Goose Green
Encyclopedia
Goose Green is a settlement in Lafonia
Lafonia
Lafonia is a peninsula forming the southern part of East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands.-Geography and geology:Shaped like the letter "E", it is joined to the northern part of the island by a 1.5-mile narrow isthmus; were this isthmus to be severed, Lafonia would be the third...

 on East Falkland
East Falkland
East Falkland the largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, has an area of and a coastline long. Most of the population of the Falklands live in East Falkland, almost all of them living in the northern half of the island...

 in the Falkland Islands
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...

. It lies on Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound is a stretch of sea in the Falkland Islands. It runs parallel to Eagle Passage and is between Lafonia and the north of East Falkland. Lively Island is in its mouth....

, on the east side of the island's central isthmus
Isthmus
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...

, 2 miles (3.2 km) south-southwest of Darwin
Darwin, Falkland Islands
Darwin is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland, lying on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, north of Goose Green...

. With a population of about 70, it is the second largest settlement of the Falkland Islands.

Goose Green has a shop and a small airfield. Local attractions include the nearby Bodie Suspension Bridge
Bodie Suspension Bridge
The Bodie Creek Suspension Bridge in the Falkland Islands is said to be the southernmost suspension bridge in the world. It was built in 1925, from a kit fabricated in England by David Rowell & Co., in order to shorten the distance sheep needed to be driven from southern Lafonia to the shearing...

 and the Vicar of Bray shipwreck
Shipwreck
A shipwreck is what remains of a ship that has wrecked, either sunk or beached. Whatever the cause, a sunken ship or a wrecked ship is a physical example of the event: this explains why the two concepts are often overlapping in English....

, which participated in the California gold rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...

.

Goose Green farm itself is massive. At 430000 acres (1,740.1 km²) square kilometres (430,000 acres), it is double the size of the farms at Port Howard
Port Howard
Port Howard is the largest settlement on West Falkland . it is in the east of the island, on an inlet of Falkland Sound...

 and North Arm
North Arm
North Arm is a settlement in Lafonia, the southern part of East Falkland, in the Falkland Islands, . It is on the south coast, on the shore of the Bay of Harbours, and overlooks Sea Lion Island in the distance. About 25 people live in or around the settlement. It is the largest settlement on East...

. During the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

, it was the scene of the Battle of Goose Green
Battle of Goose Green
The Battle of Goose Green was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces. Goose Green and its neighbour Darwin are settlements on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. They lie on Choiseul Sound on the east side of the island's central isthmus...

.

History

Goose Green was established in 1875, as the site of a tallow
Tallow
Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat, processed from suet. It is solid at room temperature. Unlike suet, tallow can be stored for extended periods without the need for refrigeration to prevent decomposition, provided it is kept in an airtight container to prevent oxidation.In industry,...

 factory.

According to the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, at the turn of the 20th century, many of the local inhabitants were Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...

, which in part is reflected by the nearby placename, Brenton Loch
Brenton Loch
Brenton Loch is an inlet-cum-small fjord in the Falkland Islands. It is one of a handful of so-called sea lochs outside Scotland. It is sometimes known as "Brenton Sound". "Loch" is normally pronounced as "lock" in the English rather than Scottish manner, i.e. without a fricative "ch"...

. There were thirteen people recorded as living here at that time. At about this time, Goose Green began to take off:
"A canning factory was opened in 1911 at Goose Green, and was extremely successful for nine years. It absorbed a large proportion of surplus sheep, but during the slump of the postwar years, the concern suffered a serious loss and in 1921 it closed down."


Despite this setback, the settlement grew after it became the base for the Falkland Islands Company's sheep farm in Lafonia
Lafonia
Lafonia is a peninsula forming the southern part of East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands.-Geography and geology:Shaped like the letter "E", it is joined to the northern part of the island by a 1.5-mile narrow isthmus; were this isthmus to be severed, Lafonia would be the third...

 in 1922 - the population rose to nearly 200, with improved sheep handling and wool shed being built. In 1927, the settlement's huge sheep shearing shed was built, which is claimed to be the world's largest, with a capacity of five thousand sheep. However, this claim is hard to verify. In 1979, 100,598 sheep were shorn at Goose Green.

Up until the 1970s, Goose Green was the site of a boarding school, run by the state. "Camp" children boarded here, and there were 40 spaces. The boarding school was later transferred to Stanley, although the recent emphasis has been on locally based education. The school itself became an Argentine HQ, and was burnt down. A new (day) school has been built for local children.

The town population has shrunk since the Falklands War. In 1982, there were a hundred residents; in 2000 there were forty.http://www.falklands.info/background/visitorsguide.html It is now part of the Falkland Landholdings Corporation, a government-managed company.

There are two listed buildings here, the Stone Cottage, and the village hall.

Falklands War

Goose Green was occupied by Argentine forces during the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

. Over one hundred islanders were imprisoned in the community hall, while over 1,200 Argentine troops
Military of Argentina
The Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, in Spanish Fuerzas Armadas de la República Argentina, are controlled by the Commander-in-Chief and a civilian Minister of Defense...

 occupied the settlement and nearby Darwin
Darwin, Falkland Islands
Darwin is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland, lying on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, north of Goose Green...

. It was the subject of the first land battle of that conflict (see Battle of Goose Green
Battle of Goose Green
The Battle of Goose Green was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces. Goose Green and its neighbour Darwin are settlements on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. They lie on Choiseul Sound on the east side of the island's central isthmus...

), as it was relatively close to the site of the British landings, San Carlos
San Carlos, Falkland Islands
San Carlos is a settlement in northwestern East Falkland, lying south of Port San Carlos on San Carlos Water. It is sometimes nicknamed "JB" after a former owner, Jack Bonner.-History:...

, and the British leaders were looking for an early victory, even if the site was not necessarily of military importance. The area is still heavily mined
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....

.
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