Every November around the start of the lobster season, Suzy Atwood oversees the building of a Christmas tree made from lobster traps and buoys. It stands next to the Cape Sable Island causeway in Barrington Passage, N.S. The tradition began before she started working as the director of marketing and tourism development for the municipality in 2014, but it was Atwood’s idea to make the tree into a memorial for fishers lost at sea or deceased. Saltscapes spoke with Atwood about the Miss Ally, the Halifax Explosion, and the meaning of Christmas.
How did the tradition begin?
In 2009, local resident Joan Atkinson was traveling in New England, saw a lobster-trap tree, and brought the idea back to council, who thought it a good fit for our municipality since we are the lobster capital of Canada.
What gave you the idea to make the tree into a memorial?
It was right after the Miss Ally happened in February 2013 (when five local fishermen died after their boat capsized in a winter storm.) People were trying to find ways to remember them. It was a few years before we got a buoy in memory of those fishermen because it was still so fresh in people’s minds, but it sparked the whole initiative.
Why do you think Christmas and a lobster-fishing memorial go together so well?
Christmas is such a difficult time for families that have lost loved ones, but it’s also a celebration of family. People tell me how much comfort they get from visiting the tree and seeing the names of loved ones that have passed. Every year when I place buoys back on the tree, I have certain ones that have a special place.
What do you mean by a special place?
Julius Hopkins painted a buoy in memory of his dad, Joel Hopkins, who was lost on the Miss Ally. He painted a star on it because his dad is a star in the sky. He asked me if I could put it at the top of the tree, so I make sure it does every year. One buoy is in memory of Captain Horatio Brannen, the captain of the tugboat that tried to pull the ship that caused the Halifax Explosion (in 1917) out to sea and died in his efforts.
So the tree memorializes people beyond Barrington?
Complete strangers from other parts of the province have asked if they could put their loved one’s buoy on the tree. I’ve always said yes. There’s a mom whose son was killed at sea. She doesn’t always get to come see the Christmas tree, so I put her son’s buoy where she can see it from the webcam we have on the tree.
Why is it important to include people from beyond Barrington?
Lobstering happens all across (the region), and when tragedy strikes, we become even closer. People are trying to find ways to make sure their loved ones’ stories are remembered. There’s a lobster-trap tree in Plymouth, Massachusetts. A woman there reached out to me, and said, “We have all these similarities. Will you put a buoy on your Christmas tree from our town, and we’ll put up a buoy from Barrington?”
Why do you think it’s become so important in the community and beyond?
People love what it stands for. It’s part of our community, part of our celebration at Christmas. It’s a celebration of the lobster season, which is the economic backbone of our community. It tells the stories of our residents, past and present. People look forward to it every year, show up to the tree lighting, and share stories.
Do you have any family stories memorialized on the tree?
My grandfather wasn’t lost at sea, but he was a fisherman. We have a buoy on the tree in memory of him. I have to admit, I shed a few tears every year, remembering the stories that people have shared with me about their loved ones’ buoys. It’s something that we could never not do.