Coaker Foundation Edith Sampson Port Union 709 469-2207 www.historicportunion.com coaker.foundn@nf.aibn.com ************************ About the Coaker Foundation ************************ Where history was made! Port Union was the only union-built town in Canada. Construction began on the shores of Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, in 1917. Within five years, a busy and modern union town bordered the protected deep-water harbour—all made possible through the hard work and vision of the members of the Fishermen’s Protective Union (the FPU) and their first leader, William Ford Coaker. A self-made man and a tireless worker, Coaker had been a clerk, telegraph operator, customs worker, postmaster, and farmer in the years leading up to the FPU’s formation. A collective-action organizer from an early age, he turned his mind to the problems of the Newfoundland fishermen and saw unionization of this powerless, dispersed group as the solution. Port Union was built to be the home of the Fishermen’s Protective Union. Close to the communities where FPU support was strongest, it became the centre of the FPU’s business in all ways. The Fishermen’s Union Trading Company, formed by the Union to break the merchants’ stranglehold on salt fish prices and trade, moved its operations to the new community in 1918. By 1924, when the FPU’s annual convention centre, Congress Hall, was built and the Union’s weekly newspaper, The Fishermen’s Advocate, had also moved from St. John’s, the town was a hive of mercantile activity. As the century progressed, however, the waning of the FPU’s power and changing economic and political circumstances—particularly the current Moratorium on Northern Cod—led to a corresponding decline in the community. By the late 1990s, what remained of Port Union’s once impressive buildings (re-constructed after a devastating fire in 1945) was in a sad state of neglect and disrepair. Today, however, the outlook has changed again. Through the ongoing work of the community of Port Union and the William F. Coaker Foundation, renewed attention is being shone on the significant heritage and buildings of historic Port Union. The now-restored Factory building is open for tours, and work and planning continues for further restorations and interpretation displays and programs. The Heritage Foundation *********************** The Sir William F. Coaker Heritage Foundation was formed in 1995. An incorporated, not-for-profit, volunteer-based association, it is dedicated to the preservation and careful development of the Historic District of Port Union. Since its formation, the Foundation has initiated and overseen a number of projects related to its mandate of restoration and preservation. These include architectural assessments of many of the existing buildings, historical research, resource preservation and documentation, development of a master plan, site improvement and landscaping, building restoration. The notable achievements for 2004/5 include the completion of the Factory building restoration, and the creation and installation of exterior and interior interpretive signage. For more information please call 709 469-2207 or visit us online at www.historicportunion.ca or via email at coaker.foundn@nf.aibn.com Look for upcoming events! Back To Members List