NONIA – The Newfoundland Outport Nursing and Industrial Association

How women’s knitting circles brought both income and nurses to Newfoundland’s remote outports

In the early 20th century, many of Newfoundland’s small, isolated coastal communities – known as outports – were without access to even the most basic health care. With few roads connecting the island’s rugged coastline and only 45 physicians outside St. John’s, much of the population relied on home remedies, or long and often impossible journeys to the nearest doctor.

But a group of determined women changed that.

Formed in 1924, the Newfoundland Outport Nursing and Industrial Association (NONIA) brought professional nursing care to the outports while also offering women a way to earn money from home. This remarkable dual mission – to support both health care and women’s economic independence – was a direct result of the energy and vision of two governors’ wives: Lady Constance Harris and Lady Elsie Allardyce.

During the First World War, Lady Constance Harris (d. 1941), wife of Governor Sir Alexander Harris, directed the Women’s Patriotic Association (WPA), which organized island-wide sewing and knitting drives to support soldiers overseas. That vast network of willing, skilled women laid the groundwork for something more lasting.

In 1920, Lady Harris helped launch the Outport Nursing Scheme, which brought five trained midwives from England to Newfoundland to begin work in isolated communities.

Her successor, Lady Elsie Elizabeth Allardyce (1878–1962), expanded the vision. Inspired by successful knitting cooperatives in the Shetland Isles, she believed that women in Newfoundland could do the same – knit high-quality garments to fund a community nursing service.

A knitting school was set up in Pool’s Cove, with dormitory rooms for women from the outports to stay. Women were recruited to travel to the outports to enlist women into the plan. Wool, needles, patterns and materials were provided by a control station in St. John’s. Spinning, dyeing and weaving were also taught. Garments from Shetland were used as samples and patterns.

Women in rural areas would knit garments that were then sold to raise money – most of which went directly to fund the nurses’ salaries. Committees in each community oversaw the distribution and collection of materials. The goal was ambitious: raise 75% of the nurses’ wages through the sale of handmade goods, with the remaining 25% paid by the government.

By 1924, NONIA was officially incorporated as a non-profit organization. With the motto ‘Born to Serve’, its mission was clear: provide health care to remote areas, and let women earn a livelihood through handcrafts.

The nursing connection with NONIA ended in 1934 when the government took over health care, but the company continued as a non-profit organization supporting craftspeople province wide.

References:

Annual George Story Lecture – Nurses and Knitting: 100 Years of NONIA. NLHS Newfoundland and Labrador Historical Society. YouTube video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVjZ2IkDYZc

NONIA. (1999). Women’s History Group. Heritage Newfoundland and Labrador. https://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/society/nonia.php

Collier, K. (2011). The Development of Nursing in NL. Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage. https://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/society/nursing.php

Green, H. Gordon. (1974). Don’t Have Your Baby in the Dory: A Biography of Myra Bennett. Harvest House, Montreal.

Scott, Shirley A. (1990). Canada Knits. McGraw-Hill Ryerson, Toronto, Montreal. PDF retrieved from Memorial University of Newfoundland. https://dai.mun.ca/PDFs/cns/CanadaKnits.pdf

Seitz, Don C. (1926). The Great Island: Some observations in and about Newfoundland. The Century Co., New York & London. PDF downloaded from Memorial University of Newfoundland. https://dai.mun.ca/PDFs/cns/TheGreatIsland2.pdf

Nurse Myra Bennett: Queen of the Outports

Being a nurse in rural Newfoundland meant more than tending to fevers or setting broken bones – it required resourcefulness, strength, and deep commitment. Myra Bennett (1890 – 1990) was one of five original nurses hired by Lady Harris in 1921 to serve remote communities. She arrived in Daniel’s Harbour that year and remained for the rest of her life, serving as the only medical help along 200 miles of rugged coastline.

Midwifery was her specialty, but she also performed dentistry and general surgery. She learned to shear sheep, spin wool, and knit – often combining these skills with her nursing work. In one story, while attending a long labour, she recalled:

The father-in-law needed new mitts, so out came the bag of raw wool. The mother-in-law carded it, I spun it, and a younger girl knit it. By morning, the baby hadn’t come yet – but the mitts were finished.”

Myra Bennett continued nursing into her eighties and was honoured with many awards, including a Doctor of Science, the Order of the British Empire, and the Order of Canada. Her story has been told in books, on television, and on stage.

The house that she lived in at Daniel's Harbour is now a heritage site.