Heart's Content

Cyrus Field's Atlantic Telegraph Company laid cables in 1857, 1858 and 1865 that all failed, and the fourth attempt succeeded on 27 July 1866 when the Great Eastern landed the shore end at Heart's Content; a message that had taken ten days by ship now took minutes. The station operated until 1965 and the building survives with the operating room intact, instruments and switchboards in place as they were left. Newfoundland's position made it the natural landfall for the North Atlantic cables, and the village became a company town with a distinct social hierarchy between operators and fishing families.

The main sights

• The operating room - instruments and switchboards left as they were in 1965.
• The 1866 landfall - where the first lasting Atlantic cable came ashore.
• The cable company houses - the operators' quarters in the village.
• The Trinity Bay shore - the beach the cable was hauled up.

When to go

June to September; the site is seasonal and closes for winter. The 1866 anniversary is marked in late July. The village is quiet at any time.

Things to know

Closed outside the summer season. The site is a single building and takes about an hour. The village is small with limited services.

Nearby

Cupids lies east; Dildo is south.