| Upper Island Cove
Upper Island Cove is a unique town both in its physical location and its culture. The town was once known as “The Walled City” because it is built at the bottom of high cliffs which at one time isolated it from other communities. In 1675, the population was fourteen. The current population is 1774 (2001 census). Many residents today have descended from these early fishermen from England and Ireland.
Photo: ©Janice Drover
Photo: ©Kelly Coombs - KR Photography
Upper Island Cove, like many communities on the Avalon is built on very rugged terrain. People had to remove rocks in order to farm the land. The rocks were then used to build rock walls that served as boundaries between properties. The rock walls can still be seen today.
Rock Walls
Photo: ©Lisa Piercey
Since the early days of settlement, music, songs and stories have been handed down from generation to generation. Stories of Fairies or Little People who play evil tricks on inhabitants and stories of ghosts are still told. Music and song is a very big part of Upper Island Cove and the community is well known for its many musicians, singers and story tellers.
The small town has come to national prominence since Jason Greeley (2004) and Craig Sharpe (2006) have made it to the Top 4 and Top 2 respectively in the Canadian Idol Competition. These two young men illustrate the strong community ties and musical traditions of the community.
In addition to being known for their musical abilities, people from the community are known throughout the province for their unique dialect, their quick wit, and brilliant sense of humour.
There are three entrances / exits to the town from Route 70: one through “the Thicket Road” between Harbour Grace and Tilton and two entrances from Spaniard’s Bay: one through the scenic Bishop’s Cove Shoreline and the other through Crane’s Road.
Town of Upper Island Cove
Click for larger version, then right border for next.
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Tourism Association Members
Greeley's Reel consists of six family members and friends who specialize in playing Irish Newfoundland Music. They are known for their harmonies, and their great mixture of Irish, Newfoundland, Folk, and Bluegrass Music, with crowd pleasing jigs and reels, and shanty's such as "The Islander" and "Excursion Around The Bay". In the summer of 2004, they released their CD - Greeley's Reel, and hope to release a follow-up album sometime in late 2007 or early 2008. Contact: Justin Greeley Phone: (709) 589 - 2289 or (709) 589 - 8069 Email: justingreeley@hotmail.com
Web Site: www.myspace.com/greeleysreel
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