Brigus, Newfoundland and Labrador

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Brigus
other_name =
native_name =
nickname =
settlement_type = Town
motto =


imagesize =
image_caption =


flag_size =
image_

seal_size =
image_shield = Brigus.jpg
shield_size =
city_logo =
citylogo_size =


mapsize =
map_caption =


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
pushpin_

pushpin_label_position = left
pushpin_map_caption = Location of Brigus in Newfoundland
pushpin_mapsize =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = CAN
subdivision_type1 = Province
subdivision_name1 = NL
subdivision_type2 =
subdivision_name2 =
subdivision_type3 = Census division
subdivision_name3 = 1
subdivision_type4 =
subdivision_name4 =
government_footnotes =
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Byron Rodway
leader_title1 = MHA
leader_name1 = Tom Hedderson (Harbour Main)
leader_title2 = MP
leader_name2 = Fabian Manning (Avalon)
leader_title3 =
leader_name3 =
leader_title4 =
leader_name4 =
established_title = Settled
established_date = 1612
established_title2 = Incorporated (town)
established_date2 = July 21, 1964
established_title3 =
established_date3 =
area_magnitude =
unit_pref =
area_footnotes =
area_total_km2 = 11.57
area_land_km2 =
area_water_km2 =
area_total_sq_mi =
area_land_sq_mi =
area_water_sq_mi =
area_water_percent =
population_as_of = [http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census06/data/profiles/community/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=1001446&Geo2=PR&Code2=10&Data=Count&SearchText=Brigus&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=10&B1=All&Custom= 2006]
population_footnotes =
population_note =
population_total = 794
population_density_km2 = 68.6
population_density_sq_mi =
timezone = Newfoundland Standard
utc_offset = -3:30
timezone_DST = Newfoundland Daylight
utc_offset_DST = -2:30
latd = 47
latm = 32
lats = 06
latNS = N
longd = 53
longm = 12
longs = 29
longEW = W
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 30
elevation_ft =
postal_code_type = Postal code span
postal_code = A0A-1K0
area_code = 709
blank_name = Highways
blank_info = Highway 60
Highway 70
website = [http://www.brigus.net/ Town of Brigus]
footnotes =

Brigus is a small fishing community located in Conception Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Brigus was home to Captain Bob Bartlett and the location of his residence Hawthorne Cottage.

Incorporated in November 1964, Brigus' first Mayor was Fred Bartlett. The present Mayor is David G. Hiscock. Rev. R. Wells was the first Clergy Mayor elected in the Province.

Geography

Located in a sheltered bay it has been home to many fishermen and a strategic location in early times. Brigus is located adjacent to Cuper's Cove (modern day Cupids) an English settlement established in 1610 by John Guy on behalf of Bristol's Society of Merchant Venturers.

Brigus is located approximately 80 km west of St. John's, and is accessible via Route 70-A just 18 km from the Trans Canada Highway (TCH).

Demography

History

The name "Brigus" comes from the "Brickhouse" which was the name of an old town in England. Brigus' history dates back to around 1612, when John Guy sold half of the Harbour to the Spracklin family. At this time Brigus was mostly settled by people from England, Ireland, and Wales.

Brigus is famous for its sea Captains, it was in 1819 when Captain William Munden built the schooner "Four Brothers", the first one hundred ton schooner in Newfoundland (built 1819).

There were many "Arctic Heroes" that came from this historic town:
*Captain John Bartlett sailed with the American explorer Isaac Israel Hayes and also with Admiral Robert Peary
*Captain Sam Bartlett who sailed with Peary
*Captain Robert Bartlett who was in charge of the "S.S. Roosevelt" when Peary reached the North Pole, who later survived the wreck of the "Karluk", and who later helmed the schooner "Effie M. Morrissey"
*Captain Arthur Bartlett
*Captain William Norman who rescued Admiral Adolphus Greely
*Captain Isaac Bartlett who rescued Captain Tyson and crew after drifting on an iceberg for 1500 miles
*Captain William Bartlett, known as "the Commodore of the sealing fleet in Newfoundland".

Attractions

Brigus is a popular tourist stop, renowned for its scenic qualities and places of interest. Among these are the site of The Vindicator, where the Brigus newspaper was printed at the turn of the century; the Convent of Mercy, built in 1860 for the Mercy Sisters who came from Ireland in 1861; the local Orange Lodge; Hawthorne Cottage, now a national historic site; "The Tunnel" bored through solid rock on the waterfront in 1860 to provide access to a deep water berth for the Bartlett sailing ships; the Stone Barn Museum; Jubilee Club, the meeting place of the "Merchant Princes of Brigus" from the late 1800s to the mid 1900s; St. George' s Anglican Church, consecrated in 1845; Brigus United Church, dedicated in 1875 on the site of an earlier church; and the Roman Catholic Church, built in 1832.

References

Further reading

* John Northway Leamon, 1998, "Brigus: Past Glory, Present Splendour", St. John's: Harry Cuff Publications.

External links

* [http://www.brigus.net/ Official Town Website]
* For Statistics Canada detail demographics follow this [http://www12.statcan.ca/english/profil01/CP01/Details/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Geo1=CSD&Code1=1001446&Geo2=PR&Code2=10&Data=Count&SearchText=Brigus&SearchType=Begins&SearchPR=10&B1=Population&Custom= link]