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One of the oldest standing structures in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Newman Wine Vaults Provincial Historic Site is the location of the only historic wine vaults in the province. Port in a Storm details how Newman and Company, the English mercantile firm active in Newfoundland’s cod fishery from the mid-1500s to the early 1900s, built the Wine Vaults and began a 300-year-old tradition of maturing Portuguese port wine in Newfoundland.
Left essentially unoccupied in 1966, the Newman Wine Vaults site fell into a state of disrepair, but in 1997 the non-profit Newfoundland Historic Trust and its partners launched a project to restore the vaults and interpret the site’s heritage for the public. Since the Newman Wine Vaults Provincial Historic Site opened in 2001, the site has hosted many community and cultural events, showcasing one of the most interesting spaces in the province.
Port in a Storm details the efforts of the Trust to restore the Vaults and the site’s relevance to today’s cultural scene.
