Where You Will Go

Bonavista Peninsula

Trinity est. 1503

Only 300 people live here, but they have more than their fair share of excellently preserved and restored traditional architecture, historic sites, outstanding scenery and that indescribable feel of being in the centre of something magical. The natural beauty of the area, a magnificent harbour and the splendid maritime setting strikes newcomers. Others are touched by a powerful sense of history and the pride of place instilled by the cultural landscape. Trinity is a community whose personality has been largely shaped by the sea. The tiny coastal hamlet once had more residents than St. John's. For more than 3 centuries, from its first visit by Portuguese fishermen in the 1500s until well into the 19th century, Trinity benefited from a long and steady tenure as a hub for traders, primarily from England, who supplied the booming fishing economy of Trinity Bay and eastern Newfoundland. Technological advances (including the railroad) doomed Trinity's merchant class, and the town lapsed into an extended economic slumber.

But even today, you can see lingering traces of the town's former affluence, from the attractive flourishes in much of the architecture to the rows of white picket fences all around the village. The harbour has been proclaimed as one of the best in Newfoundland, even one of the finest in the world. It not only provided abundant shelter and good holding ground, but also spacious. Trinity Harbour has provided access to and refuge from the North Atlantic since the early 16th century when it was first used by European fishermen. West Countrymen from England began using it as a summer station in the migratory fishery in the 1570s.

Trinity might be the oldest town on the continent.