Description of Historic Place

White’s Fur Trading Post is a wooden, rectangular, one storey, gable roof building. It is located in Kauk Bight, near Nain, Labrador. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

White’s Fur Trading Post has been designated a Registered Heritage Structure because of its historic and cultural values.

Historically, the building is significant because it is one of the oldest standing buildings in the Nain area. It is a wooden building with a stacked stone foundation typically used from the 1800s to 1950 in Northern Labrador. It has historical significance for the people of Labrador because it operated as a trading post for over 50 years for the Innu and Inuit peoples. Richard White moved the structure from Nain Harbour to Kauk Bight in 1930 where he continued to operate it until his death in 1950. During his time White worked closely with the Innu and Inuit when they needed help or supplies and was a strong advocate for them.

White’s Fur Trading Post has cultural value because of its links to local industry and trade. It was one of the first fur breeding farms in Northern Labrador. It is a cultural landmark for native peoples who used the trading post to buy supplies, rest and refresh dog teams. The trading post is symbolic of a way of life in Northern Labrador in the early 1900s and of the historic trade routes used by the Innu and Inuit.

White's Trading Post is aesthetically valuable because it is typical of the type of early trading post for the area. The simplicity of the structure represents the practical nature of the trading post. The use of local, available materials is evident in the exposed timbers and the stacked stone foundation. The use of in-swinging doors suggests the harshness of the climate where snow is present much of the year while the fixed windows kept out flies and weather.

Source: Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador unnumbered property files, Nain - White's Trading Post

Character-Defining Elements

All those features which reflect the age and simple vernacular design of the structure, including:
-single storey, wooden frame rectangular structure;
-narrow wooden clapboard;
-stacked stone foundation;
-tarred exposed timbers;
-in-swinging doors;
-fixed 4 pane windows;
-mid-pitch gable roof; and,
-location on the landscape;
-enclosed porch with gable roof.