The History of Canada Series: Death on Two Fronts

Death on Two Fronts, part of The History of Canada series, examines the tragic trans­formation of Newfoundland’s political culture between 1914 and 1934. For many people throughout Canada and the rest of the world, 1914 was important because it marked the beginning of the First World War. While the year became significant for the same reason in Newfoundland, it was not originally so. Newfoundland’s economy depended on the sea, and the seal hunt was vital. During the spring of 1914, seventy-seven men of the S.S. Newfoundland died and many more were injured when they became lost on the ice fields, locally known as “the front,” off the north­east coast. What became known as the Newfoundlandsealing disaster galvanized popular discontent against… Keep Reading