Pinware: Located south of Red Bay, Pinware is a rather odd name for a town.

It is believed to be named by French fishermen who frequented the area in the hunt for fish. It has had three very different names over time: Riviere des Francois, Pirouette River and Black Bay.

According to information written in the ENL, it is believed that Pinware is a corruption of either Pied Noire (Black Foot) or Baie Noir (meaning Black Bay).

Both of these possibilities refer to a large rock that stands at the mouth of Black Rock Brook and is shaped like a foot. Pinware has a long and rich history dating back thousands of years:

Artifacts discovered adjacent to the town of Pinware indicate, from radiocarbon dating, that Pinware Hill is one of the earliest Palaco Indian archaeological sites in the province, dating back nearly 9000 years.

Many different Aboriginal cultures lived in the area of Pinware from time to time. The longest time of habitation was probably during the Maritime Archaic period.

A burial monument near L'Anse-Amour, just south of Pinware, dating to 7500 years ago, is attributed to the Maritime Archaic and is the oldest such mound in North America, maybe even the world.

Later, Pre-Dorset Palaeo-Eskimos used the rich marine resources found at Pinware. They were followed by the Groswater Palaeo-Eskimos and then the Dorset Paleo-Eskimo cultures who also utilized the rich marine resources while continuing their migration southward to the Island of Newfoundland.

Europeans were attracted to the area in the 16th century for the rich marine resources just as the Indigenous peoples were.

More "recently" Pinware is recognized for its early involvement with the fishery industry.

The Basque who operated one of the New World's earliest whaling stations at Red Bay [between 1530 and 1600], more than likely travelled to Pinware for various reasons, one of which may have been firewood.

Jacques Cartier may have visited the area in 1534. By the 1600s some French fishermen lived in big summer houses, caught & dried their fish, and barked their twine in a big iron barking pot that can still be seen at Ship Head.

Pierre Constantin, a merchant, was given control of the area in 1715. A trading post was opened, and the seal hunt and salmon fishery were integral to its operation.

Later, the English merchants of Noble and Pinson established a post there.

The first year-round European settlers were probably the family of an Irishman, John O'Dell, who made their way to Pinware via Carbonear in the late 1700s.

Some of the first houses are said to have been built from lumber salvaged from a shipwreck. The ship's bell was placed in Pinware's first Roman Catholic Church, build in the early 1800s and one of the first churches on the Labrador Coast.

While the population peaked to nearly 150 people in the early 2000s, recently there has been a dramatic decrease. In 2016 there were only 88 residents, a 17.8% decrease from the 107 recorded in 2011. Nearly Pinware Provincial Park brings tourists to the area in the summer months.

PINWARE RIVER PROVINCIAL PARK:

On the southeastern tip of Labrador facing the Strait of Belle Isle, across from the northern top of the Great Northern Peninsula, Pinware River Provincial Park is a 68 hectare (168.0 acre) park located on route 510, approximately 32 km (8.9 mi) southwest from Red Bay.

A ferry crosses from St. Barbe on the Great Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland to southern Labrador approximately 53 km (32.9 mi) south of the park. Opened in 1974, the park covers diverse terrain and vegetation.

As mentioned earlier in the section on the town of Pinware, it is believed that Pinware is a correction of either Pied Noire (Black Foot) or Baie Noire (meaning Black Bay).

Both of these possibilities refer to a large rock that stands at the mouth of Black Rock Brook and is shaped like a foot.

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/Pinware