The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
One of the best examples of short-sightedness by the government concerns "The Grange", the estate of Sir Robert Bond at Whitbourne. In the 1880s, Bond learned that a lumber company was interested in purchasing a piece of property he found particularly attractive. Not wanting to see it destroyed, Sir Robert purchased it himself. Within the property was the small community of Harbour Grace Junction. In 1889, Bond had the town renamed Whitbourne. Bond built himself a lodge and began to develop the grounds. He imported 8,000 shrubs and many non-indigenous trees. There were Norway spruce, Swiss pines, rowan trees from Scotland, Siamese stone pine, Siberian pea trees, and Japanese maples. From England he brought dozens of varieties of flowers, including several different roses. When Sir Robert died in 1927, he left his estate to the people of Newfoundland. The government decided it was too costly and declined it, so the estate was passed to a nephew who kept it up for 20 years, left the province, when the Grange was again left to the people. The government decided it was still too costly to maintain and within a year the Grange was demolished. If the government had the foresight, the Grange would have become a great attraction. Something to Ponder: Procrastination is fun. Just wait and see.
