The 75^th anniversary of Confederation prompted many to reflect on how their lives and their communities changed in the years since 1949. And in the case of the Pasadena Heritage Society – NL Inc., it provided further motivation to expand on earlier efforts to record, preserve, and share the oral history of the community.

The Town of Pasadena began as three separate communities: South Brook, established in 1921; Pasadena, established in 1933; and Midland, established in 1936. The communities of Midland and Pasadena incorporated as the Community of Pasadena-Midland in 1955, later renamed the Community of Pasadena, with South Brook incorporating in 1965.

The Pasadena Heritage Society – NL Inc. began in 2012 following a successful heritage display during Pasadena’s Come Home Year. In the years since, the Society has undertaken a number of initiatives to document the evolution of the town. It’s sponsored oral history projects to record the memories of residents. The summer, 2024 project also asked about attitudes regarding Confederation and what changes joining Canada brought to people in the community.

These recordings will eventually be uploaded to Memorial University’s Digital Archive Initiative (DAI).

Pasadena Community Timeline

Here are the voices you’ll hear in the audio recording, in order of appearance:

Seonaid Stark (Narrator)

James (Jim) Turner

Michelle Tapp

Gordon Wagg

Carole Spicer

Frank Bonnell

Mabel Stowe

Derek Biggin

Cecil Anderson

Florence Anderson

Deborah Lemoine

Catherine Penney

Jocelyn Biggin

Terry Randell

Nelson Bennett

Taylor French

Mary Pennell

Sharon Bell

Mary Lou Chaulk

Shirley Bonnell

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Contributed by the Pasadena Heritage Society – NL Inc.