The Ryan family established their fish merchant business in 1869 and controlled all aspects of the salt cod fish industry in Bonavista for almost 100 years. Their holdings included warehouses, a general store, a fishing supply store, salting and drying platforms, a personal home, wharves and a ship building yard. An excellent museum, which tells the story of cod fishing off the coast of Newfoundland from the early days of the 1500s up to modern times and the moratorium, is housed in the retail store and fish store, two of the original buildings.
The museum buildings are accessible with a few problem areas. The first building, where admission fees are collected, has exhibits on the first and second floors. Wheelchair access to the second building involves taking a lift to the basement. From the basement a ramp leads to an exit door with a very high threshold. The path outside is down a grade and surfaced with loose gravel. The exhibits continue on the second floor of the second building and conclude on the first floor. The salt store building, farther down the gravel path, has a small exhibit about furniture makers on the island. The Ryan house is located across the street from the museum. We didn’t have time to tour it.
Parking is in the lot north of the museum – plenty of room for RVs. Museum
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