No internal Canadian boundary extends further than the one between Québec and Newfoundland & Labrador. It extends more than 3,500 kilometres (2,100 miles). Yet, according to the Canadian Encyclopedia, the government has never officially surveyed or marked it on the ground. It has a history of dispute that continues through today.
The southern boundary was pretty straightforward, running along the 52nd parallel for much of its length. The northern boundary over time became accepted as Cape Chidley on Killiniq Island. That’s now the border of Nunavut with Newfoundland & Labrador.
Trouble in the West
However, it was the western border — the distance from the Atlantic Ocean inland — that became a major point of contention. In essence it boiled down to the definition of “the coast of Labrador”. That’s what the British government granted to the Governor of Newfoundland in 1763.
Québec maintained that the “coast” was indeed the coast. This encompassed a narrow strip of land along the shoreline extending inward a mile from the high tide mark. Newfoundland defended a different interpretation. They maintained that within its historical context, “coast” actually meant the height of the land. They believed their territory covered the entire watershed draining into the Atlantic Ocean.
Claims, counterclaims, disputes, and disagreements continued into the Twentieth Century while the actual boundary remained vague. Newfoundland was not yet part of Canada so neither party could force a boundary upon the other.
Resolution. Sort of…
However they both wanted resolution. So they brought the issue before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom in 1927. There the Privy Council sided with Newfoundland. Later, Canadian law finally cemented the boundary into place in 1949. It was a precondition Newfoundland insisted upon before joining the Canadian Confederation.
The issue may no longer exist as a point of fact. Even so, that doesn’t mean Québec has to like it. As recently as 2007 the Canadian press discussed a map produced by the government of Québec. It showed a large chunk of southern Newfoundland as part of Québec. The same claim still appears on Québec’s Official Road Map. There it includes the notation “Tracé de 1927 du Conseil privé (non définitif)“. That essentially translates to “Plot of the 1927 Privy Council (not final).” Clearly Québec believes the dispute continues.
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