Abstract

In summer 2007, while conducting maintenance on the mill’s structure, the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Mill silenced the whistle that had been part of the local “soundscape” (Schafer 1977) for more than eighty years. When the whistle did not return immediately, public outcry was voiced in the local newspaper over the loss of part of the city’s heritage. Its return in December 2007 at half the previous daily frequency provided the impetus for a collection project.While the mill whistle is an important tool that marks the passage of time, regulates the movement of bodies, and signals trouble at the mill (such as a fire), its significance to the community extends beyond the utilitarian. It plays a role in memorialization (sounding on Remembrance Day) and celebration (marking, for example, the end of WWII), and has become a familiar icon for local song-writers and authors alike. This article provides an overview of “The Mill Whistle Project” designed to document the mill whistle in Corner Brook, describes the historic functions of the mill whistle, and identifies alternative uses of the whistle over time. It then interrogates the whistle’s relationship to World War II and Remembrance Day, demonstrating its extension as a community-wide notification system, its mobilization as a means of celebration, and its continuing role in memorialisation.

Highlights

  • “put the Hum on the Humber,” referenced the bustling activity of industrial development that would invigorate the economy of the community and surrounding area, it foreshadowed a host of changes to the sonic environment of the west coast of Newfoundland

  • With this background and understanding of the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper Mill and the traditional functions of its mill whistle through time, I turn to the discussion of World War II and Remembrance Day in Corner Brook, as they relate to the mill whistle

  • I can recall very, very vividly (Tom Hiscock, interview: July 5, 2012). This personal experience narrative reinforces the fear of enemy attack in Corner Brook during World War II, and ties the mill whistle to that history as it once again was used as a signalling device related to perceived danger and, later, the return to safety

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Summary

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“The mill whistle was blowing and the Germans were coming”: Industrial Soundscapes, World War II, and Remembrance in Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Il joue un rôle dans les commémorations (sonner le jour du Souvenir) et célébrations (souligner, par exemple, la fin de la Seconde Guerre mondiale), et est devenu une icône populaire pour des auteurs et auteurs-compositeurs locaux. Cet article donne un aperçu du « Projet Mill Whistle » conçu pour documenter le sifflet de l’usine de Corner Brook. Il interroge par la suite les liens du sifflet avec la Seconde Guerre mondiale et le jour du Souvenir, pour montrer ainsi son développement en tant que système de communication à l’échelle communautaire, sa mobilisation comme un outil de célébration, et son rôle continu dans construction de la mémoire collective. Cet article est diffusé et préservé par Érudit.

Introduction
The Mill Whistle Project
The Whistle
Perceived Enemy Threat
The End of the War
An Act of Remembrance
Conclusion
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