The English Harbour East Fishing Sheds are a collection of over a dozen fisheries structures dating to the latter half of the twentieth century. Many of the sheds were constructed from buildings that were dismantled and moved during the 1960s as part of the resettlement program. Some of the sheds were originally used as homes and fishing premises in the now abandoned communities of Bay de L'Eau, Conne and Femme.

 

They were given a new lease on life in the community of English Harbour East. Some were used for grocery and clothing stores while others were reassembled to serve as fishing sheds. These fishing sheds are a physical reminder of the resettlement program, an event in our province's history that affected many coastal communities and the people who were uprooted from them.

 

Left: Kearley's Shed before restoration                                          Right: Kearley's Shed after restoration   Freeman Lawrence of Conne, Fortune Bay, originally used this building as a herring store. In the 1960s it was dismantled and moved to English Harbour East. Elizabeth Kearley operated a convenience store from the property for several years. It is now used by Harold and Gary Kearley to store fishing gear.

 

The sheds that dot the shores of English Harbour East are now used exclusively for fishing purposes, particularly the storage of fishing gear. In recognition of the importance of the sheds to the community's landscape, the Town of English Harbour East applied to the Fisheries Heritage Preservation Program to aid in the restoration and stabilization of the sheds. Some of sheds had damaged roofs, others needed repairs to foundation shores, and all were in need of a general facelift.