Trinity is a historic town on the Bonavista Peninsula in Newfoundland. Beautifully restored buildings dot the hills of the small peninsula on which it sits. Though people have lived here for thousands of years, settlers began living and fishing here as early as the 16th century. The village is one of Newfoundland’s oldest settlements. It has a deep history in the province’s fishing and trading industries, which you can learn about on a historical walking tour in Trinity.
The town itself is very pretty, with the revitalized heritage buildings and a thriving art scene. There are a few businesses in town, including a pub, a restaurant, and ice cream and chocolate shops, as well as several vacation rentals. From Trinity, you can enjoy views of the surrounding hills, ocean and lighthouse on Fort Point.
Taking a historical walking tour is the main attraction here in Trinity: that and the popular dinner theatre at the heritage Rising Tide Theatre. You can take a guided tour with a local guide: Trinity Historical Walking Tours. Or, as we did, get a Trinity Sites Pass from the Trinity Visitor Centre for a self-guided historical walking tour.
If you’re doing the self-guided option, this guide will provide key sites, advice, and stories from our experience. We’ll also share some information about where to eat, stay and other things to do during your visit to Trinity, Newfoundland.
Honouring the Beothuk and Mi’kmaq People
While learning about the history of settlers in Trinity is interesting, it is vital to remember and acknowledge that this area is the ancestral homeland of the Beothuk peoples, whose culture was tragically lost forever due to European settlement. It is also the traditional and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq people, who have lived here for thousands of years and continue to live here today.
The Mi’kmaq name for Newfoundland is Ktaqmkuk, which means “land across the water” or “across the waves.” We are grateful and honoured to explore this land, and do so with respect and in the spirit of truth and reconciliation.
Near Trinity, traces of the Beothuk, Dorset and Pre-Inuit people have been found in archaeological sites. We also know that Indigenous people used paths across the Bonavista Peninsula, from Bonavista Bay to Trinity Bay, according to early colonial records.
The self-guided historical walking tour in Trinity, NL
The Trinity Sites Pass allows you to explore eight historical buildings and sites while learning the stories of the people who have called this place home. With interpreters at each location, you’ll learn about the buildings, the community, and human history through artifacts, images, historical records, and vibrant storytelling.
Here are the top sites on the self-guided historical walking tour in Trinity.
1. The Trinity Visitor Centre
The Trinity Visitor Centre is a great place to start your walking tour. The building is a provincial historic site itself, and its exhibits tell the story of Trinity’s past and present. There are plenty of interactive displays, including areas for children to explore.
Lester-Garland House
The Lester-Garland House was first built in the 1760s. This Georgian-style building was home to the Lesters and the Garlands, both mercantile families that supported trade between Poole, England and Newfoundland. The house was rebuilt around 1820 and then again in 1960. You can walk around the house to see how these families lived, and view artifacts like the original oil painting of the Lester fleet of ships in the Trinity Harbour in 1975.
It is now a museum, a gift shop, and the home of the Trinity Historical Society’s office and archives.
Lester-Garland Mercantile Premises
The quiet village of Trinity was once a bustling centre for trade! Stores lined the shore, ships filled the harbour, and several mercantile buildings sold wares and supplies. Over the centuries, the Lester-Garland Mercantile Premises remained. It’s a fun stop on the self-guided historical tour in Trinity, as it’s set up like a shop from those times, complete with artifacts and period items on counters and shelves. There is an interpreter in the mercantile who tells the stories of the shop-owning families: the Lesters, the Garlands, and then the Ryans.
The Cooperage
I didn’t know what a cooperage was until visiting this historic site. It’s where they made all the wooden barrels for storing and transporting fish and other goods. Local, skilled coopers made the barrels, casks, and tubs that were crucial to the trade here in the early days. The cooperage could also help with repairing items like buckets and benches.
This building was reconstructed in 2007, but sits in the exact location as the original. There are woodworking tools, and you can learn about the production methods for what would have been a hopping business in town.
Green Family Forge
This historical site was by far a favourite, especially for my 8-year-old son, who loved learning about forging and blacksmithing. It was owned by the Greens, who worked as blacksmiths in Trinity for over 200 years (1750s-1955)! It’s a large building, built in the late 1800s, and four blacksmiths could work here making anchors, horseshoes and other vital products used in the fishery, farm and homesteads.
The best part of the Green Family Forge historical site is the live modern-day blacksmiths who are in the shop, busy working on projects! They will tell the story of the Greens while showing you how they forge their creations. The art they produce is sold, with proceeds benefiting the Trinity Historical Society.
Hiscock House
Another favourite, the Hiscock House, was the home of the very industrious Emma Hiscock. As a widow with six children to support, she became an entrepreneur who monetized her property in town in various ways during her time there. It was a boarding house, shop, and she even rented part of the house for several years to the local post office!
St. Paul’s Anglican Church
This church was built in the Gothic Revival style in the early 1890s. It’s the third church on this site, with records of marriages, births and funerals dating back to the 1750s. Inside the church, you’ll find a wooden cathedral with beautiful stained glass windows. The headstones in the historic cemetery in the churchyard were lovingly restored in recent years.
Trinity Museum
The Trinity Museum is housed in a quaint 1880s salt-box-style home built by the DeGrish family. The Trinity Historical Society acquired it in 1967 and has used it as a museum ever since. It’s the oldest museum outside of St. John’s! Inside, you can explore the cramped rooms, halls and stairway and look at a collection of over 2,000 artifacts that tell Trinity’s story. These items were donated by people in Trinity and beyond.
Church of the Most Holy Trinity
Welcome to the Church of the Most Holy Trinity, the oldest wooden church in all of Newfoundland! The Roman Catholic Church is much smaller than St. Paul’s, and was built in 1833. The clock tower was added in 1880. Inside this cute little church, you’ll find neat rows of wooden pews, white and cream coloured walls and a small balcony for parishioners.
Mortuary Chapel
When the town needed a new cemetery in 1880, they built one with the Mortuary Chapel. It is one of only two in the province that feature stained-glass windows in memory of those who lost their lives during World War I.
Rising Tide Theatre Arts Centre
The Rising Tide Theatre is home to a very popular dinner theatre, with tickets selling out fast in the summer months. The theatre opened in 2000 on Green’s Point, where enterprise has taken place since William Taverner first staked a plantation in 1700. For hundreds of years, business has transacted in this location. Inside the building is quite modern, and you’ll find the box office for the theatre just inside the main doors.
Fort Point Military Site
Across Trinity Harbour, you’ll see the Fort Point Lighthouse and Military Site. It was fortified in 1776 with three batteries mounting 18 guns, a powder magazine, a storehouse, soldier barracks and a pavilion for officers. Today, the site has been refurbished and includes a walking trail and an interpretive centre that tells the story of the military and lighthouse keepers here.
You can visit the site with your Trinity Sites Pass or purchase tickets there if you just want to visit this site. Learn more about Fort Point Military Site.
Courthouse & Goal and Town Hall
These heritage buildings are not part of the Trinity Sites Pass, but are a significant part of Trinity’s skyline. The Courthouse and Goal was built in 1903 and housed a court and jail, a customs house, a magistrate’s office, post and telegraph offices, and was home to the police constable and his family. Today, it’s a production facility for some sweet treats, including Aunt Sarah’s Chocolate and Sweet Rock Ice Cream.
The Parish Town Hall is of the same architectural design and era as the courthouse, and was constructed at the turn of the 20th century. This two-story building is one of the best-preserved examples of a rural parish hall and is still in use today as a social and community centre for the village.
Getting to Trinity
Trinity is located off Highway 230 on the Bonavista Peninsula. It is about a three-hour drive from St. John’s.
When to visit Trinity, NL
The Trinity Historical Sites are open to visitors from early June to mid-October. During this time, the historical sites are open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Check with the Trinity Historical Society for next year’s opening and closing dates.
You can visit Trinity year-round, but the historical sites and many restaurants and accommodations close in the off-season, so check ahead and plan accordingly.
We were there in late July. It is the busiest time of year (it didn’t feel busy at all) and also has the best weather. From May through September, most businesses are open, including museums, whale and wildlife tour operators, restaurants and accommodations.
Where to stay and eat in Trinity
Food and treats in Trinity
Trinity is small, but there are a few places to get a bite to eat. We had a casual fish-and-chips dinner at the Dock Marina Restaurant and Gallery. They’re right on the marina, have outdoor seating, and offer exceptionally friendly service. You can treat yourself to ice cream at Sweet Rock Ice Cream or a chocolate treat at Aunt Sarah’s Chocolate.
For fine dining, the Twine Loft is a popular place. It offers set menus with views overlooking the water. You can also enjoy dinner and entertainment at the Rising Tide Theatre. Reservations and purchasing tickets well in advance are recommended for both.
Places to stay in Trinity
Because we were camping in our campervan, we stayed just outside of town at Trinity Cabins. This friendly spot has RV sites and cozy cabins for rent, and a little café. If more rustic camping is your style, you can check out the nearby Lockston Path Provincial Park, where we stayed on our second night.
If you want to stay in town, likely more than half the buildings are guest houses and vacation rentals. You can stay in a charming heritage home, a modern inn-style suite, or a cute cottage.
Find places to stay in Trinity.
