Waterford and Newfoundland have had close ties due to fishing and migration for centuries. Now these ancient links are being celebrated in a new exhibition, writes Catherine Foley
Once upon a time, Newfoundland was "merely Waterford parted from the sea". That's how commentator Henry Winton described the unusual link between the two places in 1859. In Newfoundland today family names from the south-east of Ireland are everywhere - Aylward, Dobbyn, Maddock, Nugent, Coughlan, Power, Phelan, McGrath, Mooney, Tobin, Coady and Walsh.
The majority of the Irish who travelled to Newfoundland went out originally to fish for cod. They came from within a 30-mile radius of Waterford and by 1850 they constituted half of the island's population.
A permanent exhibition, which was opened by the President, Mrs McAleese, in the Waterford Museum of Treasures this week, sheds new light on Newfoundland's historic relationship with Waterford. Photographic and documentary evidence, as well as valuable artefacts, tell the story of the thousands of men who travelled seasonally to work on the Grand Banks fishing grounds before and throughout the 18th century.
The busiest fishing period was between 1780 and 1820, when there were about 3,000 men leaving from the port of Waterford heading for Newfoundland each spring and the quays were hives of activity and leave-taking.
The voyage out took about 40 days and the return journey in the autumn took much less, because of the prevailing winds.
The ties to Ireland remained strong through generations of settlers. Many returned to Waterford to marry or be baptised. According to one local record in Waterford: Honora Walsh, aged 22, from Newfoundland, was baptised in St Patrick's Church, Waterford on December 7th, 1760.
By 1820, it is estimated that up to 33,000 people from Waterford and its hinterland had settled in Newfoundland.
Eamonn McEneaney, curator of the exhibition on Newfoundland and director of the Waterford Museum of Treasures where it is housed, says: "The migration to Newfoundland from the south-east of Ireland was the largest mass migration from a single region prior to the Great Famine of 1845-1849."
During McEneaney's research he visited graveyards in St John's, the capital of Newfoundland, and recalls how he felt: "You do feel a tingling in the spine. You can see the Waterford names on all the headstones . . . Then when you are walking along the main street and you see all the shop fronts - Aylward, Power, McGrath. It's kind of peculiar."
The recent twinning of Waterford with St John's has brought a new focus to this historic link. The exhibition, on the second floor of the Waterford Museum of Treasures at the Granary on Merchant's Quay, with sponsorship by the State-funded Ireland/Newfoundland Partnership, has helped raise awareness in the city of these once strong links.
The display includes an interactive exhibition designed to appeal to schoolchildren, says McEneaney. The exhibition is also likely to appeal to some of the 3,000 Canadian tourists who visit the museum each year. With five electronic pads to step on, users can call up a range of images and audio-visual material and learn about this forgotten part of the city's history.
The artefacts on display include a jigger, which is a long line with a huge hook and a weight at its base in the shape of a fish, which was used to catch cod by men suspended in barrels over the side of the ship. Back on shore, the fish were gutted, headed, split, salted and spread on flakes or wooden platforms to dry in the sun. Dried flat, it was an easily stored and exported source of protein, adds Jack Burtchaell, a local historian who did preliminary research for the exhibition.
The most fascinating item, says McEneaney, is the Newfoundland Urn, which was made in Bristol in 1807. The silver urn was presented to the first Catholic bishop of Newfoundland, James Louis O'Donel, from Knocklofty, Co Tipperary. He was the first English-speaking Catholic bishop in North America. He had been appointed bishop to Newfoundland by the Bishop of Waterford in 1796.
The urn "was a gift from the people of Newfoundland to the bishop. It shows how Catholic Irish they were and how they kept their traditions with them," says McEneaney.
The exhibition includes many early photographs from Newfoundland - of people at work salting and drying the fish, in their homes and views of St John's. There are paintings from the home of Thomas Meagher, from South Tipperary, who emigrated to St John's in 1795 but returned to Waterford in 1817 to become a wealthy exporter. The exhibition contains a portrait of his son, Thomas Meagher Junior, who became the first Catholic mayor of Waterford and was father of Thomas Francis Meagher, one of the Young Irelanders.
One of the exhibition's most heart-warming elements is the inclusion of Irish words and sayings that are still in use in Newfoundland today. Phrases collected by Aly O'Brien who lives in Newfoundlandinclude annis (sickly), a foosterer (fumbler), angishore (unhealthy person), a noody-nawdy (foolish person) and a sleeveen (sly person). According to McEneaney, many people there still speak with Waterford accents.
• Waterford Museum of Treasures is open 7 days, 9.30 a.m. to 9 p.m in summer. Adults €4, children under 16 €2, under 5 free. www.waterfordtreasures.com