St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is found on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland and covers an area of 446.04 square kilometres. It is the easternmost city in North America if we don’t count Greenland.

The city’s name may come from the idea that John Cabot arrived in the harbour on the birthday of John the Baptist in 1497, though this is likely a story made up later. Another chance is that there was already a small fishing village with the same name there long before it became an official city. It became a city in 1888 and, as of January 2025, the area around it had about 239,316 people, making it Canada’s 22nd-largest city area.

St. John's has an interesting history. It was important during big wars like the Seven Years' War, the American Revolutionary War, and the War of 1812. Famous inventor Guglielmo Marconi also received the first signal for talking across the Atlantic Ocean here. Because of its history and culture, many people visit St. John's as a tourist spot.

History

Further information: Timeline of St. John's history

Early history (1500–1799)

St. John's began as a place where fishermen set up temporary camps in the early 1500s. It is said that explorers named it after the saint John the Baptist when they first sailed into its harbour in 1494. Over time, many ships from different countries, including France, Spain, and Portugal, came to fish in its waters.

The town became more permanent after 1630. It grew slowly, with more people arriving in the summer to fish. By the late 1600s, it had some defenses built to protect it. There were several attacks from other countries, but St. John's managed to defend itself many times.

Modern history (1800–present)

In the 1800s, St. John's kept growing. It became an important place for fishing, government, and trade. During big wars like the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, it was a key naval base.

In 1901, an important radio signal was received there, and in 1919, it was the starting point for the first nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean.

During the Second World War, St. John's was a busy port for navy ships and had air bases. After the war, the city faced hard times when the cod fishery collapsed in the 1990s. However, the discovery of oil nearby helped the city's economy grow again.

Fires

St. John's experienced several big fires over the years. The most famous was the Great Fire of 1892, which destroyed much of the city. Other fires in 1816, 1817, 1819, and 1846 also caused a lot of damage.

Geography

St. John's is a city along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, on the northeast of the Avalon Peninsula in southeast Newfoundland. It is the easternmost city in North America, not counting Greenland, and the largest city in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is also the second-largest city in the Atlantic Provinces, after Halifax, Nova Scotia. The city's downtown area is near St. John's Harbour, and the city spreads out from there in all directions. It covers a large area of 446.04 square kilometres, larger than Montreal, Quebec, but much of it is still covered in natural woods.

The area around St. John's has many types of trees, including black spruce, white spruce, and balsam fir. Other trees such as white birch, alder, and cherry are also common. Some trees that were brought in from other places, like sycamore maple and Norway maple, grow well there too.

St. John's has a humid continental climate, which means it has cold winters and warm summers. The Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current, helps keep the temperature changes smaller than usual for its location. The city's temperatures range from about −4.7 °C in February to 16.5 °C in August. St. John's gets a lot of rain and is one of the wettest cities in Canada outside of British Columbia. It is also very windy and foggy. The city can sometimes get strong storms from the Atlantic Ocean, bringing heavy rain and wind. Snow is common in winter, and the city can have a lot of snow in just one day. The warmest temperature ever recorded was 33.9 °C in August 1876, and the coldest was −29.4 °C in February 1875.

Downtown architecture

Main articles: Architecture of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and List of tallest buildings in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

Downtown St. John's has a special style of buildings. It started as a place where fishermen from Europe would come to catch fish. The buildings were mostly wooden houses, sheds, and wharves. When the Industrial Revolution brought new ways to build, the city changed and grew. A big fire in 1892 destroyed most of the downtown area, so many buildings there were built after that.

The buildings in St. John's are often brightly colored, which is why some call it the "Jelly Bean Row." Long ago, the city was covered in coal soot, so people used dark colors like green, red, brown, and grey. In the 1970s, when coal was no longer used, bright colors became popular.

The city council has rules to protect the old buildings in downtown St. John's, including limits on how tall buildings can be. These rules have caused debates, especially when the city needed more office space. To help with this, the council changed the rules in one area to allow taller buildings. The first of these new taller buildings is a 12-storey office building with shops and parking.

Neighbourhoods

See also: Neighbourhoods in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's has many different neighbourhoods. Georgestown was the first suburb of the city. The Goulds and Kilbride were separate communities before they became part of St. John's. The Battery is an outport area within the city. Quidi Vidi is a former fishing village located near the edge of the city.

Demographics

In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, St. John's had a population of 110,525 people. The city covers an area of 446.02 km² (172.21 sq mi) and had a population density of 247.8 people per km² (641.8 per sq mi) in 2021.

The St. John's census metropolitan area (CMA) includes 12 other communities such as Mount Pearl, Conception Bay South, and Paradise. In total, the CMA had a population of 212,579.

English is the main language spoken by most residents of St. John's (92.9%). About 70.6% of people aged 25 to 65 have completed education beyond high school.

Ethnicity

As of 2021, approximately 86.5% of the city was white, 10.1% were visible minorities and 3.3% were Indigenous. The largest visible minority groups were South Asian Canadian (2.8%), followed by Black Canadians (2.3%), Chinese Canadians and Arab Canadians (1.3% each).

Language

English is the mother tongue spoken by the majority of residents of St. John's (92.9%). In the Province, as a whole, Chinese is the second most common language; it is the mother tongue of 1.1% of the population. French is the mother tongue of 0.6% of the population. 99.5% of the population speak French or English or both.

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in St. John's included:

• Christianity (75,965 persons or 70.6%)
• No religion (26,170 persons or 24.3%)
• Islam (3,215 persons or 3.0%)
• Hinduism (890 persons or 0.8%)
• Sikhism (475 persons or 0.4%)
• Buddhism (285 persons or 0.3%)
• Judaism (175 persons or 0.2%)
• Indigenous Spirituality (25 persons or 0.1%)
• Other (470 persons or 0.4%)

The information below is from the 2001 Canadian Census and the National Household Survey 2011.

The population of St. John's was once divided along religious lines, but in recent years this has declined significantly. The city is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of St. John's, and the Anglican Bishop of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador. All major Christian groups showed a decline from 2001 to 2011 with an increase in those with no religion from 3.9% to 11.1%.

Economy

See also: List of companies headquartered in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's is the capital of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and its economy is closely tied to the ocean and to being a government center. Many jobs come from government work, which helps keep the economy stable and supports many shops, services, and businesses. After the decline of the fishing industry in the 1990s, the focus shifted to oil and gas found under the ocean. St. John's is a major center for oil and gas in Eastern Canada, with big companies like ExxonMobil Canada, Chevron, Husky Energy, Suncor Energy, and Statoil having important operations there. Several major oil fields, including Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose, and Hebron, produce oil off the coast.

The city's economy has grown quickly. In 2010 and 2011, the area's economy grew faster than almost anywhere else in the country. By 2010, the amount each person earned was among the highest in Canada. The city is also known for supporting small businesses and new ideas. Tourism is also important, with many cruise ships visiting the Port of St. John's.

Tourism

Tourism helps the local economy, especially with many cruise ships stopping at the Port of St. John's.

Culture

Main article: Newfoundland and Labrador § Culture

The downtown area of St. John's is a lively place where many people come to enjoy culture and visit. Water Street and Duckworth Street are famous for their colorful old buildings that hold shops, places to buy clothes, and restaurants.

George Street, a smaller street nearby, is where many people go to have fun at night. It holds special events like the George Street Festival in August and the Mardi Gras Festival in October. This street has helped many musicians start their careers, and it is busy almost every night.

The LSPU Hall supports the arts and has helped many famous Newfoundland artists begin their journeys. The St. John's Arts and Culture Centre has an art gallery, libraries, and a big theatre for shows.

St. John's also has a symphony orchestra, music school groups, and many music festivals. There are also dance groups, like the Kittiwake Dance Theatre, and a special drum dancing and throat singing group. The city has museums, such as the Provincial Museum of Newfoundland and Labrador, and important historic places like Signal Hill, where visitors can learn about the past and enjoy beautiful views.

Parks

Pippy Park is a big park in the eastern part of the city. It covers more than 1,400 hectares and has many fun things to do, like two golf courses, a large campground, walking and skiing trails, and a special area where plants and animals are protected. The park also has the Fluvarium, a place where you can learn about nature and see inside a small river.

Bowring Park is a beautiful park in the Waterford Valley. You can enter the park through a road that passes a pond with ducks and a statue of Peter Pan. The park was given to the city a long time ago and was officially opened in 1914.

Bannerman Park is a park close to the downtown area. It has a swimming pool, a playground, a place to play baseball, and lots of open grass. The park is used for many festivals and sports events, like the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival. It is also where people finish the Tely 10 Mile Road Race.

Nearby, the home of the Lieutenant-Governor is set in a park that everyone can visit.

Botanical Garden

The Memorial University of Newfoundland runs a large garden called the Botanical Garden where you can see many different plants.

Johnson Geo-Vista Park

Connected to the Johnson Geo Centre is a small park on the lower slopes of Signal Hill. This park has a special wet area called a fen, a small lake named Deadman's Pond, and many paths for walking.

Sport

Hockey

St. John's has been home to several professional hockey teams. The St. John's Maple Leafs were an American Hockey League team from 1991 to 2005. They moved to Toronto after the 2004–05 season because their parent team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, wanted to save money on travel and have a team play in their arena, the Ricoh Coliseum.

The Maple Leafs were replaced by the St. John's Fog Devils from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The Fog Devils left St. John's in 2008 after three seasons because of problems with their lease at the Mary Brown's Centre (formerly Mile One Centre) and low attendance.

From 2011 to 2017, St. John's had the St. John's IceCaps in the AHL. The IceCaps had two different owners during this time; first the Winnipeg Jets' True North Sports & Entertainment, then the Montreal Canadiens' Molson family. Both teams moved to be closer to their main teams.

In 2018, St. John's got a new team called the Newfoundland Growlers in the ECHL. They were connected to the Toronto Maple Leafs, bringing the Leafs back to St. John's for the first time since 2005. In their first season, they won the league championship, the Kelly Cup. In April 2024, the Growlers stopped operating before the 2023–24 ECHL season ended.

In December 2024, the new owners of the Acadie-Bathurst Titan from the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) moved the team to St. John's. The team was renamed the Newfoundland Regiment in January 2025 to honor the province's military history and started playing in the 2025–26 QMJHL season.

Other sports

The St. John's Edge was a professional basketball team in the National Basketball League of Canada that started in the 2017–18 season at Mile One Centre. The team did not get a new lease for the arena in 2021.

In September 2021, the City of St. John's signed an agreement to bring a new basketball team, the Newfoundland Rogues, to Mile One Centre. Soon after, Mary Browns, a local fast-food chain, bought the naming rights to the arena, renaming it Mary Brown's Centre. The Rogues have since changed leagues and now play in the Basketball Super League at Mary Brown's Centre.

The Atlantic Rock are a senior men's rugby union team that compete in the Canadian Rugby Championship. They play at Swilers Rugby Park. St. John's hosted a Rugby World Cup qualifying match in 2006, where Canada beat the United States to qualify for the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France.

St. John's is home to North America's oldest annual sporting event, the Royal St. John's Regatta, which started around 1816. The Regatta is so important that the day it is held (the first Wednesday in August, if the weather allows) is a holiday in the city.

The Tely 10 Mile Road Race is a yearly 10-mile (16 km) race that starts in Paradise and ends at Bannerman Park. Over 2,500 people run in this race, which began in 1922.

St. John's was where the Canada men's national soccer team qualified for their first FIFA World Cup on September 14, 1985, by beating Honduras 2–1 at King George V Park.

Curling is popular in St. John's. The city hosted the 2005 Canadian women's curling championship and is home to the 2006 Olympic gold medalist men's curling team, skipped by Brad Gushue. The city has two curling clubs.

The St. John's Avalon Harps are the local team for hurling and Gaelic football.

Law and government

See also: St. John's City Council and List of mayors of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's is run by a mayor and a group of elected leaders called a council. The mayor and council members are chosen by people in the city every four years. The current mayor is Danny Breen. City meetings and offices are held in City Hall, which opened in 1970.

St. John's has been an important city for a long time. It was the capital of Newfoundland before it became part of Canada in 1949. Now, it is the capital of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The main government building for the province, called the Confederation Building, is in St. John's. The city elects nine representatives to the provincial government and three members to the national government in Ottawa.

Police services for the city are provided by the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary. St. John's has traditionally been one of the safest cities in Canada.

Transportation

St. John's has a large harbor that serves many important ships. The city also has an airport just a short drive from downtown. Every year, many people travel through this airport to places like Toronto, Halifax, and even faraway cities such as London and Cancún.

St. John's is the ending point of the Trans-Canada Highway, a very long road that connects many parts of the country. The city has many paths for walking and biking, including the Grand Concourse, which winds through parks and along lakes. There are also special paths for bikers and runners on the White Hills.

Public buses, called Metrobus Transit, help people get around the city. There are many routes that stop at schools, shopping centers, and important buildings. Long ago, St. John's also had a railway, but it stopped running in 1988.

Medical centres and hospitals

St. John's has several important hospitals, including the Health Sciences Centre, St. Clare's Mercy Hospital, Waterford Hospital, and the Janeway Children's Health and Rehabilitation Centre. These facilities are part of NL Health Services, which takes care of healthcare for the whole province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Education

St. John's has many schools for children and young adults. There are 32 primary and secondary schools, including two private ones. The city also has schools for French-speaking students and two private schools named St. Bonaventure's College and Lakecrest Independent.

The main campus of Atlantic Canada's largest university, Memorial University of Newfoundland, is in St. John's. There are smaller learning centers nearby, and the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland is also in the city. The College of the North Atlantic has two main campuses in St. John's and offers many different programs for students.

Media

Main article: Media in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's has one daily newspaper called The Telegram. Other local papers include The Muse, The Gazette, Le Gaboteur, The Scope, The Business Post, and The Current. The city also receives the national newspaper The Globe and Mail.

There is an independent TV station called CJON-DT, known as "NTV". Rogers Cable has its headquarters in St. John's and runs a community channel called Rogers TV. CBC Television also has its Newfoundland and Labrador headquarters in the city, with its station CBNT-DT broadcasting from University Avenue.

The city has 15 AM and FM radio stations, including two that broadcast in French.

Notable people

Main article: List of people from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John's has been home to many famous people who have made important contributions in different fields. These individuals come from various backgrounds and have achieved success in areas such as politics, arts, sports, and more. Their stories show the diverse talents and achievements that come from this vibrant city.

Sister cities

St. John's has sister cities around the world. These include Ílhavo in Portugal and Waterford in Ireland. Sister cities are places that work together to support each other and learn from one another.