BAY D'ESPOIR:

The derivation of the name "Bay d'Espoir" is very strange to say the least. The Bay is actually a "Bay" within a "Bay" - the larger bay being Hermitage Bay.

From mouth to head, a distance of 50 km (31.1 mi), the bay is "fiord-like" with steep-sided, sheer cliffs that range from 180 to 300 m (approx. 590 to 985 ft) in height.

In Newfoundland, the name is pronounced as if it was written "Bay Despair", but early researchers have maintained that the Bay gets its name from the French "Baie d'Espoir", which if is the case, it would be translated to me "Bay of Hope", and that once it because adopted by anglophones is became referred to as the "Bay Despair" (or "Bay of Despair"), the exact opposite of its original name.

Others maintain that it is the exact opposite, and the inverse is true.

History points to the cartographer Bellin, who in his map dated 1743, has a body of water that he has labeled as "Baye du Desespoir" [which in itself is an error as it should have read "Baye du Despoir" not "Desespoir"]- if that is the case, the "Baye du Desespoir" became the "Bay Despair".

On the 1733 English map of Henry Popple the same body appears as the "Bay Despair" which would mean that right from the start the bay was the "Bay of Despair" and there never was any "Hope".

Confusing? To add to the confusion, according to the ENL listing, different spellings have been found over time, including Dispor Bay (1680), B. du Desespoir (1730s?-1740s?), Disper (1736), Despair Bay (1759), Bay of Dispair (1777), Baye du Desespoir (1784), Bay Despair (1842) and Bay d'Espoir (1899).

Captain Cook clearly labeled the waterway as the "Bay of Despair" however some feel that this is a literal, phonetic translation of the original French, "Baie d'Espoir".

In 1964 a major hydroelectric power station was built, only the second to be built in Newfoundland, near Bay D'Espoir. The town of Head of Bay D'Espoir is now known as Milltown-Head of Bay D'Espoir and in 2016 had a population of 749 residents, a decrease of 5.1% from 2011 when there were 789 inhabitants.

The community of Milltown was settled around the turn of the 20th century when a sawmill was constructed in the area, hence its name.

From Bay D'Espoir all the way to St. George's Bay, where this "section" began there are no bay of major "significance" or at least of enough "significance" to appear in UPPERCASE on the Cook and Lane's Charts. However, there are a number of smaller bays, some with interesting names and most likely interesting history, however, it was difficult to document any of the details. In fact, a couple do not even appear on current maps of the Province.

From east to west the following were noted in 1775 (with an English translation, if recognized as being of French origin): Bay of Facheaux (Unfortunate) (now referred to as Facheaux Bay), Dragon Bay, Hare Bay, the Bay of Renconter, Oar Bay, La Hune (Top) Bay, Old Man's (now shown as Baie de Vieux), White Bear Bay, Wolf Bay, Connaire (Know)Bay, Bay of Cinque Cerfs (Five Deer) (now Cing Cerf Bay), La Poile (Hair) Bay, La Moine (Monk) Bay, Garia Bay, and Grand Bay.

Looking at the list is obvious to see the Francophone influence.

Ones that are on maps of today but not on early maps include Roti Bay, Baic La Maine, Mull Face Bay, Coney Bay, and Otter Bay which are all cast of La Poile Bay, in the area between Channel-Port aux Basques and Harbour Le Cou.

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/Milltown