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wabana 493
Wabana
WABANA (inc. 1950; pop. 1991, 3608). Wabana is the largest community on Bell Island qv. The history of Wabana is closely tied to the development of the mines. As early as 1578, Anthony Parkhurst qv noted the presence of iron ore on Bell Island. In 1612, in¬ vestor Percival WiUoughby qv was informed by Henry Crout that, "the like land is not in Newfoundland for good earth and great hope of Irone stone" (Cell). WiUoughby attempted, unsuccessfully, to gain owner¬ ship of the island. There appears to have been some attempt at mining the ore c. 1819; Lewis Anspach qv noted a mine at Back Cove, but gave no details. In 1891, just before full-scale commercial mining began, 709 people were living on Bell Island, fishing and farming. In 1895 the Butler family of Topsail gained the rights to the iron ore deposit, which was subse¬ quently developed by the New Glasgow Coal, Iron and Railway Co. The secretary of the company, Thomas Cantley, decided to name the area around the mine "Wabana". Derived from the Abnaki words wabunaki (eastland) and waban (the dawn), the name was chosen because the mine was the most easterly in North Amer¬ ica. The New Glasgow Co. purchased the mine from the Butlers and in turn sold out to the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Co., popularly known as the Scotia Co. It was soon discovered that the main body of ore, acquired by the Whitney Company (later Dominion Steel), lay in beds beneath the surface. As early as 1896, 180 miners
went on an unsuccessful strike, asking for 12 cents an hour, a raise of 2 cents. Four years later, 1600 workers struck, demanding a raise to 15 cents an hour. Some 1100 of them belonged to the Wabana Workmen and Labourers Union, led by Thomas St. John. The bitter strike was ended by what became known as 'the Treaty of KeUigrews': the men were given raises but the union was dissolved.
The total population of Bell Island was 1320 in 1901, and included 199 miners. Other miners com¬ muted to work from around Conception Bay, many of them living in company "mess shacks" during the week and returning home on weekends. By 1911, 265 miners and their families, in a total population of 1604 people were living in the area around the mines. The community had Roman Catholic, Church of England and Salvation Army churches. There were about 28 factory buildings in the community, and it had five merchants and two doctors. By 1921 there were also Methodist and Presbyterian churches, and a popula¬ tion of 2672, including 424 people employed in the mine. The shore fishery had virtually ceased to exist.
In 1920 mining operations were taken over by the British Empire Steel Company (BESCO), and later by the Dominion Steel Company (DOSCO). Anew union, the Wabana Mine Workers, was formed and was led for many years by D.L (Nish) Jackman qv. The mine experienced its share of disasters. In 1938 a methane
Object Description
Description
| Title | Page 493 |
| Description | Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, volume 5 [Extract: letter W] |
| PDF File | (31.06 MB) -- http://collections.mun.ca/PDFs/cns_enl/ENLV5W.pdf |
| Transcript | wabana 493 Wabana WABANA (inc. 1950; pop. 1991, 3608). Wabana is the largest community on Bell Island qv. The history of Wabana is closely tied to the development of the mines. As early as 1578, Anthony Parkhurst qv noted the presence of iron ore on Bell Island. In 1612, in¬ vestor Percival WiUoughby qv was informed by Henry Crout that, "the like land is not in Newfoundland for good earth and great hope of Irone stone" (Cell). WiUoughby attempted, unsuccessfully, to gain owner¬ ship of the island. There appears to have been some attempt at mining the ore c. 1819; Lewis Anspach qv noted a mine at Back Cove, but gave no details. In 1891, just before full-scale commercial mining began, 709 people were living on Bell Island, fishing and farming. In 1895 the Butler family of Topsail gained the rights to the iron ore deposit, which was subse¬ quently developed by the New Glasgow Coal, Iron and Railway Co. The secretary of the company, Thomas Cantley, decided to name the area around the mine "Wabana". Derived from the Abnaki words wabunaki (eastland) and waban (the dawn), the name was chosen because the mine was the most easterly in North Amer¬ ica. The New Glasgow Co. purchased the mine from the Butlers and in turn sold out to the Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Co., popularly known as the Scotia Co. It was soon discovered that the main body of ore, acquired by the Whitney Company (later Dominion Steel), lay in beds beneath the surface. As early as 1896, 180 miners went on an unsuccessful strike, asking for 12 cents an hour, a raise of 2 cents. Four years later, 1600 workers struck, demanding a raise to 15 cents an hour. Some 1100 of them belonged to the Wabana Workmen and Labourers Union, led by Thomas St. John. The bitter strike was ended by what became known as 'the Treaty of KeUigrews': the men were given raises but the union was dissolved. The total population of Bell Island was 1320 in 1901, and included 199 miners. Other miners com¬ muted to work from around Conception Bay, many of them living in company "mess shacks" during the week and returning home on weekends. By 1911, 265 miners and their families, in a total population of 1604 people were living in the area around the mines. The community had Roman Catholic, Church of England and Salvation Army churches. There were about 28 factory buildings in the community, and it had five merchants and two doctors. By 1921 there were also Methodist and Presbyterian churches, and a popula¬ tion of 2672, including 424 people employed in the mine. The shore fishery had virtually ceased to exist. In 1920 mining operations were taken over by the British Empire Steel Company (BESCO), and later by the Dominion Steel Company (DOSCO). Anew union, the Wabana Mine Workers, was formed and was led for many years by D.L (Nish) Jackman qv. The mine experienced its share of disasters. In 1938 a methane |
