Located in the central part of Labrador on the coast of Lake Melville and the Churchill River, Happy Valley-Goose Bay is the largest population centre in the region with an estimated 8,040 residents in 2021.

Built on a large sandy plateau in 1941, the town is home to the largest military air base in northeastern North America,[5] CFB Goose Bay.

The first settlers to the area came from coastal Labrador to work with McNamara Construction Company, which was contracted to build the Goose Bay Air Force Base.

[8] The first three families to arrive to work at the construction of the base were the Saunders from Davis Inlet, the Broomfields from Big Bay, and the Perraults from Makkovik.

Happy Valley's first school was operated by a Mrs. Perrault from her home until 1946, when the Royal Canadian Air Force donated a building.

CFB Goose Bay saw a reduction of NATO low-level tactical flight training in the decade 1996–2005, and the town faced an uncertain future as the federal government reduced the number of permanent Royal Canadian Air Force personnel to fewer than 100 all-ranks.

The last NATO nations to use CFB Goose Bay for flight training, Germany and Italy, did not renew their leases after terminating in early 2006.

The runway at Happy Valley-Goose Bay was also an alternative, but unused, landing site for NASA's now-decommissioned Space Shuttle, because of its size and length.

The town is located on the southern shore of a peninsula created by Terrington Basin to the north and Goose Bay at the south.

Located at Otter Creek is a seaplane base that also provided airlifts to local communities and tourist lodges in the interior of Labrador.