New Harbour, Fortune Bay Explained

Official Name:New Harbour
Settlement Type:Abandoned Town
Pushpin Map:Newfoundland
Pushpin Label Position:left
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type4:Census subdivision
Population As Of:1945
Population Total:24[1]
Utc Offset:– 3:30
Utc Offset Dst:– 2:30
Coordinates:47.6027°N -54.9638°W

New Harbour is an abandoned town located within Fortune Bay in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada that had a peak population of 24 in 1945. It is not to be confused with New Harbour, Trinity Bay and New Harbour on the south-west coast of Newfoundland.

History

Located near the resettled community of Femme in Fortune Bay, Trammer was first settled in the early to mid 19 century and was first recorded in the Newfoundland census of 1857 where one settler had been born in England. By 1869, there were 19 residents,[2] with the surnames Matthews, Pauls and Rideout.[3] At that time, residents of the small community would only receive their mail every two weeks from the main Fortune Bay economic hub of Harbour Breton. People of the community relied heavily on the herring fishery which was a prosperous venture in the mid to late 19th century in this area. The population held relatively steady into the 1880s where all residents were reported as being 'Newfoundland-born.' With the decline of the Bait fishery, both due to the collapse of the herring stocks and the controversial Bait Act that restricted Newfoundland fishermen from selling bait to American and French buyers,[4] residents began to rely on the cod fishery. By the turn of the 20th century, the population had dramatically decreased to just six people. The community was revived shortly thereafter by a family of Wells from Bay L'Argent across Fortune Bay who made their home in vacated homesteads. By 1945, four Wells families and one Pardy family lived in the harbour, in what would be its peak population of 24.[5] The community was abandoned in the mid-20th century.

Demographics

New Harbour Population By Year
  1857 Census     3  
  1869 Census     19  
  1871 Business Directory     20  
  1884 Census     19[6]  
  1891 Census     15[7]  
  1901 Census     3  
  1935 Census     10[8]  
  1945 Census     24  

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Poole . Cyril . Cuff . Robert . Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, Volume 4 . 1981–1994 . Newfoundland Book Publishers . St. John's, Nfld., Canada . 9780920508145 . 43 . 1st . 29 November 2021.
  2. Book: Newfoundland Census and Return 1869 . 108 . 29 November 2021.
  3. Web site: Lovell's 1871 Provincial Business Directory . Newfoundland Grand Banks . 29 November 2021.
  4. News: A Fortune Bay Revolution . 29 November 2021 . People of Newfoundland . 16 December 2018.
  5. Web site: Newfoundland's 1945 Provincial Census Fortune Bay & Hermitage District . Newfoundland Grand Banks . 29 November 2021.
  6. Book: Newfoundland Census and Return 1884 . 1884 . St. John's, Nfld . 152 .
  7. Book: Census of Newfoundland and Labrador, 1891, Table I . Newfoundland. Colonial Secretary's Office . St. John's, Nfld . 326 . 29 November 2021.
  8. Web site: 1935 Census of Newfoundland. District of Fortune Bay Section from Terranceville to Anderson Cove . Newfoundland Grand Banks . 29 November 2021.