Ninety-four years after Ameila Earhart left Harbour Grace to embark on her historic solo flight across the Atlantic — and about a year after a statue honouring her was stolen — her bronze feet are now back on the ground in the community.
For residents like Doug Moores, Earhart’s statue being back in Harbour Grace means things are back to normal.
“The reinstallation of her today, I think, gives a lot to the Harbour Grace psyche,” Moores said. “Credit to the people who put this together to get her back today. No doubt about that. It’s … a great day for the community.”
The statue honouring Earhart was stolen from its home at a municipal park in Harbour Grace in April 2025. The theft made provincial headlines, and the statue was found in pieces off a forest access road off Route 74, about halfway between Victoria and Heart’s Content, four months later.
Morgan MacDonald, a renowned bronze sculptor in Newfoundland and Labrador, was tasked with putting the sculpture back together. His work was unveiled on Wednesday, and he told CBC News working on the project was a great honour.
“I’m going to miss her, because she was in the foundry for, you know, the last year,” he said jokingly. “She’s back in a state that it should be, So, you know, it’s wonderful that people feel so strong about this.”
For Sam Bruce and Lynn Pike, the return of the statue to Harbour Grace is a part of their hearts returning as well.
Pike’s father, Roger Pike, had deep connections to Harbour Grace aviation. He donated the statue in 2007, along with the Spirit of Harbour Grace plane that sits behind the statue.
“I wish my dad was here to see it,” Lynn Pike said.
“Everyone in Harbour Grace means the world to us. Huge family, I’ll say, and I think it’s really good to see everyone coming to show their support,” added Bruce, who Roger Pike’s grandson.
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