Baytona

Not to be confused with the Tigrayan political party Baytona.

Baytona Birchy Bay North
Community
Baytona Location of Baytona in Newfoundland
Coordinates: 49°20′32″N54°45′56″W / 49.34222°N 54.76556°W / 49.34222; -54.76556
Country	Canada
Province	Newfoundland and Labrador
Government
• Mayor	Rex Quinlan
• MHA	Derek Bennett
• MP	Clifford Small
Area [1]
• Land	15.38 km2 (5.94 sq mi)
Elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2021)
• Total	251
• Density	17.0/km2 (44/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-3:30 (Newfoundland Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-2:30 (Newfoundland Daylight Time)
Area code	709
Highways	Route 340

Baytona is a small rural community found in Newfoundland and Labrador. It is situated off Route 340, which runs from Lewisporte to Twillingate island, aptly named "Road to the Isles". A bay separates Baytona from a neighboring town called Birchy Bay. The first settlers of Baytona were fishermen, with women mainly staying home to raise children; however, with a depletion in cod stocks and lobsters, there was a shift away from the fishing industry.

Baytona has a fire department, town council and a recreation committee. There is currently one running convenience store. The community has a playground, and a basketball court.

The town also has an Anglican and a Pentecostal church.

Demographics

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
2006	276	—
2011	264	−4.3%
2016	262	−0.8%
2021	251	−4.2%
[2] [1]

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Baytona had a population of 251 living in 111 of its 162 total private dwellings, a change of -4.2% from its 2016 population of 262. ^[1] With a land area of 15.15 km² (5.85 sq mi), it had a population density of 16.6/km² (42.9/sq mi) in 2021. ^[3]

Name change

Originally, Baytona was known as "Birchy Bay North". In 1958 the name was changed to "Gayside" to help the flow of mail delivery. The name was a play on the word "gay", which at that time meant happy, implying that Gayside was the more pleasant of the two communities. However, in 1985, due to a change in definition of the word "gay", and subsequent joking and harassment of neighbouring communities, the name of the town was, once again, changed from "Gayside" to "Baytona". ^{[4] [5]}

References

1. "Census Profile, 2016 Census Baytona, Town [Census subdivision], Newfoundland and Labrador". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
2. 2006 Census
3. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Newfoundland and Labrador". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
4. The History Of Baytona
5. "Life on the Gayside | the Scope Archive".