History Timeline Port de Grave Newfoundland

HISTORY

PORT DE GRAVE HISTORY TIMELINE

1675 - Thomas Butler, Andrew Gregory and Nicholas Sprout are listed as planters. Butler is married and has three sons.

1677 - Summer population is recorded at 57. The settlement consists of five dwellings and fishing rooms.

1697 - (January 23) - French under D'Iberville capture Port de Grave. The French report that there are 17 houses and 110 men "well-armed".

1700 - Around this time a few Irish immigrants settle in the area.

1766 - Methodist missionary Laurence Coughlan converts Irish Catholics by preaching in Gaelic.

1769 – Port de Grave is an active fishing harbour, with 15 fishing vessels engaged in the Bank fishery.

1775 – A small Roman Catholic chapel is built.

1780 – Robert Baine and Company is established as a Fisheries supply and trading outlet.

1801 – Robert Baine and Company business move to St John’s.

1817 – Walter and William Johnston are operating at new premises between Port de Grave and Ship Cove.

1818 – A Church of England mission is established, and later moved to Bareneed.

1828 - The first Church of England Church was built on the hill behind what is now the Anglican Hall.

1840 (after) – Roman Catholic children are sent to school in Northern Gut (now known as North River).

1845 – The Colonial and Government Church Society establishes a Methodist Church in the area.

1847 – Regular postal service is established.

1869 – There are Roman Catholic and Methodist churches in Port de Grave.

1875 --A new Anglican church was built down by the road to replace the one on the hill.

1916- The present Anglican church of St. Luke's was built to replace the one built in 1875.

1970’s – Port de Grave becomes one of the first communities to engage in the snow crab fishery.

1984 – 1985 – The landings of the once flourishing crab industry decreases 90% because of over fishing and Ocean Harvesters Limited closes its crab processing plant in Harbour Grace.

1992 – Children attend schools in Port de Grave and a central high school in Bay Roberts. Bay Roberts becomes the main service center for the area

SOURCE collections.ic.gc.ca/baccalieutrail/historyportdegrave.htm

NOTE: As that it is obvious that this is an incomplete timeline, we are asking that you send us any event for consideration that might be deemed to be a part of the Port de grave history timeline.

EMAIL

For a more in-depth search of Portdegrave History - Check out Gerald Andrews book on Portdegrave entitled Heritage of a Newfoundland Outport- The story of Port de Grave CLICK HERE

For those who are into research and who like to visit libraries, MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY in St. John's, NL provides an array of information on Port de Grave including works by Wayne Morgan, Ray Andrews, Derek Bussey, Olive Lear, and Harris Porter.