Early Settlement of Newfoundland

On June 11, 1578, Sir Humphrey Gilbert (1537?-1583) was granted letters patent to establish an English colony in North America. Gilbert arrived in St. John's harbour on August 3, 1583 where he was greeted by a number of English, Jersey Island and Portuguese fishermen who were already present in the harbour.

On August 5, Gilbert took formal possession of Newfoundland by officially claiming it as a colony of England. His claim was for all land within 200 leagues of St. John's.

Any plans Gilbert had of founding a settlement in Newfoundland were for naught. He lost the ship Delight off of Sable island and decided to turn back to England. Soon after, he himself drowned when his ship, the Squirrel, floundered and sank in the North Atlantic.

In 1608 John Guy had visited Newfoundland as a member of the North Virginia Company. At some point Guy submitted a petition to seeking to colonize Newfoundland for the London and Bristol Company. In May 1610 the English Privy Council granted a charter to the company giving them the whole island. Guy was appointed Governor.

Guy founded a settlement at Cupid's, Conception Bay. (Formerly, this settlement is known as Cupper's Cove). However, there were already settlers in the region. In fact there are historical records that show Newfoundland was being settled by fishermen and planters late in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Most notably, Sheila Ne Geira and her husband Gilbert Pike who had settled Bristol's Hope (circa 1602), the "Pirate Admiral" Peter Easton who plied Newfoundland waters (circa 1600-1620) and a family named Dawe who are reputed to have maintained a Fish Plantation at near or about Hibb's Cove (formerly Hibb's Hole) in Conception Bay as early as 1595.

In 1616 William Vaughan (1575-1641) purchased a large portion of the Avalon peninsula. By 1617 Vaughan had established a small colony of Gaelic speaking settlers at Renews, on the Avalon peninsula. But it was abandoned in 1619.

George Calvert was Lord Baltimore. He was the promoter of the colonies of Avalon and Baltimore. Calvert resided in Avalon in 1628.

In 1620 Vaughan gave Sir George Calvert (1580?-1632), First Baron of Baltimore, a tract of land on the Avalon peninsula. In 1621 Calvert founded The Colony of Avalon. Although he established the colony in 1621, Calvert did not receive a Royal Charter for the land until 1623.

Despite the harsh climate of Newfoundland, the trepidations of pirates and the ill preperation of English colonists for the Newfoundland environment, the Colony of Avalon was successful.

Masons were imported to build a stone town based on English designs, experimental gardens were planted and people worked in the lucrative salt cod industry.

In 1632 Cecil Calvert (1606-1675) the Second Lord of Baltimore,was granted a Royal Charter for the Colony of Maryland. At this time, he appointed Governors to both the Colony of Maryland and the Colony of Avalon. However, in 1637 the Buccaneer David Kirke (1597-1654) was named co-proprietor of Newfoundland and the first Governor under a charter granted to the Company of Adventurers.

The Colonies of Cambriola and Avalon are plainly visible on this map of Newfoundland (circa 1625). Bay Bulls Cape Broyle St. John's and Conception Bay, the site of Cupids and Bristol's Hope are also well marked.

In 1639, Kirke took possession of Avalon. He imported colonists and levied taxes on fishermen in the region. Because of his Royalist sympathies, Kirke was arrested by a Parliamentarian commission and returned to England in 1651. He died in prison three years later.

In 1660, the legal title of the colony of Avalon reverted back to Cecil Calvert. However, it remained in the possession of the Kirke family until it's destruction by French soldiers.

For a long period France had feared England's settlement and growing domination of Newfoundland. In response to the establishment of colonies such as Avalon, the French settled Plaisance in 1662. By 1672 there were a number of French settlers established in the region.

The majority of Newfoundland's English colonies and settlements (including Avalon, Petty Harbour, St. John's, Portugal Cove, Harbour Grace, Old Perlican, Bay de Verde, Hants Harbour etc. were destroyed in 1696 by French and Indian soldiers under the leadership of Captain Pierre LeMoyne de Iberville. Only the English communities of Trinity and Bonavista remained unscathed in this war.

After the war, English settlers slowly rebuilt their communities. However, Plaisance was abandoned by the French in 1713.

Press here for more information on the Colony of Avalon

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