Northwest Brook: Like Ivany's Cove, lumbering was more important than fishing in Northwest Brook (also referred to as North West Brook), however, there were some who engaged in fishing.

In the census of 1884, 30 of 54 indicated that they were fishermen; the rest most likely worked in the woods. From Decks Awash, here is a snippet of what life was like in the early days of the 20th century:

Mildred Whalen [a local resident] can remember the first child born in North West Brook-Mrs. Julie Hiscock-who was 12 hours old by the time the nurse arrived.

Nurses had to come by train from St. John's to Northern Bight, where they were picked up by horse and buggy. Max Button had the first vehicle, a Model T Ford, and took over the job of transporting the nurse from the train.

Groceries came by boat in summer and by train in winter. The railway declined in importance once the road went through. Mildred was also the first person in the community to have a gas washer, but soon there were plenty, she says:

"They were just the same as a motor when you started them, and you would know when everyone was washing because you could hear the motors cutting in."

Two settlements grew around two streams that emptied into Southwest Arm: North West Brook on the north side, and Black Brook on the south, and in the 1950s, with road construction becoming a major employer (the then "new" Trans-Canada Highway was built just behind and above North West Brook), houses were built on the land between the two waterways, and the resulting community took the name of North West Brook.

In 2016 the combined communities of Northwest Brook-Ivany's Cove-Queen's Cove had a population of 391, a 2.9% increase over the 380 of 2011.

Ivany's Cove: Ivany Cove or Ivany's Cove was named after the Ivany family, who had lived in the area since the 1750s. It is believed that the town of Ivanhoe was also named after this same family.

Because the community is at the head of the arm (i.c., far away from the inshore fishing grounds) it was not settled as early some of the other settlements closer to the opening of the arm.

Most of the residents either worked on the railway or in road construction, as well as logging and building homes.

Used with permission from "Uncovering the Origin of 1001 Unique Place Names in Newfoundland and Labrador" 2021 Jennifer Leigh Hill

Address of this page: http://nl.ruralroutes.com/NorthWestBrookNL