Port Hope Simpson
| Port Hope Simpson | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
View over Alexis Bay
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| Coordinates: 52°32′N 56°18′W / 52.533°N 56.300°WCoordinates: 52°32′N 56°18′W / 52.533°N 56.300°W | |
| Country |
 Canada
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| Province |
 Newfoundland and Labrador
|
| Settled | 1934 |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Total | 529 |
| Time zone | Newfoundland Time (UTC-3:30) |
| • Summer (DST) | Newfoundland Daylight (UTC-2:30) |
| Area code(s) | 709 |
Port Hope Simpson, population 529 (2006), is a town located on the southeastern Labrador coast, 215 kilometres from the Quebec/Labrador border in Canada. It began in the 1930s as a company town.
The town is connected by ferry to the nearby town of William's Harbour. It has a small regional Port Hope Simpson Airport serviced by Air Labrador. It has a friendly, independent people with a compelling history and a priority of sustainable development in a region of unspoilt wilderness With the completion of the Port Hope Simpson Airport and Trans-Labrador Highway through the region, Port Hope Simpson has benefitted from an increase in tourism.
The nearby Shinneys Water Complex has 2,500 square kilometres of over 1,000 islands rising dramatically above sea level. These protected waters are ideal for all types of boating and the adjoining Alexis River is a popular fishing destination for Atlantic salmon.
When the Labrador Development Company left in 1948, paid work in the woods left with it until Bowater arrived 14 years later.
The first post office was established on October 21, 1950. The first postmaster was Hayward Green. At the time, the population was 311.
New economic activity took place between 1962 and 1968 as Bowater picked up the pioneering venture laid down by John Osborn Williams, Sir John Hope Simpson and the Labrador Development Company. More trees were felled for their pulp and paper mills at Corner Brook, and in Kent, England. Bowater brought benefits of regular paid employment (though seasonal), twenty miles of forest roads and the government contributed by sharing the cost of building a new wharf. But apart from the post office, the general store and the two schools there was no all-year-round paid employment from 1969 to 1970.
From 1970 to 1992 cod and salmon fishing was the economic mainstay of the area but unemployment prevailed most of the year. In 1992 the cod fishery was closed down altogether. However, many local fishermen made a relatively easy transition into crab, shrimp and scallop fishing.
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