We arrived in Argentia, Newfoundland at 8:30 am Newfoundland time. That is 30 minutes later than Atlantic time. I have never been any place where the time zone changes by 30 minutes, but there must be a reason for this, just like China has only one time zone. The weather has not improved and has only gotten worse--50 degrees and horizontal rain. The pictures of our arrival tell the story.
We were off the boat in 30 minutes and on our way to St. Johns, an hour and a half away. We stopped at a small visitors center in Argentia and discovered that Argentia was one of the first places the US sent resources and troops as a result of the Lend Lease Act at the beginning of WWII. Our trip to St. Johns was made in the rain and we didn't see any moose.
Our first stop in St. Johns was St. John the Baptist Basilica, where we had a baptismal certificate for Elizabeth Furlong from 1849. Coming to the church was one of our motivators for coming to Newfoundland. Elizabeth was Grandpa Burke's maternal grandmother.
Joe was actually able to stand by the baptismal font of his great-grandmother!
St. John's has a modern and very elegant new museum to tell its story to residents and tourists alike. We headed there next to learn about St. Johns, but also to access the archives to see what else we could find about this branch of the family. We had to pay $10 and join the Newfoundland historical society, but we are members for life! This allowed us to discover some new things about the Burkes. Thomas W Kelly (grandpa Burke's maternal grandfather) was also baptized at St. John the Baptist on February 8, 1854. We had this as his birthdate, but it was his baptism date. His parents were Michael Kelly and Mary Murphy. This is information we did not have before. It was exciting to go through the records searching for someone who came before you and then to actually find them! We also found the Elizabeth had a sister named Bridget who was baptized on October 11, 1854. Elizabeth Furlong and Thomas Kelly married, but we could not find a record of their marriage in St.Johns. Perhaps they married in Chicago, that is where their daughter (grandpa Burke's mother) Bridget Catherine Kelly was born.
We checked into our room at Memorial University, a big public university without much charm, but lots of utility and efficiency. Our room is adequate with an interesting layout for bathroom facilities. When I left to take a shower this morning, I told Joe I was going to the south 40 and if I didn't come back after while to come look for me. But we are only paying $55 a night including all the Canadian taxes, which are 15%.
Next, we went to 5 o'clock mass and sat in the pew right behind the baptismal font. I couldn't stop wondering about what the time was like in the mid 1800s when Elizabeth and Thomas were baptized and what hopes and dreams their parents had for these two children. What did they wear? How did they get to the church?
Fortunately for us, this weekend is the 35th Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. This was supposed to have been outside, but the rain, wind and cold forced it inside the city's event center large enough to hold 8000. We came at 6:30 and for the next 5 hours listened to all sorts of folk music--most of it Canadian and much of that "newfie" music, as the locals call it. The people of Newfoundland are very proud of their music heritage, which is a combination of Irish and Scottish. We enjoyed ourselves so much, we are going back tonight for another round!
Today we slept in late--so late we didn't believe Joe's watch when it said 11:30. I told him to check another one, as his is a Chinese knock-off and has been known to not keep accurate time. But the watch works as well in Newfoundland as China and it was correct. After we got ourselves going we had lunch in a restaurant on the harbor and then went to Cape Spear, which is the farthest east you can go on the North American continent. It also has one oldest lighthouses in Canada.
That's all for now! Soon we are off to hear more great music!
Diane
Wow! Looking at the pictures above, you would think that the weather is ruining our vacation. But we are having a ball!
There is something about this part of North America that I love! I told Diane today that I think this is one of my most favorite areas, next to Colorado. Why? I think its because of a couple of factors. One - I like the geographic mixture of oceans, lakes, forests, alpine-like meadows, and rolling hills with well-kept farms that makes you think of Iowa.
But most importantly, I think its the people. Newfoundland is dominated by Irish and Scots. Irish alone are 1/2 of the population. So-over the past few days something has risen up in my DNA or gene pool that has brought out my Irish heritage like never before! I like the people. I like the music, I like the fact that some of Irish ancestors came from here. For some reason, I feel very comfortable here, and would like to learn more about this place.
It's also been an emotional time for me. This trip has really made me think about two things:
1. the sacrifices that our ancestors made in coming to North America, and the fact that we (generations later) have greatly benefited from their heroic deeds; and
2. a whole series of questions relating to immigrants and immigration, including
a. what were these people like;
b. why did they make the decisions that they did, and what were the trials and tribulations that they went through;
c. How did both the Burkes and O'Neills end up in Chicago?
I think I might have come up with a few possible answers here in St. Johns, but it will take too long to explain tonight. More to come.
Joe
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