Tuesday, June 11, 2024
Reading Time: 3 minutesParks Canada is dedicated to preserving Canada’s natural and cultural treasures and proudly enhances the nation’s top-tier tourism destinations. As pillars of Canada’s tourism industry, Parks Canada-managed locations are committed to delivering high-quality, meaningful experiences to visitors and supporting tourism in communities nationwide.
Yvonne Jones, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Northern Affairs and to the Minister of National Defence (Northern Defence) and Member of Parliament for Labrador, on behalf of the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, announced a $3.6 million investment for new interpretive offerings and interactive exhibits at Red Bay National Historic Site in Labrador. This investment, part of the $557 million announced by the Government of Canada in late 2022, will highlight this UNESCO World Heritage Site to global visitors starting in June 2025.
In the mid-16th century, the abundance of right and bowhead whales attracted Basque whalers from Spain and France to the Strait of Belle Isle, establishing Red Bay as a major whaling port. For 70 years, Basque whalers undertook the perilous, month-long journey across the Atlantic to hunt whales and produce oil that illuminated European lamps. With this funding, and in collaboration with Indigenous partners, stakeholders, and community members, Parks Canada will develop new exhibits and interpretive installations to enhance the visitor experience at Red Bay National Historic Site. These will include interactive displays in the renovated Visitor Centre, outdoor interpretive elements featuring an interpretive circuit on Saddle Island with four interpretive nodes, and a Whaler’s Memorial on Saddle Island. The new exhibits will acknowledge the long history of human occupation at the site, including Indigenous groups who preceded and succeeded the Basques.
Parks Canada acknowledges that the area now designated as Red Bay National Historic Site has been traversed and inhabited by numerous peoples over the centuries. The Basques’ arrival cemented Red Bay’s historical importance, but the land holds significance for many communities whose histories are deeply connected to this UNESCO World Heritage Site. Parks Canada values the rich interactions and cooperation with these communities, facilitating a project where diverse voices can share their stories and celebrate Red Bay National Historic Site’s global significance. Nationally, Parks Canada collaborates with Indigenous peoples to create interpretive materials and activities that foster a deeper understanding of Indigenous perspectives, cultures, and traditions.
As part of Parks Canada’s renewal of Red Bay National Historic Site, a project completed in 2019 amalgamated the site’s interpretive facilities, previously housed in separate locations. Funded through federal infrastructure investments, this project unified the visitor orientation centre with the visitor interpretation centre, presenting Red Bay’s UNESCO World Heritage story as a cohesive whole and reducing the site’s environmental footprint in line with the Government of Canada’s greening efforts. Combined with the new funding for exhibits, this brings the total federal investment in Red Bay National Historic Site to $6.2 million.
“The Government is committed to investing in local economies and supporting growth in the tourism sector. Through this federal infrastructure investment, Parks Canada is proudly contributing to the country’s world-class tourism offer at Red Bay National Historic Site. These new, interactive signature exhibits will welcome Canadians and visitors from around the world for years to come, providing them with opportunities to learn about the rich natural and cultural heritage of the area, of the Basque whalers who made their livings here, of the Indigenous peoples that lived here for millennia and the community members who have made this UNESCO World Heritage Site their home.” Yvonne Jones.
Monday, June 10, 2024
Monday, June 10, 2024
Monday, June 10, 2024
