Cape Merry National Historic Site

On the Cape Merry coast on the eastern side of the river mouth, 3 km (2 mi.) from the town of Churchill, stand heaps of giant gray blocks of quarzite, which were smoothed and rounded by retreating glaciers. On the soft tundra grass between the rocks grows a magnificent plethora of plants, including willow, dwarf cranberries, bear-berries and crowberries.

Here stood a stone bastion which was supposed to protect the fort. One of the six original cannon and a part of the powder magazine can still be seen. A mound of stones is in memory of the Danish Captain Jens Munk who landed here in 1619 with two ships. There is also a tablet here in honor of Thomas Button; in 1612 he became the first European to reach the mouth of the Churchill River.