St. John’s
The city of
St. John’s is the capital of
Newfoundland and Labrador. It is situated in the southeast part of the province, on the northeast coastal line of the Avalon Peninsula. St John’s is the second largest city in Atlantic Canada with a population of 100,646 (as of 2006). St. John’s is usually compared to
San Francisco for its hilly land and a maze of streets. The city of St. John’s is also known as the “Weather Champion” of the country. It is the windiest (24.3 km/h average speed) and the cloudiest, only 1,490 hours of average sunshine a year. The city is also the snowiest, with 360 cm of snow, in
Canada. However, St. John’s has comparatively mild winters for Canada and cool-to-warm summers. Average highs and lows vary between 20 °C in July and -8 °C in January.
The city of St. John’s is the
oldest settlement founded by the Englishmen on the North American continent. The city got its name when the first European – the explorer John Cabot sailed into the harbor on the feast day of John the Baptist, June 24, 1497. However, the area of St. John’s was claimed as the England’s first overseas colony under Queen Elizabeth’s Royal Charter almost a century later, on August 5, 1583. St. John’s is known for Shanawdithit: the last man of Newfoundland’s Beothuk people who died from tuberculosis in a city hospital in 1829. And there is another curious fact about the city of St. John’s: Guglielmo Marconi received here the transatlantic transmission. The memorable date was December 12, 1901.
St. John’s has the most distinct style of architecture throughout the country due to its history as one of the earliest British colonial capitals. As a result, the city councils have approved strict regulations concerning the historical heritage in the downtown area, including severe restrictions on the height of buildings. At the same time, the economic boom advocates insist on relaxing the restrictions in favor of faster economic development.
The major industries developed in the city of St. John’s are related to oil and gas, fishing, tourism, and new home construction. According to a recent report to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, St. John’s entered the list of Top Entrepreneurial Cities in Canada. It was ranked 19th overall in the country as a city that offers comfortable and appropriate environment for
small business development.
The most popular attractions in St. John’s include the following: the Signal Hill is a National Historic Site associated with the first transatlantic wireless signal received here by Marconi; the Provincial Museum of Newfoundland and Labrador which is registered as one of Canadian Historic Places; the Railway Coastal Museum and the Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador are two sites that are worth seeing as a part of the city’s historical heritage; the Johnson Geo Center is a place where one can learn the history of Earth through the geological history of the province. Finally, there are several urban parks such as Pippy Park, Bannerman Park and Bowring Park where you can rest your feet and enjoy nature after you completed your sightseeing marathon.