.3) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.2 (0.1) | 21.5 (8.5) | 51.6 (20.3) | 64.1 (25.2) | 405.9 (159.8) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 15.6 | 12.4 | 14.0 | 13.8 | 14.7 | 16.9 | 18.2 | 17.6 | 16.6 | 16.5 | 14.3 | 14.5 | 185.0 |
| Average rainy days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 1.6 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 6.0 | 12.5 | 16.9 | 18.2 | 17.6 | 16.6 | 13.7 | 6.2 | 2.6 | 115.4 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.2 cm) | 15.7 | 12.4 | 13.4 | 10.6 | 5.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 5.5 | 11.2 | 13.8 | 88.6 |
| Averagedew point °C (°F) | −22.4 (−8.3) | −22.2 (−8.0) | −15.1 (4.8) | −6.9 (19.6) | −1.1 (30.0) | 5.1 (41.2) | 9.9 (49.8) | 9.6 (49.3) | 5.0 (41.0) | −0.4 (31.3) | −7.8 (18.0) | −17.0 (1.4) | −5.2 (22.6) |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 96.9 | 130.2 | 139.1 | 162.4 | 190.0 | 175.0 | 196.6 | 193.9 | 121.9 | 90.4 | 75.8 | 72.5 | 1,644.7 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 38.5 | 47.1 | 37.9 | 38.7 | 38.7 | 34.5 | 38.6 | 42.3 | 31.9 | 27.5 | 29.0 | 30.7 | 36.3 |
| Source 1:Environment and Climate Change Canada (sunshine 1981–2010)[10][11][12][13][14] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: weatherstats.ca (for dewpoint and monthly&yearly average absolute maximum&minimum temperature)[15] | |||||||||||||
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2,861 | — |
| 1971 | 5,433 | +89.9% |
| 1981 | 7,103 | +30.7% |
| 1991 | 8,610 | +21.2% |
| 1996 | 8,655 | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 7,969 | −7.9% |
| 2006 | 7,572 | −5.0% |
| 2011 | 7,552 | −0.3% |
| 2016 | 8,109 | +7.4% |
| 2021 | 8,040 | −0.9% |
| [16] | ||
| Canada 2016 Census | Population | % of Total Population | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visible minority group Source:[17] | South Asian | 85 | 1.1% |
| Chinese | 20 | 0.3% | |
| Black | 25 | 0.3% | |
| Filipino | 145 | 1.8% | |
| Latin American | 20 | 0.3% | |
| Korean | 10 | 0.1% | |
| Japanese | 10 | 0.1% | |
| Other visible minority | 10 | 0.1% | |
| Mixed visible minority | 25 | 0.3% | |
| Total visible minority population | 325 | 4.1% | |
| Indigenous group Source:[18] | First Nations | 190 | 2.4% |
| Métis | 1,515 | 19.2% | |
| Inuit | 1,865 | 23.7% | |
| Total Indigenous population | 3,565 | 45.2% | |
| White | 3,990 | 50.6% | |
| Total population | 8,109 | 99.8% | |
In the2021 Canadian census conducted byStatistics Canada, Happy Valley-Goose Bay had a population of 8,040 living in 3,072 of its 3,390 total private dwellings, a change of-0.9% from its 2016 population of 8,109. With a land area of 304.52 km2 (117.58 sq mi), it had a population density of26.4/km2 (68.4/sq mi) in 2021.[3]
The2011 census showed that Happy Valley-Goose Bay has outgrownLabrador City and is now the largest community in Labrador. However,Labrador West (a region consisting of Labrador City and a nearby community,Wabush) still has a higher population than Upper Lake Melville (which includes Happy Valley-Goose Bay and three nearby communities)[19]
Happy Valley and Goose Bay are connected by theTrans-Labrador Highway withLabrador City andBaie-Comeau in Quebec. The road was extended south to link with an existing road from theBlanc Sablon -St. Barbe ferry. It opened in December 2009.
Prior to 1954, hardly anylicence plates were issued to Labrador communities except for Happy Valley and the Goose Bay area. A series of small plates were issued to help fund road development. It was not until the mid-1960s that all of Labrador started using regular Newfoundland licence plates.[20]
Since 1992, the road from Baie-Comeau to Wabush was connected to an open route year-round to Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
The town was serviced by boat and container ship to the ports from Newfoundland and theport of Montreal. Most of the town's supplies were transported by container vessels brought to the docking facilities located at Terrington Basin. These facilities were operated byTransport Canada. The shipping season usually lasted from June to December. In the summer, a ferry service connects Happy Valley-Goose Bay withCartwright.
Air Canada andEastern Provincial Airways were the first air carriers in the area to carry passengers from outside the area intoCFB Goose Bay.Labrador Airways Limited provided air transportation to local communities. Located at Otter Creek is a seaplane base that also provided airlifts to local communities and tourist lodges in the interior of Labrador.
Happy Valley-Goose Bay travel guide from Wikivoyage| Communities | |
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