Cape Spear

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Cape Spear, elev 75 m, most easterly point in N America (excluding Greenland), is located 6.7 km SE of the entrance to St John's harbour, Nfld. A rocky, windswept promontory of Precambrian formation, with a thin, sporadic cover of till and bog, it was first named by the Portuguese (spera, "hope"). It has been a prime landfall for transatlantic navigators, and since 1836 has been the site of an important lighthouse, continuously in use until 1955, when a modern structure was built. During WWII gun emplacements, now largely demolished, were built on the cape. In 1962 Cape Spear was declared a National Historic Park, and the original lighthouse has been restored to its 1840 condition.
Cape Spear
Cape Spear
Cape Spear, Newfoundland, historic lighthouse, most easterly point in North America (Corel Professional Photos).

Author MICHAEL STAVELEY


Links to Other Sites
Cape Spear National Historic Site
This Parks Canada website highlights the history of the oldest surviving lighthouse in Newfoundland.

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