During the 18th. and 19th. Centuries, Hr. Breton served as a base for English colonial
fishing ventures and settlement in Fortune Bay. After the Treaty of Paris in 1763, Jersey
and Poole merchants were impelled to shift their south coast bases at St. Pierre to
suitable harbours in Fortune Bay, such as Hr. Breton.
In 1776, Captain James Cook describes Harbour Breton as "the principal harbour in
Fortune Bay, with a good bottom and the place convenient for wooding and watering, and
room for a great number of mercht. ships, and many convenient places for building of
stages, landing and drying of fish." Cook also mentions that Thompson Beach in Hr.
Breton was occupied by Clarke & Young of Poole, where they built new buildings and
made other improvements, making it quite suitable for carrying on a fishing and trading
business.
Bishop Edward Feild, July, 1848 made a visit to Hr. Breton in the church ship Hawk and
he wrote: "I was refreshing my admiring recollection of this picturesque harbour, so
completely land-locked that a stranger could hardly guess the passage to the sea, and
surrounded by hills of a bold and fantastic outline, which, could, I think, be produced by
nothing but fire and fusion."
Rev. Philip Tocque (1878) was also struck by the landscape of the harbour, noting that
"towering cliffs of sienite, some hundreds of feet in altitude, appear in their wild
sublimity, against which the ocean bellows roll, wrapping their base in sheets of spray
and foam."
Soon after Clarke & Young had established in Hr. Breton, William Waldren of Poole
also established premises there, and eventually formed the new firm of Waldren Clarke
& Young, establishing Hr. Breton as the mercantile centre of Fortune Bay.
NEWMAN & COMPANY
Waldren Clarke & Young were succeeded by the English firm of Spurrier, whose
premises were later acquired by Robert Newman & Co., a London based firm which had
other stations along the south coast. Through its operations in Newfoundland, the Newman &
Co. had formed partnerships with various firms, especially with T.A. Hunt and P. Nicolle
of Jersey. During the 1820(?), the Newman & Co. made Hr. Breton its Newfoundland
headquarters and went on to control commercial life in the community for over 100 years.
Through the 19th. Century, the company relied heavily on the importing of fishing servants
from England and Ireland. The Newman Plantation in Hr. Breton was indeed impressive,
containing all the essentials for carrying on a large scale fishing and trading operation.
The company constructed impressive brick and wood stores, warehouses on the prime beach
front, a large kitchen, a cellar, wholesale and retail stores, workshops for carpenters,
coopers, blacksmiths, and other tradesmen. The premises also contained a doctor's
residence and a church. Cannons on the beach facing the entrance to the harbour acted as
protection for the plantation. The famous Newman's Port wine was stored on the premises
for aging and maturing before shipment to the markets of Europe. A Mr. Hardy was a long
time Port Wine storekeeper. In 1848 Bishop Feild describes the Newman premises as
"complete, comfortable, and consequential as wealth could make it." The Newman
& Co. had very strong ties with the Church of England and before a church and school
were constructed they made it possible for services to be held in the sail room, and
another room was lent for the school, complete with seats and desks. The first school
teacher was Mrs. Elizabeth Trood (1843/1844). In 1849, Rev. Philip Tocque noted that
"Newman & Co. commenced the cultivation of a large tract of land at the head of
Hr. Breton arm, growing potatoes, wheat, and tobacco."
By 1871, the Newman & Co. employed about 100 people in salting, drying, packing,
and shipping fish to Europe, Brazil and the West Indies, and was managed by a Mr. Gallop.
A large business was done with the Americans during the winter seasons, through the sale
of bait. In 1865, the Newman & Co. exported 14,699 cwts of saltfish from its firm in
Hr. Breton. Four other companies in the harbour exported 14,944 cwts in total that same
year.
The Newman & Co. had many years of prosperity in Hr. Breton but by the early 1900s,
their fortunes had declined and closed its operation in 1907. This marked the end of an
era in the Nfld. saltfish trade, for the Newman & Co. was the last English based
fishing firm to operate in Nfld. "That Newman & Co. survived in Nfld. for so long
can be attributed chiefly to their ruthless efficiency in dealing with their agents, their
painstaking scrutiny and careful examination of the account books, and their specific and
detailed instructions regarding all matters. When an agent's work was unsatisfactory, he
was usually invited to London for a conference and, if necessary, dismissed while
there." (S. Ryan, "Fish Out of Water.")
An 1840's Love Story Gone Wrong as researched by
Loretta Ridgeley
Somewhere deeply embedded in the earth of Harbour Breton, lies the remains of one
dashing and lofty Englishman, a parody of love's triangle, his heart a severed composite
of her soil. And in foreign lands across the way, lie the remains of the components of a
web of love, lust, crime and deception.
Trading his beloved England for lands unknown, young Paul Langstone, unable to control
the tides of fate or master the changes of time, allows the sea to divide, the distance to
part and falls victim to his own destiny.
The Newman era in Harbour Breton saw the development of history with a personal touch,
portrayed through the revelation of an 1840's love story evolving around Mildred Baxter, a
renowned young English lady, and her fiancee, Paul Langstone, a clerk with the Newman firm
in Harbour Breton. Upon learning of his infidelity in Harbour Breton, Mildred adopted the
disguise of a man, journeyed to Harbour Breton, plotted her revenge and redeemed her
grace.
EARLY SETTLERS
Harbour
Breton was first recorded in the census of 1836 with a population of 149, the majority of
whom were fishing servants. By 1845, the population had reached 241 and by 1857 it reached
361, forty-seven of whom were born in England. From mid to late 1800s, Hr. Breton was
"still absorbing emigrants from Dorset, Sumerset and the Channel Islands."
In 1871, the population of Hr. Breton continued to rise, and was the chief town of
Fortune Bay. "There was little crime in that year, a few occasional assaults, and no
serious sickness. The inhabitants were about two-thirds Protestant and one-third Roman
Catholic, and the place has a minister of each denomination, and also a surgeon and a
stipendiary magistrate."
According to the Encyclopedia of Nfld. and Labrador, early known permanent settlers
were Benjamin Chapman (1824), Samuel Hutchings (1835), James Taylor (1851), Richard
Longmead (1851), John Strickland (1853), James Stone (1853), George Rideout (1853), James
Hunt (1853), James Holley (1854), William Herrott (1854), William Tibboe (1858), George
Burns (1859), and James Hardy, storekeeper (1859).
By the late 1800s, a large part of the population had either settled in Hr. Breton
permanently, moved to other stations on the south coast which were connected with the
Newman & Co. or returned to their country of origin. By 1891, Hr. Breton's population
had reached 484. Of them, 443 were Nfld. born with the remainder from England, Ireland,
Scotland and other British colonies.
RESETTLEMENT
Hr. Breton was designated as a "growth centre" in 1965 and the government
encouraged people living in isolated communities to relocate to the town in order to
receive better public services and opportunities for employment. From 1965 to 1971, a
total of 700 people had moved to Hr. Breton. Its 1971 population was 2600 people. People
had moved from such communities as Jersey Harbour, Sagona Island, Miller's Passage, Little
Bay West, Great Harbour, Red Cove, Pass Island, Grole, Stone Valley, Muddy Hole,
Pushthrough, Piccaire, Round Harbour, Broad Cove, and Brunette Island to take up a new
life in Harbour Breton.
Today Harbour Breton is still a vibrant community with many modern facilities. The
fishery, although operating on a seasonal basis is still the mainstay of the economy.
Harbour Breton with its 2079 people is a proud and progressive community with a strong
sense of history and culture and looks to the future with optimism.
Before you have had time to take in the breathtaking scenery and wildlife, you'll be in Harbour Breton - the capital of Newfoundland's south coast. If you have any questions,
please feel free to drop by the Town Hall, at the entrance to the town, where our staff
will be happy to assist you.
