On the road from Lewisporte to Twillingate is the
Beothuk Interpretation Center. This is the site of a major settlement of the
Beothuk people. The beothuk were a First Nations people who lived in Newfoundland for perhaps a couple of thousand years prior to Cabot's discovery in 1497. Following deaths that came from European diseases such as TB and from violent interactions with settlers, the last of the Beothuks died in 1827. A very sad story indeed. Archaeologists from Memorial University in St John's
discovered the site in 1981 after extended surveys looking for likely sites. Sure enough, this was a very active site in the 1600s as subsequent work of the archaeologists demonstrated. The province has preserved the area and built a well imagined interpretation center.
A recent development is to build a spirit garden near the cove. The rangers provide shells, cloth and twigs for visitors to attach to the trees at the spirit garden. They believe this was close to Beothuk spiritual practice. I left a remembrance for my deceased parents. I am not a spiritual person but could certainly feel the power at the garden.
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| The center |
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| Inside the center |
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| Spirit Garden |
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| Spirit Garden |
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