On Canada’s most easterly point of land, the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland and Labrador offers a glimpse into the lives of 19th century lighthouse keepers and their families. Marvel at icebergs, migrating whales, and hunting seabirds on this rough Atlantic coast.
A glimmer of hope at Cape Spear
During Historic Places Days, from 8 July 2023, let yourself be guided by the stories of lighthouses and the families who have occupied them. These familiar landmarks have a lot to tell!
During the day of November 16th, 1861, the ships Salmah and Harriet were forced to wait at anchor between Cape Spear and the entrance to St. John’s Harbour after heavy seas prevented them from entering the port. Watching from shore, Lightkeeper and former harbour pilot James Cantwell, very familiar with the weather in the area, became worried that if the wind shifted to the Northeast, the two ships would be blown around on the Cape. Very soon his worse fears came true: as the wind turned North Easterly, the two ships started dragging their anchors. The Salmah was saved by a steam tug, but the Harriet was doomed. At dawn she ran around on the unforgiving rocky shores of Cape Spear
Fighting the elements and huge personal dangers, the lighthouse keeper and his assistant, James and Dennis Cantwell, worked their way out onto the rocks with ropes for the crewmen to tight onto themselves. There efforts were made even more dangerous as the cargo of the Harriet broke loose, adding huge barrels of pork and flower to the already considerable dangers on a ground, sinking ship.
The Cantwell’s then pulled the crew one at a time ashore. The crew were in terrible shape. They were hypothermic and many were wounded. While the rescue was still ongoing, Elizabeth Cantwell started administering first aid and moved the survivors into her home, the lighthouse. An article reporting the rescue stated that if the Cantwell’s had “…been less active or less skillful in rendering assistance, not on of the poor fellows would have been rescued.”
Keeping a lighthouse like Cape Spear is not the responsibility of a single keeper: it is a family vocation. Without the dedication of each Cantwell, how many families would have mourned the loss of their loved ones?
