The Hole is located near the corner of Beach Road and Main Road in New Perlican, NL. The designation is confined to the footprint of the landscape feature known as The Hole.
Formal Recognition Type
Municipal Heritage Building, Structure or Land
Heritage Value
The Hole has been designated a municipal heritage site by the Town of New Perlican because of its cultural and aesthetic value.
The Hole has cultural value for generations of New Perlican residents who have a shared recollection of its cultural use. The Hole was a meeting place for local men on Sunday afternoons when the noon meal (colloquially referred to as dinner) was over. Dressed in their Sunday best, the men would sit on the rocks that filled The Hole and chat away the afternoon. The men who gathered there included Albert Burrage, Willis Penney, Edgar Burrage, John Legge, Pete Critch, Hedley Critch, James Callahan, Gus Smith, Walt White, Eric Piercey and Norm Seward. Children often accompanied their fathers to The Hole as a pastime but didn’t usually stay as long as the men did.
On fine Sunday afternoons in the summer The Hole was an especially popular place. If someone passed along the road near The Hole, the men would be quiet when the passersby were directly in front of The Hole – remaining quiet until they were out of hearing range and the conversation resumed. They did not want anyone to overhear what was being said. Indeed, Albert Burrage’s daughter recalls him saying that whatever was “said in The Hole, certainly stayed in The Hole.” James Callahan’s daughter recalls that her father – who owned gas pumps near The Hole – didn’t let this stop him from participating in the Sunday afternoon ritual. He went to The Hole with the rest of the men but kept an eye on the gas pumps. If a customer stopped for gas, he would walk to the pumps, serve the gas and walk back to The Hole to continue the conversation. Just before supper, the men would leave The Hole and return to their homes.
The Hole has aesthetic value as a known landmark in the community. It is located at the crossroads of Main Road and Beach Road, which leads to scenic Vitter’s Cove. Once a treeless piece of land, The Hole is now a treed, sheltered location but the shared recollection of its use ensures that it will continue to be an important part of the community’s cultural landscape.
Source: Town of New Perlican Regular Council Meeting Motion #2016-072 June 28, 2016.
Character Defining Elements
All those elements which represent the aesthetic and cultural value of The Hole, including:
-location, orientation and dimensions of The Hole;
-unobstructed view of The Hole form Main Road and Beach Road.
Notes
Poem about “The Hole” written by Edith Burrage (Wife of Albert Burrage)
There was a place in Vitter’s Cove,
The men call it The Hole,
And every summer Sunday evening,
Their stories there they told.
There wasn’t any magic,
Or main attraction there,
For it was just a meeting place,
For neighbours everywhere.
And everything was talked about,
As they their stories told,
It was quite an education,
To sit down in The Hole.
Sometimes a neighbour would drop by,
To sit and talk a while,
The conversation always lagged,
In house seemed out of style.
And very soon the men would say,
“There’s nowhere else to go,
So let’s put on our jackets,
And go down in The Hole”.
Sometimes the children went along,
They liked to go with Dad,
They liked to be a part of things,
And listen to what was said.
And if there was an accident,
You knew just where to go,
You knew you’d find your loving man,
Sitting in The Hole.
But now The Hole it is no more,
Nor are the men who sat there,
But memories, they linger still,
Of the place that was so peaceful.
For there was never bitterness,
For friend there or for foe,
But many friendships were made there,
While sitting in The Hole.
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