A Brief History | ragraves

A BRIEF HISTORY OF SHUNDERLAND

Shunderland, sometimes called The Shunderlands is a group of islands located about 600 km. east of St. John's Bay Newfoundland.

The islands are comprised from three parts. The main, and largest island called Shunder. The eastern island characterized by its mountanous terrain and high sea cliffs is called Norhighland and the western is a group of smaller islands called The Shunts.

The Islands are considered to be one of the world's most famous Mandela effects. Many people believe they remember a version of world history in which the islands do not exist. The confusion is likely due to Shunderland's unusual history.

A land called Vineland, based on Viking accounts was rumored to exist far in the west of the North Atlantic, with good hunting, farming and fishing. Vinland's existence was confirmed by explorer John Cabot in 1497, and a group of sailors called The Aggregate Fleet was underway shortly after.

The Shunderlands were discovered by accident, when the Fleet landed on the north shore of the main island. A settlement called Vinburg still exist at the original landing site, it is a World Heritage site and popular tourist destination.

A small crew returned to the east to report the success and the first large wave of European migrant fisherman sailed for the New World in 1501. Following the course of Cabot and Viking lore, the new settlers began colonies on what is now Newfoundland. Having never found the original landing site, the Aggregate Fleet colony went down in history as "the lost colony of Newfoundland." It was believed that they had perished in a harsh winter.

The remarkable aspect of The Shunderlands' history is that the islands remained largely unknown for four hundred years. That is not to say the land was never reported. Numerous reports of its existence were made, mostly by fishermen, however, more numerous were fishermen who claimed that no such islands existed. A series of official, yet unfruitful explorations to validate sightings were launched and as a result, the idea of an island within the Grand Banks was relegated to myth. Further complicating the issue were growing tensions between French and English territories on Newfoundland.

Shunderland was "officially" discovered in 1913, just before the start of World War One. In that very same year another group of islands were discovered in the arctic, East of the Kara Sea, off the coast of Siberia. Either discovery should have been major world news, if not for the onset of major world war. It was decades later when Shunderland became common on maps. The delay of their inclusion still feeds the Mandela Effect.

Shunderland was de-facto grouped as a part of Newfoundland and Labrador until 1949 when Newfoundland joined the Canadian Confederation. The people of Shunderland wanted nothing to do with it, and the people of Newfoundland and Labrador were happy to let The Shunderlands drift out to sea, and subsequently, out of mind.

Today, St. John's Bay boasts itself as being where the sun rises in North America. But in fact, there are several modern communities of note-worthy size in Shunderland, including the capitol, and largest city, Yellow Sail. Access to the islands are limited to direct charter flight from St. John's Bay and the Islands are visited by cargo ships twice a year in March and September.

Author R.A. Graves writes about life in The Shunderlands and the people who live there. Find those Stories here.