In 1880, James P. Howley "obtained possession of the mummified body of a Red Indian boy, found in Dark Tickle near Pilley’s Island" from a Jabez Tilley of Sops Arm; the body was exhibited in St. John's and then donated to the St. John’s Museum.[1]
Distant from the best fishing grounds further out the Bay, no settlement was recorded at Pilley's Island until the opening of a pyrite mine in 1887. Some early boat-building had taken place at Spencer's Dock, to the west of Pilley's Island Harbour. The island is thought to have been named for one of the seasonal visitors. While some have been known to spell it as "Pelley's Island", this is incorrect.
Local tradition says that Richard Rideout was the first European settler at Pilley’s Island.[2] Rideout is buried in the Pilley’s Island Salvation Army Cemetery, and his grave marker reads, “Richard RIDEOUT beloved husband of Eliza RIDEOUT died Aug. 25, 1928 aged 88 years.”[2] This is supported by Seary’s Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland which states “Richard (1840-1928), from England, came to Newfoundland in 1870 and was the first settler of PIlley’s Island.”[3] The earliest families on Pilley's Island came from Twillingate, Change Islands and Herring Neck. Some of these families had earlier come to the western part of the Bay to work a copper mine at Tilt Cove.
Pilley's Island mine in summer 2012
In the 1860s Captain Philip Cleary staked a mineral claim at Bumblebee Bight, hoping to develop a copper mine, though the island's orebody was chiefly pyrite. In 1885 Maine and Lewis Mills of New Brunswick bought the claim and the next year the company began mining. Tradition says that prior to the opening of the mine there were at least two families living on the island; however, church records have no record of births, deaths or marriages at Pilley's Island until 1887. By 1891, when the mine was in full production, the population was 411.
In 1889 the mine was acquired by the Pyrites Company Ltd. of England. Under new management the mine was modernized, becoming the first Newfoundland mine to be equipped with electric lights, among other improvements.[2] With the mine's prosperity, the community developed into the area's major employment and service center, with a hotel, courthouse, six merchant establishments, and the area's only hospital, set up by Sir Wilfred Grenfell.[4]
In 1891 it was reported,
The Pilley’s Island mine has recently been taken over by a new company, and will be worked more extensively than ever during this season. The ore which it yields, iron pyrites, is more abundant than formerly and preparations are being made for larger shipments this year. [5]
Forest fires in 1896 destroyed the Court House, the Methodist Church and the Salvation Army Barracks; thirty-five families were rendered homeless.[6]
In 1899 the mine went into trusteeship. Three years later it was reopened by the Newfoundland Exploration Syndicate. The mine closed permanently in 1908 when it was discovered that a large fault had displaced the main ore body. Though the community lost its major employer, the town survived as a fishing and lumbering community. Its population, which was 699 in 1901, declined to 405 by 1945.
The first clergyman to serve Pilley's Island was Methodist James Pincock and following the fires of 1896, the Methodists built their second church. Later the Salvation Army, Church of England and Roman Catholic Church built churches. After the mine closed, the Church of England disappeared and only a few Roman Catholics remained. The Methodist and Roman Catholic churches operated schools, and after 1903 the Salvation Army also operated one. The United Church and Salvation Army continued to operate separate schools until 1960. In 1967, high school students began to attend the Integrated Central High School at Roberts Arm. In 1977 Dorset Collegiate was opened on Pilley's Island, near the causeway to Triton.
In 2022, a plaque marking the designation of the Pilley's Island Methodist Church and Schoolhouse Complex as a Registered Heritage Structure was unveiled by the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador.[10]
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Pilley's Island had a population of 286 living in 135 of its 186 total private dwellings, a change of -2.7% from its 2016 population of 294.[11] With a land area of 34.65km2 (13.38sqmi), it had a population density of 8.3/km2 (21.4/sqmi) in 2021.[12]
Division No. 8 is a census division on the north coast of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It has a land area of 9,314.57 km² and had a population of 35,794 at the 2016 census. Its largest communities are the towns of Lewisporte, Springdale, and Twillingate.
Twillingate is a town of 2,121 people located on the Twillingate Islands ("Toulinquet") in Notre Dame Bay, off the north eastern shore of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The town is about 100 kilometres (62 mi) north of Lewisporte and Gander.
Greenspond is a community in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
Glovers Harbour, formerly known as Thimble Tickle(s), is an unincorporated community and harbour in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is located in Notre Dame Bay on the northern coast of the island of Newfoundland. As a local service district, it is led by an elected committee that is responsible for the delivery of certain essential services. It is delineated as a designated place for statistical purposes.
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Nova Central School District was a school district headquartered in Gander in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The district had 66 schools located in 50 different communities, and served about 13,000 students, including a significant rural population. The District was formed by the merger of the Lewisporte-Gander and Baie Verte-Central-Connaigre school boards in 2004. The largest school in the district was Gander Academy. The district was replaced by the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District upon provincial amalgamation in 2013.
Carmanville is a Canadian community in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Bauline is a small town in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the Avalon Peninsula north of St. John's. As of the 2021 census, it had a population of 412, making it the smallest incorporated community in the St. John's metropolitan area.
Purcell's Harbour is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is on the southern Twillingate island, about 4 km (2.5 mi) outside the town of Twillingate, near the community of Little Harbour.
Twillingate Islands are a group of islands in Notre Dame Bay of the Island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. There are two main islands, North Twillingate Island and South Twillingate Island, and several smaller islands which lie close to those; the largest of those is Burnt Island. The southern island is connected to New World Island via the Walter B. Elliott Causeway. The northern island is connected to the southern island by Tickle Bridge, which runs along Main Street in the town. The actual town of Twillingate is located on both islands.
Indian Cove is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is just off Route 340 on New World Island. It is the last community before crossing the causeway to Twillingate. Before the construction of the causeway, there was a ferry that ran from Indian Cove to Twillingate. There is a hair salon and dog grooming services. Education is provided by New World Island Academy in Summerford and grocery shopping can be done in nearby Twillingate.
Beachside is a town in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, in Notre Dame Bay. The town had a population of 97 in the Canada 2021 Census, down from 150 in 2011.
Lushes Bight–Beaumont–Beaumont North is a town on Long Island in Notre Dame Bay in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The town had a population of 169 at the 2021 Census, down from 275 in the 2006 Census.
Harry's Harbour is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is southwest of Baie Verte.
Moreton's Harbour is a local service district and designated place in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is on New World Island. The community is sometimes written as Morton's and occasionally as Moreton's. Clarence Wiseman, the tenth General of The Salvation Army from 1974 to 1977, was born at Moreton's Harbour.
Route 382, also known as Long Island Tickle Road, is a highway in the central portion of Newfoundland in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, branching off Route 380 in the town of Pilley's Island. The route is the only provincial route with no communities prevalent – it is designed as an access to the Lushes Bight–Beaumont–Beaumont North ferry. The maximum speed limit for much of Route 382 is 60 km/h, but is reduced to 30 km/h when approaching the ferry.
Route 380 is a highway in Newfoundland and Labrador. There are five communities along the route, beginning with South Brook at the Trans-Canada Highway, and ending at the community of Brighton. The route travels through three islands, including Pilley's Island and Brighton Tickle Island. Triton is the most populous community along the route.
Too Good Arm is an outport located on New World Island in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It neighbours the communities of Green Cove, Pike's Arm and Cobbs Arm and is a terminus of Route 346.
Trump Islands are located in Notre Dame Bay, within census division No. 8, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
References
↑ Webb, Jeff A. (May 2017). "A Few Fabulous Fragments: Historical Methods in James P. Howley's The Beothucks". Social History. 50 (101): 93.
↑ Seary, ER; Lynch, Sheila (1998). Kirwin, William (ed.). Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland. Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press. p.444.
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