In addition to the exhibits The Rooms has an extensive research archive which I made use of during our visit to look up the photograph that the U.S. Navy took of my Great Grandmother's home before they tore everything down to build the base.
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| Margaret Griffin's home in Marquise 1941 - image courtesy of The Rooms |
Who knows what I could dig up with a little more time on my hands? I took a quick tour through the photos of Marquise and Argentia properties and unfortunately none featured people but a few had sheep hanging out in the yard!
The view of St. John's Harbour and the Narrows was fantastic, complete with Cabot Tower atop Signal Hill off in the distance.
Inside were a variety of exhibits, including this old map print which was just beautiful to me.
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| "Black Seal" Christopher Pratt, 1970 |
I'm sure because it reminded me of the baby seal my Grandad gave me. I'm a bit horrified now by the idea, but when I was small I thought it was the neatest thing ever. Canada banned the killing of white-coated seals in 1987 and the Inuit in Labrador who still hunt seals for subsistence and to make a living never hunted them. For more on the history of sealing in Newfoundland I found this link.
The Giant Squid on display in the museum was pretty neat. The first still photographs of one of these huge creatures were captured in 2004, and footage was taken of one floating on the surface of the water in 2006. But researchers and cameramen had never before managed to catch a glimpse of them in the ocean abyss until 2013!
Did you know it has the largest eyes in the animal kingdom? They can grow as large as a human head, and can detect even small amounts of light in the deepest ocean.
Whaling in Newfoundland has been going on for centuries, and I also found another article about the commercial whaling industry that was interesting. Neither seal hunting nor whaling were activities commercially pursued in our area of Placentia Bay to my knowledge.
A very large exhibit pertaining to World War One was located on the second floor. On August 8, 1914 Governor Sir Walter Davidson promised Britain that the Dominon of Newfoundland would raise a regiment of 500 men and send 1000 sailors for the war effort.
I'm not very interested in war history, but did find the ditty below amusing.
Despite the smiles in the photo below, war is hell, and in addition to the expected fighting the men suffered from hunger, dysentery, yellow jaundice, trench feet and more.
The Battle of the Somme was the Newfoundland regiment's first major engagement, and during an assault that lasted approximately 30 minutes the regiment was all but wiped out. The Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial is located in France and was purchased in 1921 by the people of Newfoundland, the memorial site is the largest battalion memorial on the Western Front, and the largest area of the Somme battlefield that has been preserved. Along with preserved trench lines, there are a number of memorials and cemeteries contained within the site.
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| Weighing salt cod, ca. 1900 |
There were many exhibits throughout the museum from music and social aspects of Newfoundland to the almighty cod which was the backbone of its economy. Speaking of cod, after our look around we met up with Wayne's brother Jim and his wife Donnie for lunch at the Cafe. I eyed my sister-in-law's lunch of cod tongues with some skepticism. When offered a taste I politely declined, but must admit the presentation was clever.
What better way to end a visit to the museum than a traditional menu with a modern twist and a fabulous view of St. John's? Jim volunteers at The Rooms himself and was very enthusiastic about what it has to offer.
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| Wayne and his brother Jim |
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