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Newfoundland Tourism Region : Labrador
Happy Valley-Goose Bay: Located on the northern shore of the Churchill River, approximately 11 km (7 mi) above its entrance to Lake Melville, in the interior of Labrador, one could easily believe that "Happy Valley" must have been named to reflect/propound a positive response to the geographic feature. But its derivation might not be that simple below is a brief history on how the town developed over time.
Given that Happy Valley is in the interior of Labrador, it is obvious that the draw to the area had nothing to do with fishing industry rather, it was more likely hunting and trapping that might have brought some of the earliest homesteaders to the area. The first official "settlers", according to material presented in the ENL, were three families, the Saunders, the Broromfields and the Perraults, who were enticed to come from coastal Labrador communities to work with the McNamara Construction Company which was building the Goose Bay Air Force Base.
They originally settled into a near-by area known as Otter Creek, however, shortly afterwards after getting established, the residents were told by authorities that they were "too close" to the proposed air force base and would need to relocate at least 8 km (5 mi) from the base. The new location was given the somewhat unpleasant name of "Refugee Cove". In describing the early settlement camp, it is written in the ENL that "during the early years of the community, life was difficult for the residents as there was no electricity or indoor plumbing and the nearest stores and hospital were 40 km (25 mi) away at Northwest River" but over time the community grew.
In 1945 there were 229 residents and many more services had been established and in 1955, the community was renamed "Happy Valley" - a name one would assume was chosen to reflect the "happier times" ahead. The town continued to grow because of the employment opportunities at the base and by 1961 there were 2,861 residents, at which point the town was incorporated and the first town council in Labrador was elected. The community grew significantly again when in 1973 Happy Valley was amalgamated with the Local Improvement District of Goose Bay, and from that point on, the town was known as Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
According to the information cited in the ENL when the new town of Happy Valley-Goose Bay was formed, "it had all of the facilities of a modern town including churches, schools, police, fire department, hotels, barber shops, beauty salons and television". One would assume Goose Bay was named for the geese that lived in the "bay".
The airport, formally known as the Goose Bay Air Force Base, played an important role in WWII, and according to material presented in the ENL, by 1942 there were 1,700 service personnel and 700 civilians at the base. Built by the Canadian Government, it was also shared by the USA and Great Britain, and became a major refuelling and shuttle stop for overseas flights. As of 1943 it was the largest airport in the world, and statistics showed that from September 1944 to 1945 the airport serviced over 24,000 planes.
Over time the airport has diminished in importance, however the Canadian Armed Forces and North American Aerospace Defense Command (i.e., NORAD) still use the base, known as 5 Wing Goose Bay, for operations and training exercises. The town itself has grown to 8,109 residents (a 7.4% increase over the 7,552 of 2011) and is now a major service centre for Central Labrador.
Used with permission from "Uncovering the Origin of 1001 Unique Place Names in Newfoundland and Labrador" 2021 Jennifer Leigh Hill
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