Clarke's Head, Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador

Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...

 is the first community on the north side of the mouth of the Gander River

Gander River

The Gander River is a river in eastern Newfoundland, Canada. It is 110 miles long and originates at Partridgeberry Hill, south of Grand Falls. The river then flows northeast to Gander Lake and on to Gander Bay on the Atlantic Ocean.-External links:...

. A small community, which joined with several other small communities, to form Gander Bay

Gander Bay

Gander Bay is a natural bay located on the island of Newfoundland, in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.Gander Bay takes its name from the lake and river which terminates within the inner reaches of this bay.-Communities:* Rodgers Cove...

.

History

Clarke's Head is located near Gander in Gander Bay, Newfoundland. This lumbering community is said to have been populated by Aboriginals until European settlers moved near the community in the 19th century. People came to Clarke's Head for the salmon fishery and farming was important as well. In 1869 the Census of Newfoundland recorded a population of 69. In 1883 Clarke's Head had a road built leading to Victoria Cove, and by 1890 they had started exploiting timber. By 1935 Clarke's Head had a population over 300 with logging as the main source of employment.

Church History

There is records that show a school was operating in Clarke's Head in the late 19th century. In 1869 there were 61 members of the Church of England and 8 Roman Catholics. In 1905 a Church of England church was built, and a Roman Catholic church was also built.

Census Information

	1869
population	69
Church of England	61
Church of Rome	8
people catching/curing fish	19
seamen/fishermen	15
inhabited houses	9
stores/barns/outhouses	15
fishing rooms in use	3
oxen/cows	12
swine	1
tons of hay	6
barrels of potatoes	221
barrels of turnip	1
total # of boats	2
nets and seines	37

Directory

- Lovell's Directory describes Clarke's Head as a small fishing settlement in the Twillingate and Fogo district with a population of 70. The names that are listed are:

• John Bursey, Fisherman
• Richard Bursey, Fisherman
• Charles Francis
• James Gillingham, Fisherman
• Nathaniel Gillingham, Fisherman
• Robert Gillingham, Fisherman
• William Gillingham, Fisherman
• John Harris, Fisherman

External links

• http://ngb.chebucto.org/
• http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~hrollman/index.html