Notre Dame Bay

Notre Dame Bay cuts into Newfoundland's northern coast, its numerous islands and inlets sheltering fishing grounds rich in cod, seals and seabirds. At Boyd's Cove the Beothuk gathered shellfish, fished and hunted harbour seals, moving to outer islands and headlands for the harp seal season. French fishermen worked the coast seasonally, while English settlement and fishing spread into the bay during the eighteenth century. From Twillingate and Fogo, merchants also sent vessels north to the Labrador fishery.