Eighteenth Century Newfoundland: A Geographer's Perspective 9780773595507

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Eighteenth Century Newfoundland A GEOGRAPHER’S PERSPECTIVE

C. GRANT HEAD

T h e C a rle to n L ibrary N o . 99 P ublished by M cC lelland a n d S tew art L im ited in association w ith th e In stitu te of C a n a d ia n S tudies. C a rle to n U niversity

T H E C A R L E T O N L IB RARY A series o f reprints, o rig in a l w orks and new collections o f source m aterial relatin g to C anada, issued u nder the ed ito ria l su pervision o f the Institute o f C an ad ian Studies o f C arleton U n iversity, Ottawa.

D I R E C T O R OF THH I N S I I I U T E

D avidson Dunton

G E N E R A L E DIT OR

M ichael G narowski

E X E CU T IV E E DIT OR

James Marsh

ED I T O R IA L B O A R D

B. Carm an Bickerton (H istory) Dennis Forcese ( S o cio lo g y ) D avid B. K n igh t ( Geography) J. G eo rg e Neuspiel (Law ) Th om as K . Rym es (Econom ics) Derek G . Smith (Anthropology) M ichael S. W hittington (Political Science)

© M cC lelland a n d S tew a rt L im ited. 1976

ALL R I G H T S R E S E R V E D

IS B N 0-7710-9799-9

The Canadian Publishers M cC lelland and Stewart Lim ited 25 H ollin ger R oad . T o ro n to

Printed a n d bound in Canada

Contents

L ist o f T ab les L ist o f Figures P reface

vi vii

xi

Part O ne: T h e L ate S even teen th Century 1. T h e F ish e ry a t N e w f o u n d la n d 2 2. A Q u e stio n o f Y e a r-R o u n d H a b ita tio n

30

Part Tw o: 1675-1775 3. T h e N a rra tiv e , 1675-1775 54 4. R e so u rc e E x p lo ita tio n 63 5. T h e R e s id e n t P o p u la tio n 82 6. S u p p lie s 100 Part Three: N ew foundland in th e 1760s and Early 1770s 7. N e w fo u n d la n d in th e 1760s a n d E a rly 1770s 140 Part 8. 9. 'M 0 . ^-.11.

Four: 1775-1820 Im p a c t o f th e A m e ric a n R e v o lu tio n a ry W a r 196 In te rw a r E x p a n s io n a n d C o lla p se 203 R ise o f th e R e sid e n ts a n d N e w P re ssu re o n R e so u rc e s N e w fo u n d la n d in th e E a rly N in e te e n th C e n tu ry 230

G eneral C on clusion

243

Appendix: N ew foundland D iet and F ood-C on su m in g U n its Bibliography

217

259

Finding Aid for Y early S ta tistic s

281

252

List o f Tables 3.1 3.2 4.1 5.1 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8 6.9 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9 7.10 9.1 9.2 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 11.1

In h a b ita n ts , 1711 59 A ctivity a t St. P ie rre. 1714 59 In sh o re C o d C a u g h t, 1677-1774 70 N e w fo u n d la n d Irish N a m e s 88 W in e s a n d P ro v isio n s Im p o rte d i n to S t. J o h n ’s 1677 101 C arg o es in to St. J o h n ’s, 1742 102 E xports o f W e st C o u n try T o w n s to N e w fo u n d la n d . 1731 104 E x p o rts fro m Irish P o rts, 1772 108 V essels C le a rin g C o rk 110 E x p o rts fro m A m e ric a n C o lo n ie s, 1715 119 E x p o rts fro m A m e ric a n C o lo n ie s, 1731 119 E x p o rts fro m A m e ric a n C o lo n ie s, 1742 120 E x p o rts fro m A m e ric a n C o lo n ie s. 1754 120 E x p o rts fro m A m e ric a n C o lo n ie s. 1763 120 E x p o rts fro m W est In d ia n Isla n d s 121 B re ad stu ffs 130 Pork 130 S h ip p in g , St. J o h n ’s, 1775 151 I m p o r ts , S t. J o h n ’s, 1 7 7 1 -1 7 7 2 151 Im p o rts fro m A m e ric a 152 B ritish H o m e P o rts o f S h ip p in g 153 P o p u la tio n a n d E th n ic ity o n th e S o u th e rn S h o re 155 Im p o rts a t F e rry la n d , 1764 155 Im p o rts a t P la c e n tia H a rb o u r. 1764 159 Im p o rts a t H a r b o u r G ra c e , 1764 169 P o p u la tio n o f T rin ity H a rb o u r, O ld a n d N e w P e rlic an a n d B o n a v e n tu re . 1764 171 F ish in g S ta tio n S ite F a c to rs 184 B anking, 1769-1801 205 S h ip m e n ts o f W h e a t fro m Q u e b e c 210 Prices in N e w fo u n d la n d 219 P rice o f L a b o u r 219 S e a so n ’s C o sts 220 A re a s P ro b a b ly O v e rfis h e d in 1805 222 V essels G o in g to th e N o r th e r n F ish e ry 223 S eal F ish e ry , 1803-10 225 N e w fo u n d la n d S u p p ly , 1807 234

List o f Figures 1.1 E q u ip m e n t a t N e w fo u n d la n d 4 1.2 S u m m e r P o p u la tio n , 1677 7 1.3 F re n c h F ish e ry at N e w fo u n d la n d , 1640-1660’s 12 1.4 In sh o re C o d R e so u rc e 24 3.1 S u m m e r P o p u la tio n 1677-1801 55 4.1 In sh o re L a n d in g s 64 4.2 B oats, C a tc h a n d Y ie ld s p e r B oat 67 4.3 Y ields p e r B oat 69 4.4 O ffsh o re L a n d in g s 71 5.1 R e sid en c y 84 5.2 E th n ic ity , 1732-54-70. 85 5.3 A d v e rtis e m e n t in Irish N e w s p a p e r 89 5.4 Irish I n h a b ita n ts 90 5.5 In c o m in g P assen g ers 91 6.1 B ritish E x p o rts to N e w fo u n d la n d , 1698-1801 107 6.2 N e w fo u n d la n d -b o u n d s h ip p in g fro m T h r e e A m e ric a n P o rts 116 6.3 S e lec ted C o m m o d itie s to N e w f o u n d la n d , 1715-63 118 6.4 Page fro m a B oston P e d la r’s A c c o u n t B ook 124 6.5 O w n e rs h ip o f N e w fo u n d la n d -b o u n d vessels a t N e w Y o rk 126 7.1 S u m m e r P o p u la tio n , 1768-73 144 7.2 St. J o h n ’s a b o u t 1770 148 7.3 S o u th e rn S h o r e - b o a t s 154 7.4 B ankers, 1769 157 7.5 S o u th C o a st a b o u t 1765 160 7.6 Port a u x B a sq u e s a f te r C o o k 164 7.7 C o n c e p tio n B ay 167 7.8 T rin ity B ay 170 7.9 F ish e ries in N o r th e rn N e w f o u n d la n d 178 8.1 S t .J o h n ’s 200 ' 9.1 S o u rces o f B re a d stu ffs f o r N e w fo u n d la n d 1770-93 211 10.1 F ish Prices, 1770-1814 219 10.2 Seal F ish e rie s, 1807 224 11.1 B re ad a n d F lo u r S u rp lu se s a n d D e fic its 235

For Brenda

Preface N e w foundland in p a st c en tu rie s held a p o sitio n o f im p o rta n ce far be yond th a t w hich it holds to d ay . T h e e x p lo itatio n o f its resources by Britain p ro v id ed a m echanism for exchange w ith th e Iberian n a tio n s, a n d its p ro d u c e fed large p o p u latio n s in these so u th ern E u ro p ea n co u n tries. T h e fitting o f ships a n d m en for its fishery each y e ar in B ritain p ro v id ed em p lo y m en t in W e st-C o u n try E ng­ land, a n d the a n n u al A tlan tic crossings o f this fleet w ere held to p ro v id e a su p e rb p e ac etim e train in g g ro u n d fo r m en th a t co u ld be pressed into naval service in w artim e. “ N e w fo u n d la n d " , as a nam e, w as w ell-know n not only to th e B ritish, but to th e m erc h an ts and d ip lo m a ts o f m ost o f th e w estern a n d so u th e rn E u ro p ea n natio n s. M en o f w estern E u ro p e had g a th e red th e c o d from N e w fo u n d ­ land w aters from at least th e early years o f th e sixteenth cen tu ry . E ngland e n te red th e e n d e a v o u r on a large scale ra th e r late, b u t by th e s e v e n te e n th c e n tu r y sh e w as o u tfittin g o n e h u n d r e d , tw o h u n d re d a n d m o re vessels for th e cod-rich w aters each year. F rom the beginning, th is British fishery a t N ew fo u n d lan d a p p e a rs to have been a m ig rato ry o n e , utilizing th e inshore cod resource a lo n g the e astern N e w fo u n d lan d coast, particu larly th a t o f th e A valon P enin­ sula. T h e vessels arriv e d each spring, the m en fished alo n g sh o re from b o a ts, they lightly salted, w ashed, and a ir-d rie d th eir catch, a n d then re tu rn e d to E ngland, p erh ap s via th e Iberian m arkets, each fall. W e have no evidence o f th e use o f th e offshore b a n k s by th e E nglish, n o r o f th e heavy o r w et, salt p re serv a tio n o f fish except for th e last few q u in ta ls th a t could not b e d rie d in tim e before d e p a rtu re . It w as b u t o n e o f a n u m b er o f sev e n te en th -c en tu ry fish­ eries based upon th e cod o f th e a re a from th e S tra it o f Belle Isle on th e n o rth to C a p e C o d on th e so u th , from th e m o u th o f th e St. L aw rence on th e w est to the eastern tip o f th e G ra n d B anks on the east, b u t o f these m an y fisheries th e m en o f th e B ritish fishery at N e w foundland w ere th e se a b ird s th a t m ost o ften rested u p o n the sh o re. T h e dry c u re w hich th e English had espoused relied upon sun a n d w ind, a n d these n eed e d p o sitio n s on land, not th e foggy deck o f a vessel on th e B anks, a n d the B ritish set up th e ir rude shelters upon a thin strip o f sh o re lin e o f N e w fo u n d lan d stretching from C a p e B onavista in the n o rth to C a p e Pine in the so u th . O nce th e fishery w as well established, by th e .early sev e n te en th century, th e fishing sta tio n s show ed few signs o f co n tin u e d g row th for m ore th an a century.

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PREFACE

By th e n in ete en th cen tu ry , th e annual m ig ra tio n to ta k e th e N ew ­ fo u n d lan d fish had sto p p e d . A y e a r-ro u n d colony co u ld th en be seen on the island, w ith m en, w om en a n d c hildren lab o u rin g to take th e cod and read y it for m a rk e t-b o u n d vessels. T h e islan d 's forests th a t h a d com e to th e sh o re in th e sixteenth c en tu ry could b e seen to begin som e d istan ce back from th e shore a n d h a d been replaced in th e coastal strip by th e acc o u tre m en ts o f settlem en t. A noticeable Irish flavour co u ld be detected in th e accent o f th e p eople a n d in the ridges a n d furrow s o f the fish e rfo lk 's p o ta to g a rd e n s. P o pulation w as grow ing a t a ra p id ra te a n d by m id -cen tu ry , at least, it was alm ost solely a ttrib u ta b le to n a tu ra l increase. T h e eig h teen th c en tu ry th e n , is o n e o f c o n sid erab le c h an g e, and w e b ring to this c en tu ry a g e o g rap h ic p ersp ectiv e o f inq u iry . W e seek h e re to discover, to re co rd , a n d to u n d e rstan d th e changing spatial relationships; th e use o f th e islan d 's resources; a n d th e land­ scape a n d sense o f place in its b ro a d est term s. O th e r scholars have addressed th e q u e stio n s o f th e islan d 's p o litical d e v elo p m en t, and her m ilitary a n d d ip lo m a tic significance; there is little o f th a t here unless w e are c onvinced th a t such m atters have exerted a n im p o r­ ta n t influence u p o n th e sp atial p a tte rn s, resources, o r landscape. E ig h te e n th c e n tu ry N e w fo u n d la n d , seen fro m a g e o g ra p h ic perspective, com es th ro u g h som ew hat d ifferently th an in earlier published w orks. T h e Irish, for exam ple, are well know n as im p o r­ ta n t c o n trib u to rs to th e N e w fo u n d lan d cu ltu re. Y et it has n o t been previously recognized th at th ey w ere not th e re in force in th e seven­ teen th cen tu ry , a n d they have not been p o in te d ly id entified as im ­ p o rta n t in the process o f initiatin g y e ar-ro u n d se ttle m e n t. Secondly, it has been p o p u la r to assert th a t th e p resen t scattered d istrib u tio n o f p o p u latio n a ro u n d the island can be a ttrib u te d to illegality o f p e rm a n e n t se ttle m e n t, and th e c o n seq u en t sc a tterin g o f th e people to sm all se ttle m e n ts stru n g alo n g 6,000 m iles o f co astline in o rd e r to escape d e tectio n by British naval officers a n d m ig ra to ry fishing ves­ sels. T h is is folk-m yth and has not been dispelled by th e scholars. U n til it is so dispelled it will c o n tin u e to c ree p , even into g o v e rn ­ m ent w ritings a n d so m etim es into policy. T o p ro b e eig h te en th c en tu ry N ew fo u n d lan d as a g e o g rap h e r, we use th e sam e types o f evidence a s w ould th e h isto ria n . L arge blocks o f specifically N ew fo u n d lan d info rm atio n is c o n ta in e d in, for e x am ­ ple, th e c o rre sp o n d e n c e o f th e islan d ’s naval g o v e rn o rs w ith their su p e rio rs in E ngland, a n d th is m aterial is easily accessible. Beyond this, though, th e sources are w idely scattered , a n d are often difficult to locate and to utilize. T h ere is little m ate ria l th a t has survived upon th e island itself; the N ew fo u n d lan d fishery w as not an exploit o f g re at c o m p a n ies w ho m ig h t have m eticulously preserved their

PREFACE

xiii

archives, a n d w h at few records w ere m ad e by sm all e n tre p ren e u rs perished easily b ecause th ere w ere no solid sh o re e stab lish m en ts in which they m ight have been preserved. B eyond using th e m o st o b v io u s records, th en , th e a p p ro a c h w as to seek evidence in th e a re a s w ith w hich N e w fo u n d lan d h a d c o n ­ tact. T h e island received m issionaries from E ngland and th e ir let­ ters to th e ir sp o n so rs are av ailable: m erch an ts from E ngland, Ire­ land, a n d A m erica supplied food and w ares to th e island, a n d ac­ c o u n ts o f N ew fo u n d lan d dealings in these a re a s w ere sought, lo­ cated in g ratifying n u m b ers, a n d utilized. M a terial m ay be av ail­ able, to o , in the a reas to w hich N e w fo u n d lan d cod w as m ark e te d , b ut it has not yet been p u rsued. W e have asked q u e stio n s o f th is evidence th a t a re d iffere n t, in p a rt, from those th a t m o st h isto ria n s w ould a sk . B ecause th e ques­ tio n s a re differen t th e handling is differen t to o . L ike all scholars we m ust ev alu ate th e valid ity o f each piece, but unlik e m ost p rev io u s w o rk ers in th e a re a , w e seek the p e rce p tio n s o f th e c o m m o n m an as m uch as those o f th e elite. Indeed, th e sta te m e n t from th e real p a rticip a n t in N e w fo u n d lan d 's life is all too ra re , a n d is o ften far m ore im p o rta n t, carefully evalu ated , th an the o b se rv atio n s o f a g o v ­ ern o r. T h is w ork relies heavily u p o n statistics a b o u t N e w fo u n d lan d c o l­ lected yearly by the m ig rato ry c o m m a n d ers o f th e English fleet on the N ew fo u n d lan d sta tio n . F ro m tim e to tim e these statistics have been a tta c k e d by stu d e n ts o f N ew fo u n d lan d as unreliab le. Y et the sam e stu d e n ts go on to use co m p ilatio n s built from these detailed statistics, o r q u o te sta te m en ts o r p e rce p tio n s o f a u th o ritie s fo rm u ­ lated from th e d a ta o f the statistics. O u r basic p h ilo so p h y has been to g et back as close to the original detail as th e evidence allow s, to g ra p h it o v er tim e a n d space, a n d to seek th e tre n d s. W e have treated th e statistical retu rn s as p e rc ep tio n s o f th e re p o rte r, not as hard factual statistical d a ta , and have c o m p a red the p e rce p tio n s o f su ccessiv e in d e p e n d e n t o b s e rv e rs . S o h a n d le d , w e have a d a ta source for eighteenth c en tu ry N e w fo u n d lan d b e tte r th an w e have for m uch o f the nin eteen th and tw en tieth cen tu ries, w hen censuses becam e m uch less freq u en t a n d spatially so im precise. T he p resen t v olum e is d ivided into fo u r p a rts. In th e first part, we exam ine th e island a n d its context in th e late sev en teen th cen ­ tury to establish a h e ritag e upon w hich th e eig h teen th c en tu ry d e ­ velopm ent could build. In th e second p a rt, the a tte n tio n is directed to th e process o f change in th e eig h teen th cen tu ry : th e general areal exp an sio n o f th e fishery activity, th e chan g es in a m o u n t a n d types o f an o u tsid e food supply, a n d the c h an g in g n u m b ers a n d c h a ra c te r­ istics o f th e islan d 's p o p u la tio n . P a rt th re e is a re co n stru c tio n o f the

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g e o g rap h y p ro d u c ed by th e in teractio n o f the series o f d ev elo p ­ m en ts o f th e first th re e -q u a rte rs o f th e c e n tu ry . It is a vehicle for p resen tin g e n ough d etailed in fo rm a tio n th a t th e re ad e r m ay sense m o re clearly n o t only " N e w fo u n d la n d ” o f the eig h teen th century, b u t also th e c o n sid erab le v a ria tio n from place to place w ith in the island; it pro v id es, to o , th e d e ta ile d evidence fo r w hat is felt to be a m o re logical in te rp re ta tio n o f th e islan d 's settlem en t p a tte rn . F i­ nally, th e fo u rth p a rt o f th e w ork traces th e ra p id decline o f m igra­ tory activity d u rin g the N a p o leo n ic W ars a n d th e coincid en tal rapid crystalization o f y e a r-ro u n d o c cu p atio n th a t em erged as ch ara cte ris­ tic o f the n in ete en th c en tu ry . T h e eighteenth c en tu ry is th e focus o f change, b u t th e p receding a n d succeeding d e cad es a re th e bench m ark s against w hich this c h an g e is m easu red . T h e a u th o r acknow ledges th e assistance o f m any p e o p le and m an y in stitu tio n s. T he w ork in co rp o ra te s evidence a b o u t N ew ­ foundland o b ta in e d in m o re th an th irty archives a n d libraries in C a n a d a , U n ited States, E ngland, Ireland a n d th e C h a n n e l Islands. W ith o u t th e financial aid o f the C a n a d a C ouncil for th e A rts, and th e G ra d u a te School o f th e U niversity o f W isconsin, b o th o f w hom su p p o rted th e labours upon w hich th is v o lu m e is b ased , such an ex ten d ed search w ould have been im possible. W ilfrid L au rier U n i­ versity has g enerously b o rn e the cost o f p ro d u c in g th e c arto g rap h ic w o rk , w hich w as d o n e in th e C a rto g ra p h ic U n it o f the D ep artm en t o f G e o g ra p h y . F a c sim ile s a n d tra n s c rip ts o f C r o w n —c o p y rig h t re co rd s in th e P u b lic R e c o rd O ffic e (L o n d o n ) a p p e a r b y p e rm is ­ sio n o f th e C o n tro lle r o f H e r M a je s ty ’s S ta tio n e ry O ffice , a n d a c k n o w le d g e m e n t is m a d e to th e T ru s te e s o f th e N a tio n a l M a ri­ tim e M u seu m (G re e n w ic h ) fo r p e rm iss io n to re p ro d u c e m a te ria l fro m th e ir c o llectio n s. Finally, th e w arm est th a n k s g o to th e late A n d rew Hill C lark and to m y w ife, B renda.

PART ONE The Late Seventeenth Century

Chapter One The Fishery at Newfoundland The Activity The M a rig o ld had cleared P lym outh H a rb o u r on F e b ru a ry 8th, 1670. O n e m o n th later, nearly tw o th o u sa n d m iles to th e w estw ard, a n d a fte r a sto rm y n o rth w a rd passage, th e crew sighted b ird s, and the lead line show ed b o tto m . T h e nervous tim e began. F o rtu n ately , this tim e, there w as little fog b u t lo o k o u ts re p o rte d ice, ice alive w ith a fresh w ind a n d a heavy sw elling sea, crushing a n d crying as it m oved a n d crashing a n d th u m p in g into th e M a rig o ld as she pressed th ro u g h th e shelves. It w as dazzling, a n d stretch ed as far as th e crew could see, a n d for tw o days th e little sh ip w o rk e d th ro u g h it. On M arch 14th, th e th ird d a y in th e ice, th e w ind tu rn ed N o rth , fresh a n d cold. Snow a n d spray m ad e th e vessel “ like a lu m p o f i c e . . . . th e w ater freezes as so o n as it com es on decks, n o t for o u r lives able to loose a k n o t o f sail, all things a re so f r o z e n .. . . G o d help us, we a re very fe arfu l." W a te r w as boiled a n d th e c o n te n ts o f the steam ­ ing kettles w ere dash ed on th e sails a n d ro p e s in a n a tte m p t to allow som e setting o f canvas, a n d ice w as c h o p p ed aw ay from th e bow s, decks a n d ro p es. O n th e 18th, they w ere su rro u n d e d by ice on the n o rth , south a n d w est. “ W e a re in a d a n g ero u s case, a n d the worse b ecause o u r m aste r a n d his m ate w ere now b o th d r u n k .” T w o days later, a fte r a sto rm , th e M a rig o ld passed so u th w a rd o f th e ice and th en , w orking n o rth keeping th e ice to th e east, her m en saw land: th e high, d ark “ to lt” th at they recognized as C ap e B royle. T hey w ere here in N ew fo u n d lan d on a fishing voyage; th ey h a d left Plym outh early, for th e first arrival in each N ew fo u n d lan d h a rb o u r could ta k e his choice o f th e facilities a n d be “ lord o f th e h a rb o u r.” T h o u g h th e crew had seen a n d spoken w ith a n u m b e r o f o th er fishing sh ip s w hile battlin g th e ice, there w as still a h o p e o f being a m o n g th e first to arrive. C a p ta in M a rtin o f th e M a rig o ld in ten d ed to m ake fo r St. Jo h n 's , a b old, well sheltered h a rb o u r, no ted for its g o o d fishing, a n d w here he had b een th e first to a rriv e th e year b efo re. But being unab le to w ork his w ay th ere im m ediately, he se n t a b o a t a sh o re to take possession a t nearby P etty H a rb o u r, a m uch sm aller haven, but p ro b ab ly ju st as well situ ate d for the fishery. A M r. Payn o f D a rt­ m o u th h a d lan d ed th ere before him so h e tried in tu rn Bay Bulls, w here he m et o th e rs o f P lym outh and D a rtm o u th . B efore he could leave, the ice m oved in a n d it w as m o re th an a fo rtn ig h t until the little ship co u ld ru n to St. J o h n 's to find th irte en o r fou rteen sail

T H E F IS H E R Y A T N E W F O U N D L A N D

3

before h e r. C a p ta in M a rtin elected to leave h a lf his fishing boats th e re a n d to install th e o th e rs a t P etty H a rb o u r.1 W ith th e choice o f h a rb o u rs m ad e , a n d th e sh ip securely m o o red a n d u nrigged for th e su m m er, th e w ork o f p re p a rin g fo r th e fishery began. T h e sh o re in stallatio n s usually had to be c o n stru cted anew each y ear, for w ith possession falling m erely to th e first-com er, the b uildings w ere shoddily m a d e a n d yielded easily to th e d e p red a tio n s o f w in ter w inds, seas, a n d ice, a n d to th e needs o f th e w intering in h a b ita n ts and last y e a r’s d e p artin g fishing ships for fuel. T o re ­ build th e huts, co o k room s, sta g e s and f l a k e s , th en , “ in th e snow and cold all th e m en go in to th e w o o d s to c u t tim b e r” - “ Hr, spruce, a n d birch being here p len tifu l.” T h e houses w ere b u ilt w ith a fram e o f saplings, a n d w ere sealed inside w ith rinds (“ w hich look like plan ed d e a l" )2, th a t is, b ark strip p ed from th e larg er trees. T h e ro o f to o , w as covered w ith b a rk , upon w hich w ere placed turfs, to keep the sun from curling it. T h e cook houses a n d o th e r b uildings w ere likely o f a sim ilar co n stru ctio n (F ig u re 1.1 )'. T h e stage, o r w harf, w ould be th e focus o f th e sh o re w ork a rea . T h is w as b u ilt o u t from th e shoreline, w ith a floor o f ro u n d tim b e r, and su p p o rte d w ith p o sts a n d diag o n al bracing, to a po in t w here the fishing b oats could lie at it to u nload th e ir catch even a t low tide. U sually, th e stage stru c tu re included a shed w hich sheltered tab les on w hich th e fish w ere split, th e salt w ith w hich th e fish w ere preserved, a n d piles o f fish them selves. N earb y w o u ld be a train vat, a g re a t sq u are chest into w hich th e cod livers w ere th ro w n to re n d er in th e sun in to cod liver o il.4 A long m o st o f th e e aste rn co ast it w as also necessary to c o n stru ct fla k e s on w hich to d ry th e salted fish. T hese g enerally w ere located behind th e stage, a n d w ere o pen fram e c o n stru ctio n s, a b o u t five feet in w id th , a b o u t w aist height, a n d spaced a b o u t fo u r feet a p a rt running lan d w ard s a b o u t a h u n d re d fe e t.' U p o n th e fram es w ere sp read d ried spruce o r fir b o ughs, w hich w ould pro v id e g o o d a ir circulation for th e salted fish to be placed upon them to dry. T h e fishing b o a ts, o f w hich each o f th e ships from E ngland m ight be e q u ip p e d w ith from th re e to forty,' w ere o p e n c raft, a b o u t thirty o r forty feet long w ith a b u rd e n o f p e rh a p s three o r fo u r to n s .' T hey w ere pro p elled by sail w here possible, b u t w ere e q u ip p e d w ith o ars for calm w e ath e r. Such b o a ts norm ally carried a crew o f th ree o r four m en - th e m aste r, m id sh ip m a n , a n d o n e o r tw o foreshipm en. “ T h e b o a ts m aste r he row s at th e ste rn , a gainst the o th e r tw o, who row o n e side; he belays a g ain st th e m , a n d so not only row s, but steers th e b o a t. T h e b o a ts’ m asters, generally, a re a b le m en , the m id sh ip m an next, a n d th e foreshipm en are generally striplings” .8 T h e e q u ip m e n t p u t in o rd e r, it w as then necessary to g et bait.

4

- / Tuu* o f

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

a ljc f f j s m a /u u r o f f u h t n j fvr. fu n n y & & r y i a a C>d a t ,\’X V f o u x i i X - i,v j ).

-4 s f/ j-t A s T m tn J8 J*.- Z n u C m ! « n /r ^ D ' t £ / W , $ ^ * / / J\,* X TkT rvn +A rU * u h c A t h y r im * y 4W ^ w J i r t j J U . T S u ! t JK -ju j C T in m u n /U f * f S u r r y u p y *W H T t* C & v u v t j J C fJ J U f * j t •j I*trw ut y O y t f i r m { C o L L u * r * J l ,'o jA j »rav I ti-u t .V-ruv itv m J Z n w r r X A-JIy toijid Vlsfter at Cove. Fifl.errrTeo, Shortmtn, andYoungers are

T

f-ll

w a n te d .

f ig u r e

5 .3 :

M u r »S.

Advertisement in Irish Newspaper: Hibernian Chronicle, Apr. I, 1776.

a n d B arnstaple vessels w ere b ringing o v er “ g re a t n u m b ers o f Irish ro m an C atholick servants, w ho all settle to the so u th w a rd . . . " , ‘: a n d B arnstaple m erch an ts, ironically, c o m p la in e d o f the b o atk eep ers w ho go from Ireland to settle in N ew fo u n d lan d (pro b ab ly at P lacentia), for they could afford to carry on th eir fishery ch ea p er th an could the W est C o u n try m e n / 1 Placentia a n d the n o rth ern W est C o u n try p o rts w ere n o t th e only places concerned w ith the Irish, how ever. In 1729. it w as said , p ro b a b ly with exaggeration, th a t only those fishing ships w hose c ap tain s h o p e to be ad m irals re fra in fro m b rin g in g so m e Irish la b o u r e rs . M o st fish in g sh ip s b o u n d for N e w fo u n d lan d , th e sam e re p o rt said , call a t Ireland not only for p rovisions, but also for passengers. 4 E ngland w as a t w ar w ith e ith e r F ran ce o r S pain for m uch o f the .eig h teen th c en tu ry , a n d w ith such concerns it is not su rp risin g that iill R o m an C a th o lics w ere reg ard ed with' suspicion. In such a re//n o te b u t strateg ic a re a as N ew fo u n d lan d they w ere w atched with c o n c e rn .1' E arly in th e 1730s, naval officers rep o rted th a t they th o u g h t 300 o r m o re Irish w ere e n terin g the island p e r year, a n d it 'w a s fe a re d th a t th e y m ig h t c o n s titu te as m u ch a s th re e -q u a r te rs o f th e in h a b ita n ts o f th e s o u th e rn a n d w e ste rn p a rts o f E n g lish N e w fo u n d la n d ;1'’ in 1735, F . H . Lee, ihe c o m m o d o re, held th at “ there are m o re Irish Papists, th an o f all so rts o f p eople in th e Is­ la n d " . . . . •” M o re d etailed statistics suggest th a t even in th e su m m ertim e the Irish w ere less th an tw elve p e rce n t o f th e total p o p u la tio n , although

90

figure

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

5.4: Irish inhabitants at Newfoundland, by bays and districts.

91

T H E R E S ID E N T P O P U L A T IO N

they w ere indeed m o re n u m ero u s in the so u th e rn p a rts o f th e A v a ­ lon P e n in su la .1' B eginning again in 1753, d etailed reco rd s were co m piled o f th e Irish c o m p o n e n t on th e islan d ."’ W h ere as the gro w th in in h a b ita n ts o f English orig in in th e tw o d e ca d es had been only som e tw enty p e rce n t, th e n u m b ers o f Irish had increased by th irte en tim e s.-"1 T h e Irish had been th e m ajo r p a rt o f th e increasing trend to y e ar-ro u n d h a b ita tio n , a n d as such they had spread over m uch o f th e E nglish ex p lo ited a re a o f the island (F ig u re 5.4). O th e r S o u rces F ew residents o f N e w fo u n d lan d c am e from places o th e r th an Ire­ land a n d E ngland. T h o se w ho did can be located fairly safely in p a rtic u la r niches. T h e third largest g ro u p o f passen g ers com ing into N e w fo u n d lan d , as indicated by F ig u re 5.5, w as th a t from th e C h a n ­ nel Isla n d s.41 T hese islands, p a rticu la rly Je rse y , h a d been engaged in the N ew fo u n d lan d fishery for m an y y ears a n d by th e eighteenth cen tu ry , a fter a slack p eriod in th e late se v en teen th , w ere exp an d in g th eir fleet.4-' T h e C h an n el Island e n te rp rise w as particu larly c o n ce n ­ trated in tw o a reas: T h e “ C o a st o f C h a p ea u R o u g e ” (i.e. th e south coast o f the Burin P eninsula and St. P ierre) a n d C a rb o n e a r and H a rb o u r G ra ce in C o n c e p tio n B ay.4' L ater in th e cen tu ry , C hannel

7 6

________________ in

O z < in D

4

IR E L A N D

O X

To tal

JE R S E Y

5

3 2

ENGLAND

1

17 65

f ig u r e

1770

177 5

5.5: Incom ing passengers at N ew fou ndland, 1765-1775.

92

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

Islanders w ere active as well on th e co ast o f L ab ra d o r. C hannel Island su rn a m es in N ew fo u n d lan d a re few in relatio n to those o f English a n d Irish o rig in . T h e m en o f these islands m ay have c o n ­ trib u te d a c o n sid erab le e n tre p ren e u rial skill th ro u g h th eir m erch an t houses a t N e w fo u n d lan d , b u t it can n o t b e co n clu d ed , on th e ev­ idence th a t w e h av e, th a t th e C h a n n e l Islands c o n trib u ted to the y e a r-ro u n d p o p u la tio n a t N e w fo u n d lan d to a n y g re a t e x te n t.44 T h e F ren ch a n d th e A c ad ia n s likew ise form ed only a sm all p o r ­ tion o f th e total resid en t p o p u latio n at N ew fo u n d lan d in th e eigh­ tee n th cen tu ry , and th o se th ere w ere can b e located fairly surely on th e S o u th C o a st a n d southw est co rn er o f th e island, w here the F re n c h had fished b e fo re the T rea ty o f U tre c h t.4' T h e m o st specifi­ cally recognizable F ren ch enclave a t N e w fo u n d lan d was n e ar Port aux B asques. T a v e rn e r re p o rte d on a g ro u p o f F ren ch here in 1734 as “ a little C o m m o n w e a lth ” , m ost o f them having run aw ay from C a p e B reton fo r d e b t o r o th e r tro u b le w ith th e law, b ringing w ith them stolen b o a ts a n d “ all so rts o f g o o d s” . T h ey c o n tin u e d to be supplied w ith g o o d s, h e notes, from F ren ch ships th a t h a d ta k e n on these item s for C a p e B reton a n d th eir p ro d u c e w as shipped o u t via C a p e B reton as w ell.4h T w o o th e r g ro u p s are n o ticeable in th e N e w fo u n d lan d p o p u la ­ tion o f th e eighteenth century: A m e ric an s a n d Scots. In b o th cases th eir n u m b ers w ere sm all, b u t b ecau se m an y o f them w ere m e r­ c h an ts, a n d as th e A m e ric an s p a rticu la rly w ere p ro m in e n t in civil a n d church affairs, they have fo u n d m en tio n in th e islan d 's history o u t o f p ro p o rtio n to th e ir n u m b ers. T h e A m e ric an s had established on th e island even in th e sev en teen th cen tu ry , w hereas th e Scots cam e in p articularly d u rin g a n d a fte r the A m e ric an R ev o lu tio n . In . b o th cases, the influence o f these g ro u p s w as not a d irect o n e o f f c o n trib u tin g to th e actu al p o p u la tio n , but th e indirect o n e o f m a r­ ketin g food for th a t p o p u la tio n , w hich w as heavily th e R om an C a th o lic Irish. Explanation o f the G rowth o f Year-Round R esidents at Newfoundland Since the Irish co m p rised such a large p a rt o f th e increased resident p o p u latio n at N ew fo u n d lan d in th e eig h teen th cen tu ry , th e ex p la n ­ a tio n o f th eir m ig ra tio n to N ew fo u n d lan d is also in large p a rt an ex p la n atio n o f th e g re a t increase in y e ar-ro u n d use o f th e island. T hese m ig ran ts w ere not m erely an errin g p a rt o f th e stream o f n o rth ern S cotch-Irish th a t w as flow ing into Pennsylvania especially strongly a fte r 1718, a n d so w e c an n o t sim ply explain th e N ew ­ foun d lan d m ig ratio n by the b e tte r know n im pulses to m ove th at

T H E R E S ID E N T P O P U L A T IO N

93

w ere felt in the n o rth . A n ex p lan atio n lies in stead , it is p ro p o se d , in a series o f co incidences o f th e early 1740s. It will be p o in te d out th at la b o u r for th e N ew fo u n d lan d fishery w as in sh o rt supply in E ngland d u e to w ar, but w as in a b u n d a n t sup p ly in Ireland d u e to fam ine a n d trad e d e p ressio n , a n d food to feed a N ew fo u n d lan d based p o p u latio n w as available from A m erica. It has been n o ted in a n e arlie r c h a p te r th a t E ngland did n o t. until th e late nin eteen th cen tu ry , have a standing navy. In w artim e, the fleet w as m an n ed from th e ra n k s o f th e m erc h an t m arin e, a n d these m ilitary re q u ire m e n ts c rippled civil co m m e rc e .4' In d eed , o n e o f the m ajo r a rg u m e n ts for th e existence o f th e N e w fo u n d lan d fishery w as th a t it w as a “ nursery for s e a m e n " , train in g landsm en to th e sea, a n d m aking them availab le in w artim e. E ngland w as at peace a fte r 1713, a n d her seam en retu rn ed to the m erc h an t service. By th e end o f th e 1730s, how ever, conflict with Spain a n d p e rh a p s even F ra n c e seem ed im m in en t, and th e navy again began to stir. Press g angs hovered a b o u t th e se a p o rts. A P lym outh m erc h an t notified h is A m erican c o rre sp o n d e n t o f a se­ vere press in P lym outh as early as A ugust I7 3 8 .4' In July, 1739, a L ondon m erc h an t no ted “ th e m o st vigorous press ever know n, tho u g h it is believed th ere will be no w a r” .4'' E ven before w ar b ro k e , th en , th e la b o u r force for th e N e w fo u n d lan d fishery w as likely being d ep leted , a n d th is (in a d d itio n to gro w in g uncertainty o f m ark e ts) w ould a cc o u n t for the decline in activity th ere im m ed i­ ately b e fo re w ar, as n o ted in a n e a rlie r c h a p te r. F ro m a m erchant m arin e o f som ew here betw een 50,000 a n d 70,000, this w a r took som e 4 0,000 to 50,000 m en. M an n in g th e navy, it has been said, a m o u n te d to a n “ . . .a lm o s t c o m p lete strip p in g o f th e m erch an t fleet o f its seam en . . . M eanw hile, in Irelan d , in th e th ird decad e o f th e eig h te en th cen ­ tury, th ere w ere b eginning the p erio d ic m ajo r cro p failures and fam ines th a t w ere to plague th a t c o u n try fo r the next cen tu ry . J o h n ­ a th a n Sw ift’s “ M o d est P ro p o sal” w as p ro m p te d by the fam ine d e ath s o f th o u san d s betw een 1726 a n d 17 29.41 G re a te r distress was to hit Ireland, how ever, a decad e later d u e to severe frosts in the w in ters o f 1739-40 a n d 1740-41, th e latter o n e follow ed by a severe d r o u g h t.- N early o ne-fifth o f th e w hole Irish p o p u la tio n is thou g h t to have perished as a result o f th e fo rm er y e a r o f cro p loss, and m an y m o re d ro p p e d from th e la tte r o n e .' - By th e end o f these years o f d istress, one o u t o f every th ree p erso n s in th e so u th e rn province o f M u n ste r had d ie d .'4 F u rth e rm o re , th e w ar w ith Spain h a d fos­ tere d c o n sid erab le u n e m p lo y m e n t.5' In su m m ary , th en , in southern Ireland du rin g th e S panish W ar, food w as expensive a n d frequently u navailable, and e m p lo y m en t had slu m p ed . T h ese a re th e condi-

94

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

lio n s u n d e r w hich o n e m ight expect a d rift to th e to w n s, seeking any food a n d w ork available. By c o n tra st, th ere w as a m p le food a n d w ork in N ew fo u n d lan d . T h e largest catches p e r boat o f th e eig h teen th c en tu ry w ere being m ade there, a n d th e English fishing vessels w ere having difficulties in g e ttin g m e n . A s w e will see in th e n e x t c h a p te r , N e w fo u n d lan d -b o u n d vessels loaded salt pro v isio n s at the C ork a n d W aterfo rd q u ay s every spring; it w ould be but a short step to load la b o u r as well. F u rth e rm o re , breadstuffs w ere availab le in large q u a n titie s in N o rth A m e ric a, fo r in 1740 th e English new spa­ p ers w ere rep o rtin g th a t A m erica had ex p erienced th e " m o st fa­ vou rab le W in te r they ever k n e w ", and " A ll p ro v isio n s w ere very c h e a p ” . 57 W h ile Ir e la n d 's p e o p le sta rv e d a n d d ied d u r in g th e w in ter o f 1740-41, re p o rts from P h iladelphia told o f th e m ost plen­ tiful cro p o f grain th a t ever w as know n in th e c o u n try . ' A s w e will also see, the bread stu ffs supply o f N ew fo u n d lan d cam e in large part from A m erica, a n d these surpluses o f g ra in w ere reflected in the islan d ’s food m a rk e t.^ n short th en , all th e necessary factors for a m ig ratio n o f Irish to N e w foundland c o in c id ed . G iv en available tra n s p o rta tio n , a n d fam ine a n d u n em p lo y m en t in Ireland, a n d food a n d a pro sp erin g fishery a t N e w fo u n d lan d , it w ould be m ost su r­ prising if a m ig ra tio n had failed to ta k e place. Footnotes 1. 2.

3.

A gain, statistics are from yearly "Schem es o f the F ish ery" in C O 194 (see bibliography). T h e reader is rem inded that the terms “ total a c tivity " o r "S u m m er Popu lation” refer to the total o f (crews o f visiting vessels) plus (pas­ sengers) plus (w inter inhabitants). T h e citations are from , respectively, L A C Y : Miscellaneous Poems

. . .(see bibliography: Newfoundland Archives). Loc. cil.. Loc. cil.. S P G B 6 f. 162, S P G B14 f. 79. S P G B17 f. 43. S P G B I4 f. 83. C O U G H L A N : Work of God in Newfoundland. 4. T h e best treatm ents o f the Irish in N e w fo u n d la n d h ave been: R O W E : History of Education in Newfoundland and w ork by K E L L Y in the New Newfoundland Quarterly, L X V (June. 1967). pp. 18-20, and L X V I (S e p t.-N o v .. 1967). pp. 14-16. T h e 1732 "S ch em e o f the F ish ery" lists Irish carefully fo r the first tim e (C O 194/9, IT. 221-24). 6 . Stafford Fairborne: " A Faithful N arrative o f . . . N ew fou ndland . in Boston Public Library. 7. C O 1/35 (1675); Sir Stafford Fairborne (as in f.n. 6 , a b ove) (1700); C O 194/15. f. 202 (1763). 8 . D orset R ecord O ffice: T h e o ffic e now maintains an inventory o f all N e w fo u n d la n d -rela te d m a teria l; see also th eir 9180; P 5 7 / O V 2 1 ; 5.

T H E R E S ID E N T P O P U L A T IO N

95

P I I / O V I 9 I ; P I 8 6 / O V 22; P 5 8 / O V 107; P162/O V32; R O S C O E (e d .) The Mam'll Book, p. 100. St. James Parish Church, P o ole, has a large number o f indentures and other N ew foundland-related m ate­ rial. 9.

Loc. cit.

Th ere was a particularly large group o f indentures from the Sherborne area, hard on the Somerset border. 10. D evon County Record O ffice, Exeter. 11. D ean M illcs; Parochial Returns (m icrofilm copy in D evon County Library, Barley House, Exeter). C itations m ay be located by parish. (St. M a ry Arches o f Exon is probably St. M ary Church parish and is considered such in the present w ork because it is said by M illes’ return to be twenty miles from Exeter. 12. That som e men, at least, did com e from D evon , w e are inform ed by the recruiting practices o f som e o f the m ajor D evon fishing m er­ chants. C aptain A rthu r H oldsw orth o f Dartm outh, fo r instance, brought m ore than tw o hundred passengers in 1701, most o f whom w ere bye-boatm en; it was reported that this m erch ant" . . . and one o r tw o m ore that constantly use the N ew fou n d lan d trade, in the beginning o f the year m ake it their business to ride from on e M arket T o w n to another in the W est o f England on purpose to get passen­ gers, and m ake an agreem ent w ith them that in case they should happen to be A dm irals o f any o f the harbours, they will put and continue them in fishingships r o o m " (C S P C 1701, p. 431). Sec also C S P C 1718, p. 392 re. byeboatm en from D evon . N o te that these are all

earlv eighteenth

century references.

13.

C O 1/43 f. 202.

14. 15.

C O 194/5 f. 389. C S P C 1727, p. 263.

16.

C O 194/15, f. 2.

17. C O 194/15, f. 202. 18. E 190/1003/4 (Barnestaple): and E 190 fo r Dartm outh, 1741. 19. C O 194/15, IT. 14-19. 20. C O 194/14 ff. 18. 20-21. 22. 21. See. m erely as an ex am p le o f the m an y cases Leinster Journal, M a r. 21, 1767 and Hibernian Chronicle, M a r. 16—A u g . 17, 1772. 22.

Some Irish Surnames from Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Newfoundland Documents and their Irish Origins.

N am e

Location in N fld .

A ylred

Placentia

[A ylw a rd ]

D ate of D ocum en t

1676

Surname most com m on in Irish provinces o f

Munster, Leinster. (W a te rford stated in docum ent)

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

Barry Burke

St. John's? St. John's

1752 1752

Munster, (L ein ster) Munster, Leinster

(Bourque] Cahill C offey Conner

St. John's St. John’ s Little Placentia

1776 1751 1731?

Munster, Leinster Munster, (L ein ster) Munster, Leinster

St. John's Trinity

1776 1774

Leinster, Munster Connaught, Munster

Trinity Bay Bulls Little Placentia

1774 1754 1727

Ulster, (Lein ster) Leinster, (M u nster) Munster (W a te rford

Trinity

1772

stated in documents) Munster, Connaught

St. John’s

1752

Ulster, (C onnaught)

St. John’s • St. John's

1776 1754

Oderin

1774

Munster Munster, (C onnaught) Munster, (L ein ster)

St. John’ s Trinity

1754 1774

Ulster, Leinster Ulster, (M u nster)

1774 1754

Munster, Leinster Munster, (L ein ster)

1750 1776

Leinster, Connaught Leinster, (M u nster)

1754

Munster, Connaught

1774

Munster, Leinster

1731?

Munster, (L ein ster)

1774

Leinster, Munster

1774 1774

Ulster, (Lein ster) Ulster, (M u nster) Leinster, Ulster Munster, Ulster

[C onnor) Dalton Davin or Dobbin D oyle Drohan Fling [Flynn] G a llier [G allagher] Hallahan Halluran [H alloran] Hawses [H aw se] Hawkins Hays

[H a y] Hogan Trinity Bay Bulls Hurley Kelly H arbour M ain St. John's Know lan [N ola n ] Lanley St. John’s [La n dy] Lonnergan Bonavista Lonergan, Londrigan Placentia area M ahon y [M a h on ey ] Bonavista M aney [M a n ley] M cC oy Oderin M cD an iel Bonavista M cD on ald St. John’s St. John’s M cM a h a n

1754 1752

[M c M a h a n ] M elvin

St. John's

1751

Connaught, (U lster)

M errigan M oody M orrisey

Trinity St. John's Trinity

1772 1754 1774??

Leinster, (M u nster) Ulster, (Lein ster) Munster, (L ein ster)

97

T H E R E S ID E N T P O P U L A T IO N

Penny

Petty Harbour

1751

Ulster, (Lein ster)

Pow er

Little Placentia St. John's Trin ity St. John's Fermeuse St. John’s Trin ity Bonavista Bay Bulls

1731 1754 1772 1776

Munster, (Lein ster)

1752 1751 1774 1774

Ulster, Leinster Munster, (Lein ster)

St. John’s

1731 1774

Munster, (Lein ster) Leinster, (M u n ster)

[Shortall| Sullivan

St. John’s

1776

Munster, (L ein ster)

Swiney

St. John’s

1752

Connaught, Ulster

[Sweeny | W heyland [W helan ]

St. John's

1751

Leinster. (M u nster)

Quinn Ryan

Shea Shorthill

[alternative renderings](bracketed province is second strongest in that name) T h e Irish location o f the names was determ ined using: M A T H E S O N , Sir R o b t. Edwin: “ Special Report on Surnames in Ireland” ,

App. 29th Ann. Rpt. of Registrar-General o f Marriages, etc. in Ire­ land (18941, and Table 5.1 summarizes the above more detailed analysis. 23. 24. 25. 26.

C O 194/9 ff. 25-33. C O 194/12 ff. 183-191. S .P .G ., B 6 , #167. See the Baptismal Registers o f the Parish Church o f St. Patrick's W aterford. 5 volum es to 1791. I vol. 1798-1803. 27. C S P C 1731, p. 279. 28. C S P C 1732, p. 224. 29. Waterford Chronicle, Feb. 29, 1788. 30. T o m a s O F L A N N G H A I L E (e d .): Red Donough Macnamara:

31.

Eachtra GhioIIa an Amharain (D u b in , 1897), espec. p. 45. T h e earliest notice o f the Irish in N ew fou ndland was probably the Irish sack ships there in 1679 (C O 1/43 f. 202). In 1681 it was reported that Irish traders w ere bringing not on ly goodsJjjJt also: “ . . . a great many w om en passengers which they sell fo r servts a little after their com in g they m arry am ong the fishermen that live with the Planters. & b ein g extrem ely poor, contract such D eb ts as they are not able to p a y . . . " . (C O l/ 4 7 f. 115). A b b e Baudoin noted the use o f Irish servants there, w h ile rep ortin g on his tou r o f the French devastation in 1696/7 (P R O W S E : Op. cit.. pp. 230-32). T h e dubious loy a lty o f the Irish in w artim e, first noted here, was to be a nearly constant concern o f the British in the w ar-ridd en e ig h te e n th c e n tu ry . In 1705/6. the n e v a l o f f ic e r at St. J o h n ’ s w arned that care should b e taken o f the Irish residein g in

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

98

this C ou n try fo r they b y ou r d a ily E xp erien ce have p ro v ed very detrim ental to the G o v e r m t. here ffo r w h en the E n em y makes any Incursion upon us they d o e take up arm es and in fo rm e our E n em y A n d p r o v e v e r y tre a c h ero u s a n d o u r g re a te s t E n em y (C O 194/3,f.424). A n d in 1714, too, it w as the op in ion that the loss o f St. John’s du ring the latest w a r had b een du e to Irish Papist deserters (C S P C 1714. pp. 54-55). A ft e r the treaty o f U trecht, the references to the Irish becom e m ore frequ ent. Even b y 1711, and again in 1715, it was rep orted that there w ere factors fo r Irish m erchants residing in N ew fo u n d la n d . (C S P C 1711, # 1 4 9 ; 1715, p. 76). In the latter year, too, the naval o ffic e r there reported twenty ships from Ireland in N ew fo u n d la n d ports (C O 194/5, f. 389). T h e a b o v e m aterial is alm ost the c o m p lete evid en ce fo r Irish in N e w fo u n d la n d b e fo re 1720. 32. 33. 34.

C S P C 1720, p. 178. C S P C 1728, p. 248. C S P C 1729, pp. 366. 506, 508.

35. 36. 37.

Ibid., p. 279.

38.

C 0 1 9 4 /9 . ff. 221-4.

39.

C O 194/13, f. 121 (1753); C O 194/13, ff. 151-2 (1754). A t. St. John’ s, data was also collected earlier; C O 194/12, f. 47 (1747); C O 194/12, ff. 66-70 (1748); C O 194/12, f. H 8v. (1749). The 1753 data follows:

C S P C 1731, p. 275; see also C O 194/12, f. 47. C S P C 1735, p. 67.

Wintering Inhabitants, 1753

St. John's Quidi Vidi and T o rb ay Bay Bulls, W itless Bay and T o ad s C ove Renews Fermeuse Ferryland O ld Perlican Trin ity Bay and Bonaventure C arb onearan d M osqu ito Bay de Verde

Irish

English

669 391

454

100 68

130 166 700 400 59

206 82 50 120 100

513 222

69

40.

Between 1732 and 1754.

4 1. 42.

From C O 194 "Schem es o f the Fishery” , 1765 to 1775. F A L L E : A ccount o f the Island o f J ersey (Jersey. 1734, 1837) p.

43.

Societe Jersiaise, St. H elier, " N A - ” , “ N o to ria l A cts”

122

.

1739-1744.

Since many, ( i f not m ost) o f the Channel Islanders spoke French. (G uernsey a n d Jersey M agazine, “ C om m erce o f Jersey” 1837, p. 109), they fitted in well along the southern coast, with its French remnants.

T H E R E S ID E N T P O P U L A T IO N

44.

99

A dm iralty, H ydrographic O ffice, Chart C 5 8 -7 I. F o r an overstress­ ing o f the im portance and number o f Channel Island contributions to N e w fo u n d la n d see L E M E S S U R 1 E R : “ C hannel Islands and N ew fo u n d la n d " Geographical Review II ( 6 ) D ec. 1916, pp. 449-457 and also, for further bits o f inform ation, F A Y : Channel Islands and

Newfoundland. 45.

46.

See C O 194/5, f. 195 and, as w ell as the other data on Placentia, sec C S P C 1717, p. 316, regarding French inhabitants at Fortune and St. Pierre; also, in regard to Placentia, see C S P C 1718, f. 319 (3 French at Placentia); servants to G o v ern o r at Placentia C S P C 1727, p. 365. C S P C 1734, p. 27. But Captain C raw ford reported on the group in the season o f 1734 as consisting o f ten families, “ m iserably p o o r ", and not trading with the French ships (C S P C 1734. #362, p. 277). See also C O 194/9, f. 177 (C S P C 1734 pp. 27-28) and C S P C 1734

47. 48.

p. 35. See D A V IS : Rise of the English Shipping Industry, pp. 320-36. Reynell Papers (H istorical Society o f Pennsylvania) 1738-39, II

49.

A u g ., 1738, from C oop er. Sam e set, 5 July, 1739.

50. 51.

D A V IS : op. cit., p. 323. Reprinted in, e.g. S Y P H E R , W y lie:

52.

Enlightened England. An An­ thology of Eighteenth Century Literature, (N e w Y o rk , 1947). pp. 371-79. See Irish Census for the Year 1851. pt. V , V o l. I. T a b le o f Deaths: “ Epidemics” , Report o f the C om m issioners, 13, X X X , (1856), an abstract o f which is m ore easily accessible in S A L A M A N : History

and Social Influence of the Potato. See the graphic reports o f these years in e.g.. The Sherborne Mercury Jan. 15, 1739/40, Feb. 5, 1739/40, M arch 11. 1739/40, M a y 13.'1740. 53. 54. 55.

56.

57. 58.

S A L A M A N : op. cit.. p. 253. S A L A M A N : op. cit., in his abstract o f Irish Census 1851. " E p i ­ dem ics” fo r 1740/41. " . . . by the Stagnation it has given to our Tra de and Manufactures, by which the p o o r Tradesm en, w h o by their daily Labour used to live well, are now turn'd o ff, and have no other w ay to subsist than by begging. Beggars w ere always too plenty here, but are now so much increased, that I believe, by a m odest-Com putation, there can­ not be less than one to every ten Houses; their Num bers make it im possible fo r all to get R e lief;” (Sherborne Mercury. M arch 10, 1741). A n d . indeed, a poem from Ireland in the Pennsylvania Feb. 12, 1740 says, in part: " . . . I f though shouldst fail, w e fly our native A ir. T o foreign C lim es, where Plenty reigns, repair. W ith Bread and Flesh our wasted Strength ren e w ,. . . ”

Sherborne Mercury, A p ril 22, 1740. A s reported in the Sherborne Mercury.

Dec. 9, 1740.

Gazette.

Chapter Six Supplies Introduction

T h e fishery a t N ew fo u n d lan d req u ired a w ide variety o f supplies in large q u a n titie s. T h e fish harv estin g o p e ratio n re q u ire d naval stores tar. pitch a n d tu rp en tin e for th e vessels, a n d nets, tw ines and co rd ag e b o th for th e vessels a n d as fishing g e a r. T he c uring o f the fish d e m a n d ed m assive q u a n titie s o f salt (a y e a r's haul of. say, half a m illion q u in ta ls w ould need at least 50,000 hogsheads o f this p re serv a tiv e )1 a n d W est Indies fish, train oil a n d seal oil w ould be e x p o rte d in casks. Besides, all th e m in o r item s for building and re p airs w ere needed: iro n , p a in t, shingles, bricks, lim e, to n a m e but a few. Even m o re im p o rta n t, a n d th e m ajo r focus o f this c h ap ter, w ere th e supplies o f sustenance for a p o p u latio n th at w as living for a p a rt o r a w hole o f th e y e a r on this island th a t yielded few o f the preferred foods in sufficient q u a n tity . .."-v- S om e in d icatio n o f the volum es o f g o o d s needed fo r this fishery a n d grow ing settlem en t a t N e w fo u n d lan d , a n d o f th e far-flung com ­ m ercial netw ork needed to g a th e r th em , can be gain ed from a con­ sid eratio n o f tw o acc o u n ts o f im p o rts a t St. J o h n 's . In 1677, the R oyal N avy c o m m o d o re at N ew fo u n d lan d n o ted th a t th e supplies o f St. J o h n ’s w ere com ing not only from E ngland, but also from F ran ce, the Islands (the C a rn aries, M a d e ira , e tc .). N ew E ngland, N ew Y ork a n d B arb ad o s (T ab le 6.1).- E ngland supplied the g re a t­ est q u a n titie s a n d variety, w hile m o st o th e r a re a s offered a m uch n a rro w er range o f p ro d u c ts. In 1742 the c o m m o d o re on th e N ew ­ fo u n d lan d sta tio n again o rd e re d the collection o f d a ta (T ab le 6 .2 ) .1 In co m p arin g these tw o tables, a n u m b er o f co m m en ts a re obvious. F irst, th e tra d e w ith F ra n c e, n o ta b le in 1677, is no longer present in 1742. S econd, th e re w as a g re at increase in to tal q u a n titie s im ­ p o rted . T h ird , Ireland had e n te red th e trad e, p a rticu la rly in pork. A n d fo u rth , A m e ric an im p o rts h a d increased greatly, a n d nearly d o m in a te d th e total im p o rts o f lum ber, m olasses, b a co n , flour and bread. T he rem oval o f F ran ce from th e British N e w fo u n d lan d supply trad e is u n d e rstan d a b le in th e light o f th e p e rp etu al sta te o f w a r or ru m o rs o f w ar betw een F ra n c e a n d E ngland du rin g th e eighteenth cen tu ry . Even tho u g h it w as not u n k n o w n for tw o n atio n s a t w a r to carry on trad e in c ertain c o m m o d itie s it is unlikely th a t France,

101

S U P P L IE S

d u rin g the eig h teen th cen tu ry , w ould be a n x io u s to d isp o se o f such item s as w ere needed in N ew fo u n d lan d ; p ro v isio n s w ere m uch needed a t h o m e, especially th e k in d s suited to ship p in g , e ith e r civil­ ian o r m ilitary. T h e general increase in to tal q u a n titie s o f g o o d s im p o rte d into St. J o h n ’s is n o t surp risin g , for th e p o p u latio n o f th e tow n had increased co n sid erab ly in th e six d e cad es since 1677. W in te r p o p u ­ lation at th e e arlie r d a te had been 256, and su m m e r p o p u latio n had been 1400; in 1742, th ese figures sto o d a t 650 a n d 2748 respectively a n a p p ro x im a te d o u b lin g .4 T he rise o f sup p ly sources in Ireland a n d A m erica is o f greater interest, a n d d e m a n d s m o re e x p la n atio n . Ireland, on th e w hole, was not an in d ep e n d en t su p p lier to N e w fo u n d lan d , for its tra d e w as largely handled by th e vessels o f th e “ W estern A d v e n tu re rs" o f E ngland. T h u s, food supplies from Ireland did not th rea te n to su p ­ p o rt th e un w an ted settlers in N e w fo u n d lan d , fo r the English m e r­ c h an t could still co n tro l the retail ou tlet. T h e rise o f a supply in Ireland d id . how ever, establish th e im p o rta n t c o n n ec tio n s w hich led to the eig h teen th c en tu ry Irish m ig ra tio n to N e w fo u n d lan d .

Tabic 6.1 “Severall sortsof-wynes & Provisions imported thisyeare only inSt. Johns Harbr.” 1677 Bread (lb .) Flour (lb .) Pork (b b l.) B ee f(cw t.) Peas (hhd.) O il (small jars) Sugar Molasses (tuns) Rum (tuns) M alt (hhd.) H ops (lb .) W ines (tuns) Brandy (tuns) Salt (tuns) Nets (n o .) Line (d o z.)

W est Indies

Islands

England

France

A m erica

50,000 25,000 162 30 150

2 0 .0 0 0

6 ,0 0 0

8000 42

4000

5000

20

21

50 500

12 0 cwt.

2 0 hhd.

2 0 cwt.

14 16 50

16

2000 110

150 50

15 18 7500

94

102

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

T a b le 6.2

Cargoes imported by “ Ships Entred inthe Harbour of St. Johns” from 24thMarch, 1741/2to30thOctober, 1742 Bread (lb .) Flour (lb .) Bacon (cw t.) Pork (b b l.) B eef (b b l.) Peas (hhd.) Butter (firkins) Sugar (b b l.) Molasses (hhd.) Rum (hhd.) Beer (hhd .) T o b a cco (lb .) Lum ber (ft.) Salt (hhd.)

England

Ireland

Am erica

452,000 8000

22,400

422,000 121,400

227

1181 970

W est Indies

Islands

2200

128 141 20

91 62

798 6

109 126 5 1205 94.000

66

8493 1680

250

188 71 238

9170

T he A m erican source o f supply w as im p o rta n t b ecau se it was largely " fre e ” o f th e W estern A d v e n tu rers. A m e ric an s co u ld and w ould sell p a rts o f th eir carg o es to a n y o n e w ho te n d e re d good bills o f exchange on E ngland, o r even item s such as fish th a t could b e exchanged later for such bills. A m e ric an s had a seem ingly insati­ ab le need for exchange on E ngland, a n d they had food surpluses th a t c o u ld n o t b e d isp o se d o f in E n g la n d . A n y a r e a n o t selfsufficient in food w as a p rim e target fo r A m e ric an trad e rs, and N e w foundland w as o n e o f th em . It is to be no ted th a t E ngland did not co m pletely resign her positio n as a su p p lier o f the N ew fo u n d lan d fishery a s Ireland and A m erica g ained in th at m ark e t. Indeed, q u a n titie s a n d value o f g o o d s for N ew fo u n d lan d grew c o n sid era b ly , as is show n clearly by F ig u re 6 .1 .' In th e n o rth ern a re a s o f N e w fo u n d lan d , d o m in a te d by Poole, th e E nglish supply re m a in e d d o m in a n t until th e nin eteen th cen tu ry , a n d w as im p o rta n t even in foodstuffs. O ver m ost o f the island, E ngland cam e to specialize in fishing g ear, d ry g o o d s, and o th e r m an u fa ctu re d w ares. In this c h ap ter, co n sid era tio n will be given first to the supply tra d e largely d o m in a te d by th e English m erc h an ts b o th from Eng­ land itself a n d from Ireland and then to th e tra d e w hich o p e rated largely beyond d irec t English c o n tro l th a t from A m erica, includ­ ing th e W est Indies. In b o th cases, w e will c o n sid er th e sup p ly only

S U P P L IE S

103

until th e A m e ric an R ev o lu tio n , w hich event d isru p te d p a tte rn s c o n ­ siderably.

Source Areas E n gland T he p ro d u c tio n o f m ate ria ls for th e supply o f the N e w foundland fishery p ro v id ed c o n sid erab le e m p lo y m en t for th e English W est C o u n try . F o r m any o f the coastal villages o f D e v o n sh ire, “ the N ew fo u n d lan d F ish ery ” w as re p o rte d in th e m id -eig h teen th cen ­ tu ry to b e th e m ain su p p o rt o f th e p e o p le /' T h e cargoes o f th e N e w fo u n d lan d -b o u n d vessels a tte st to th e m a n u fa ctu re s necessary: shoes, g a rm e n ts, leath er, foods a n d ro p e p ro d u c ts w ere all e x ­ trem ely im p o rta n t, a n d th e d eclining W est C o u n try cloth industry still supplied large q u a n titie s for N e w fo u n d lan d . C id e r, b e er (and th e b o ttle s in w hich it w ent), m alt, b re ad , flour a n d p e as also figure largely in the tra d e .' F ro m P ain g to n , D evon, w in te r cab b ag es, m a ­ tu rin g from th e end o f O c to b e r th ro u g h M a rch and A pril, w ere supplied in "g re a t Q u a n titv s . . . to N ew fo u n d lan d " x C e rta in g o o d s w ere m o re typical e x p o rts o f o n e p o rt th a n o f a n o th e r. In 1731 for instance, a n d for th is p u rp o se typical o f the y ears in th e first h a lf o f the eig h teen th c en tu ry (T ab le 6 .3),'' such things as glass b o ttles, w indow glass, d rin k in g glasses and o th e r glassw ares w ere alm o st exclusively exp o rted by B ristol, a tow n th at also d e alt m o re th an o th e r W est C o u n try p o rts in nails, pew ter, bra ss a n d c o p p er m an u fa ctu re s, rugs, to b ac co pipes a n d books. Beer w ent in large q u a n titie s from Poole, a n d to som e extent from Bristol, but from D a rtm o u th as o n e m ight expect o f this D ev o n ­ sh ire tow n, c id e r w as the thin g . E x ports o f T o b acco w ere o v er­ w helm ingly c o n ce n tra ted in P oole and B ideford; the la tte r h a d a brisk tra d e with V irginia w hich c o n tin u e d a fte r h e r N ew fo u n d lan d trad e fell o ff.1" F ro m B ideford to o , cam e larger a m o u n ts o f soap an d candles th an from any o th e r p o rts, a n d she also sent nearly as m uch salt directly from E ngland as th e top p o rt o f P oole d e sp ite her m ere ten vessels. P oole, w ith a N e w fo u n d lan d fleet o f 31 vessels in this y e ar tw ice th e size o f any o th e r tow n as well as sending large q u a n titie s o f a lm o st everything, sent th e largest q u a n titie s o f b read an d b iscuit, tho u g h Bristol a n d Exon sent lesser but still su b stan tial am o u n ts. T h e grow ing, m ak in g , g a th e rin g , p rep arin g a n d loading o f these g o o d s m ean t busy tim e s for th e N ew fo u n d lan d fishing p o rts o f the w estern c o u n tie s. 11 Supplies began to b e assem bled a t th e d o c k s and

T a b le 6.3 E xports o f W est C ountry To w n s to N ew fou ndland, 1731

o •c*.

D a rtm o u th

10

17

1000 96

3290

7107

—

—

—

—

—

103cwt.

— — 2 0 q trs.

—

W h e a t o r F lo u r

20cw t.

B read o r Biscuit (cw t.) Peas C h eese O a tm e al S ugar

390

201

—

40hhd.

M olasses Beer C id e r T obacco G a rm e n ts (n o .) N a rro w L inen

—

4 0 b Li.

7'/2qtrs.

35cw t. 20 Vi cw t. 70cw t.

— —

2 0 q trs. 4 cw t.

35bbl. 60

— — — —

—

— — — —

— — — 68591b.

362

—

—

25 :5 :6 9

2:3:21

IT . 'AT.

5500 6 — 3 T ., I40cw t !/4 c w t. 4 6 q trs ., 4 4 b u .

67hhd. — 31 bbl. 48cw t. — 1 Ih h d . 71 '/’h h d . 22241b. 198 4 3 :-:-

P o o le 33 7949 384 558 3 3 T .,2 5 0 c w t !5 lc w t. 93% q trs . 12 bu. lc w t., 3 4 3 q trs. a n d 8 9bu. 1907 1 4 9 q trs.,8 b u . 3 1 q trs .,9 b u . 24cw t. — 20V«T. 87481b. 1424 79 :19:102

NEW FO U N D LA N D

B ideford

15

CENTURY

Exon

9

E IG H T E E N T H

Bristol N o . o f vessels involved Salt (b u .) N e ts (n o .) L in es (d o z .) C o rd a g e T w in e M alt

B ristol 25cw t. 111 cw t. 34cw t. 4 :2 :2 5 120yds.

Bideford

D artm outh 8 cw i. lOcwt.

47 7ells _—

2

Poole 4 '/2 T .,I3 3 c w t. 96cw t. 38cw t. 19:-:3440 452yds. 752ells 448

23

2/2 1:2:0 3 3:1:0 4120 2 400 15 300 4000 4 c h ald ers 4000 1 1209 33 278

1314 S U P P L IE S

Iron N ails L ead L e a th e r (cw t. A , lbs.) B lan k etin g Sail C lo th S h irts (n o .) S to c k in g s (d o z .) H a b e rd a s h e ry (cw t.) P e w te r (c w t., A, lbs.) B rass M a n u f. (cw t.) C o p p e r W a re (cwt.,!/4lb.) G la ss B o ttles (n o .) G la ss W a re (pieces) W in d o w G la ss (chests) D rin k in g G la sse s (n o .) B ricks (n o .) L im e E a rth e n w a re (pcs.) B ooks (cw t.) S h o es (lb .) R u g s (n o .) C o tto n s (g o o d s)

6hhd.

2014 8

o

T ab le 6.3 (continued)

o

O '

B ristol

B id e fo rd

D a r tm o u th

5T ons+ 157 gals.

96

—

885 234

—

7 30 384

N EW FO U N D LA N D

i

P o o le

CENTURY

T o b a c c o P ip e s (gross) P o rlu g ., S p an ish o r '•O liv e " O il (gals.) S o a p (lb.) C an d le s (lb .)

Exon

580 500 9 240

E IG H T E E N T H

W o rs te d S tu ffs (lb .) L in en (ells) H a ts (d o z.)

S U P P L IE S

107

figure 6.1: B ritish E x p o rts to N e w fo u n d la n d , 1698-1801.

w arehouses as soon as th e last vessels w ere back fro m th e fishery. Indeed, th e vessels th a t had g one to m ark et in Iberia b ro u g h t the first supplies, those o f salt, as early as O cto b er, reaching a p e ak in D ecem b er and Ja n u a ry , a n d co n tin u in g th ro u g h to M arch. : T he greatest activity in salt im p o rtin g varied from y e ar to y ear, but usually fell w ithin a tw o o r th ree w eek p eriod (in 1750 /5 1 , for instance, m o re th an h a lf o f th e salt ships arriv e d a t E xeter betw een D ecem ber 10 a n d Ja n u a ry 2, a n d in 1757 all b u t o n e arrived b e ­ tw een F e b ru a ry 8 a n d F e b ru a ry 18). L isbon a n d O p o rto acco u n ted for the bulk o f this salt at Exon in th e years 1749 to 1757. while V ie n n a .1! F igura, 4 B ilbao, C ad iz a n d fo u r o th e r lesser p o rts c o n ­ trib u te d the re m a in d e r. In m ost places, despite custom s preference for u n lo ad in g a n d sto rin g the salt in b o n d e d w arehouses until spring o u tfittin g , it w as left a b o a rd th e incom ing salt vessels. U sually by F e b ru a ry , th e m en w ere busy tran s-sh ip p in g salt from these vessels into each ship h ead in g for the N ew fo u n d lan d fishery in p ro p e r a m o u n ts. T h e salt, fu n ctioning on th e voyage over as ballast,-w as loaded d e ep in th e hold. T h en w ith the pace quickening

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E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

later in th e m o n th , th e o th e r g o o d s w ere stow ed, a p arcel fo r one m erc h an t, a n o th e r for a second, fishing g e a r fo r the se aso n , bread for th e trip a n d som e fo r th e season, and so o n ."' By early M arch those th a t h o p ed for a fishery at N ew foundland w ould be ready, a n d w ould sail w hen w ind a n d tid e p e rm itte d . O th e r vessels, not engaged in fishing, b u t ra th e r in o n ly supplying g o o d s o r in tak in g fish to m a rk e t, sailed later, but usually in M ay. F o r som e, a fte r clearing th e English coast, th e next land w ould be N ew fo u n d lan d ; a few o th ers w ould be going for salt in th e A tlantic Islands, w hile q u ite a n u m b e r w ould call a t Ireland fo r salt p rovi­ sions. T o this im p o rta n t salt provision trad e o f Ireland w e will turn now . Ireland The R ise o f th e Irish Provision Trade. In response to restrictive British regulation o f her tra d e in the sev en teen th cen tu ry , Ireland had developed an e x p o rt industry based upon salted b arrelled p ro ­ visions. Preservable salt m eats w ere in a con sid erab le and increas­ ing d e m a n d as b o th settlem en ts in A m erica a n d A tlan tic tra d e ex­ p a n d e d .17 “ T h e p rincipal tra d in g n atio n s o f E u ro p e ” , it h a s been o bserved, “ victualled th eir n a vigation a n d colonies in A m erica with beef, b u tte r a n d p ork from Ire la n d ." ' Ireland w as a b le to undersell E ngland in th e pro v isio n s m ark e t (in 1680 th e fo rm er sold at 40% less th an th e E nglish), a n d increasingly the so u th e rn Irish ports, p articularly Y oughal and K insale and L ater C o rk a n d W aterfo rd , b ecam e heavily d e p e n d a n t u p o n th is pro v isio n s tra d e .1'' T h ro u g h m ost o f th e eig h te en th cen tu ry , Ire la n d 's e x p o rt o f pork w as o f m in o r overall significance as c o m p a red w ith th a t o f beef.:,: But p o rk gain ed greatly in im p o rta n ce a fte r m id -c en tu ry a n d , in­ d eed , equalled in q u a n tity the e x p o rt o f b e ef by th e end o f the cen tu ry . O f th e to w n s w ith m ost interest in th e provision trade, po rk w as o f highest p ro p o rtio n a l im p o rtan ce in W aterfo rd , w here in 1772 the q u a n tity o f p o rk e x ported w as very nearly equal to the q u a n tity o f b e e f (T ab le 6.4).-'

T a b le 6.4 B ee f and P o rk E xported from Various Irish Ports, 1772

C ork Dublin Lim erick W aterford

bbls. B eef

bbls. Pork

113,910 41,557 14,754 17,532

21.851 1914 3243 16,044

S U P P L IE S

109

The Irish P rovisioning o f N ew fo u n d la n d . A lthough the so u th ern p o rts o f Ireland active in the p rovision trad e had little sh ip p in g o f th eir ow n, and th a t m ostly em ployed in trad e to c o n tin e n ta l E u ­ rope, they did early send vessels to N ew fo u n d lan d in th is tra d e . T he five Irish “ sack sh ip s” n o ted in N e w fo u n d lan d h a rb o rs in 1679 m ost p ro b a b ly had b ro u g h t pro v isio n s on th eir o u tw a rd voyage.-’-’ T he b o a tk e e p e rs o f N e w fo u n d lan d w ere supplied in p a rt from Ire­ land. b u t it is not clear through w h at c hannels.-'! In 1681 it w as rep o rted th at: T h e trad e o f Irish to N ew fo u n d lan d is all so rts o f fuses, linnen cloath b andle cloath H a tts S hooes S tockens beefe p o rk e bread b u tte r cheese & all sots o f sm all M erchtdises th e ire re tu rn e s for it a re fish . . . 24 T h e Irish h ad , it a p p ea rs, been active in supplying not only the E nglish fishery, but also th at o f th e F re n c h , fo r o n e Jo h n A ylred, m erch an t o f W aterfo rd , w as able to give in 1676 a d etailed rep o rt on th e sta te o f th e F ren ch activities at Placentia.-" Irish factors w ere said to have been resident in English N e w foundland in 1711, w hen it w as also re p o rte d th a t “ pro v isio n s (the inh ab itan ts] have in p art from G re a t B rittain a n d Ireland, th e re m a in d e r from New E ngland, N ew Y o rk , P ensylvania, and C a r o l i n a . S o m e tw enty Irish ves­ sels w ere re p o rte d in 1715, a n d th e specific acc o u n ts th a t we have o f fo u r o f these show th em im porting provisions a n d fishing g e a r.:7 T h e p ractice o f som e o f the N e w fo u n d lan d -b o u n d W est C o u n try vessels sto p p in g a t p o rts in th e south o f Ireland for p ro v isio n s p ro b ­ ably b ecam e estab lish ed so m etim e in th e last third o f the seven­ teenth cen tu ry , but o u r evidence is slight. By 1719, th e Exon m er­ ch an ts re p o rte d th at som e o f th eir vessels w ent e ith e r to F ran ce for salt o r Ireland for pro v isio n s before sailing fo r N ew foundland,-’" a n d in 1720, C o m m o d o re Percy noted in passing th a t vessels do upon occasion “ to u ch in Ireland fo r p ro v isio n s” . I n 1729, it was said that: T h e ships th a t c o m e d irec t from G re a t B rittain to N ew fo u n d lan d a re victuall’d a n d p ro v id ed w ith th e ir necessarys o f British p ro d ­ u ct, b u t m ost o f them g o first to Ireland w here they lo ad w ith p ro v is io n s . . . 30 a n d in 1732 this use o f Ireland as a p ro visioning sto p w as again noted in th e official c o rre s p o n d e n c e / F u rth e r notice o f th e use o f so u th e rn Irish p o rts for provisioning cam e in 1758, w hen D a rtm o u th , E xon, T eig n n io u th a n d P oole re ­ qu ested c onvoy p ro tec tio n for “ several ships w hich g o from E ng­ land to C ork a n d W a te rfo rd , for Provisions to su p p o rt the fisher­

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m an a n d in h a b ita n ts o f N e w fo u n d lan d w ho an n u ally sail a b o u t the 10th o r 20th A p ril;” “ . . . s h o u l d they fall into th e h an d s o f the E nem y th e C a la m ity w ould be h e a v y . I n 1763, it w as no ted in th e a n n u al re p o rt for th e island th a t “ M ost o f th e Beef, P ork and B u tter w as from Ire la n d ” , as well as som e from E ngland, along w ith b re ad , flour, p e as a n d cheese from th e latter p lace, a n d with flour, bread, m olasses, ru m , sugar and a sm all a m o u n t o f p o rk , beef a n d p e as from A m e ric a ." By the last half, a n d especially th e last th ird , o f th e eighteenth cen tu ry , we have so m ew h at m o re precise in fo rm atio n on th is trade from C o rk , a t least. Ju d g in g by in fo rm a tio n o f th e last tw o decades o f th e cen tu ry , how ever, W aterfo rd o v ershadow ed C o rk in th e p ro ­ vision trad e for N ew fo u n d lan d vessels; but until this la tte r period w e have no su re in fo rm a tio n on- the relative activity o f-th e tw o p o r ts . 14 In a n y case, the N e w fo u n d lan d -d ire cted activity a t C o rk , gleaned from notices o f vessels cleared as posted in th e w eekly C ork new spapers, can be su m m arized as show n in T ab le 6 .5 .:T a b le 6.5 Vessels C learin g C ork fo r Newfoundland H om e Port

Com pleteness o f file in first half o f year 1756 1766 1767 1768 1769 1770 1772 1773 1774 1775

good fair fair go o d excellent excellent excellent fair poor good

C ork

Bristol

Dartmouth

Poole

5

1

5

London

Other 3

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

I 3

6

1

1

2

3

3 3 3

2

1

1

3

1 1

3

1 1

2

1

2 2 3 3

6

T h ere are no c o m p a rab le figures for W aterfo rd for the years b e fo re the A m erican R ev o lu tio n . F o r c o m p a riso n , how ever, al­ tho u g h it d a te s b e yond th e p e rio d w e a re discussing at th e m o m en t, C o rk cleared a t least 10 vessels to N ew fo u n d lan d in 1786, while in 1792, W aterfo rd cleared to N ew fo u n d lan d a t least 4 3 .'" T h e c o m ­ p a riso n is, o f co u rse, very ro ugh, a n d m ay be m isleading, b u t these a re the tw o closest y ears w e can m atch w ith any a p p ro x im a tio n to co m pleteness, a n d th ere a re m any g a p s in th e reco rd s for both p o rts. But th e p o in t is th at W aterfo rd w as far m o re im p o rta n t in the

SU PPLIES

111

N ew fo u n d lan d supply trad e than C o rk , and this is b o rn e o u t for the 1780s w h e n a b s tr a c ts o f e x p o rt s ta tis tic s fo r th e in d iv id u a l Irish p o rts begin to list N e w fo u n d lan d specifically a m o n g st d e stin a tio n s for th e first tim e. N o rth A m e rica a n d th e W est In d ies T h e E n tr e p o t T r a d e . W ith th e e s ta b lis h m e n t o f s e ttle m e n ts in N o rth A m erica in the early years o f th e sev en teen th cen tu ry , it was only n a tu ra l, n oting the p o sitio n o f N e w fo u n d lan d on th e ro u te from E ngland to these colonies, th a t som e in te rac tio n betw een these tw o w estern A tlan tic a re a s w ould tak e place. F o r th e first half-century, how ever, this in te rac tio n w as slight a n d irreg u lar. T he Jam esto w n colonists, in 1610, lo r instance, w ere p re p arin g to a b a n ­ d o n th eir settlem en t a n d to sail for N ew fo u n d lan d as th e nearest source o f aid w hen m et and tu rn ed back in th e river by th eir new g o v e rn o r, and th e occasional vessel from th e so u th e rn colonies called a t th e island for fish in su b seq u e n t years.-' B oston m erch an ts a re know n to have trad e d freq u en tly w ith F e rry lan d in N e w fo u n d ­ lan d d u rin g th e 1640s,;s a n d even such m in o r N ew E ngland tow ns as M ilford, C o n n e cticu t, had “ g o tte n into so m e w ay o f T ra d in g to N e w fo u n d lan d , B arb ad o s, V irg in ia .” "' D u rin g th e second h a lf o f th e sev en teen th c en tu ry , th e ties b f tw een A m erica a n d N e w fo u n d lan d w ere stre n g th e n ed . W ith the e n ac tm e n t o f th e v a rio u s N a v ig atio n L aw s d esigned to build a stro n g m erc an tile British E m pire, th e island b ecam e a n e n tre p o t o f g o o d s o f varied origin th a t by in te n tio n sho u ld have been availab le only th ro u g h E ngland. By E n g la n d ’s choice, N e w fo u n d lan d (until th e n in ete en th c en tu ry ), w as not a “ c o lo n y ” , a n d th u s lacked the p an o p ly o f bu reau cracy im plied by th e d e sig n atio n . T h e N avigation A cts th a t lim ited th e overseas tra n sp o rta tio n o f c ertain e n u m e rate d colonial goods, such as tobacco, to E ngland a n d A frica only, a p p a r­ e n tly d id n o t a p p ly sp e c ific a lly to N e w fo u n d la n d , a n d no o n e seem ed really q u ite su re o f N e w fo u n d lan d 's status in respect to these law s. But since there w as on th e island no c u sto m s system ,40 o r a n y o th e r system , cap ab le o f enforcing th e e d icts even if they did a pply, it w as so o n fo u n d to b e co n v en ien t, a n d alm ost risk-free, to c arry e n u m e rate d g o o d s th ere for disposal to vessels retu rn in g to E u ro p e. N ew fo u n d lan d had special status from th e E u ro p ea n end to o . Salt could go th ere directly from S o u th e rn E urope. In a load o f salt, m uch could b e concealed; b u t w ith no o n e a t N ew fo u n d lan d from w hom to conceal it, e n u m e rate d g o o d s could be se n t there with little tro u b le. It is unlikely th a t m uch p lan n in g w as d o n e b e­ tw een th e tw o parties; A m erican vessels m erely to o k g o o d s on spec­

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u latio n . and th e salt vessels did likew ise. W h ere v er they m et barter co u ld ta k e p lac e.41 Since this tra d e o p e ra te d o u tsid e th e cu sto m s system , th ere was an ad v an tag e to be g ained in keeping it in th e shadow s, a n d it escaped d etailed a cco u n tin g in th e official records. B ut a t least the existence o f th e tra d e w as no ted from 1675 o n w ard s, by th e naval officers calling a t th e island. T h e best d e sc rip tio n c am e a b o u t the turn o f the century: E u ro p ean c o m m o d ities, c arried by the m asters o f English ships, a re these; from F ra n c e, b ra n d y , w ine, salt linen canvas, paper, h a ts and silks; from S p ain , w ine, b ra n d y a n d iron in g re a t q u a n t­ ities; from P ortugal, w ine b ra n d y , salt, oil, F ren ch linen and q u a n titie s o f silk from th e L evant, all w hich g o o d s are sold o r trucked w ith th e tra d e rs fro m N ew E ngland fo r to b acco , sugar, a n d o th e r e n u m e rate d c o m m o d ities, w ch. they c arry to foreign p a rts, so th a t a t th e la tte r end o f the y ear, ye m asters are wholly tak e n up in th e m an a g em e n t o f th a t tra d e . . . 4: L ounsbury, in his article “ Y a n k ee T ra d e a t N e w fo u n d la n d " , states th a t “ th e sm uggling o f foreign g o o d s into th e continental colonies declined d u rin g th e eig h teen th c en tu ry , not b ecau se it w as prevented a t N e w fo u n d lan d , b u t because o f th e increasing vigilance o f th e colonial cu sto m s service” ,4' and in d ee d , c o m p la in ts o f the N ew fo u n d lan d e n tre p o t tra d e b e ca m e less freq u e n t d u rin g th e cen­ tu ry , tho u g h th e re is little d o u b t th at, as re p o rte d in 1711, “ som m asters o f sm all vessells b u y s a hogs head o r tw o o f p rize w ine for th eir ow n use” ,44 a n d th at sm all q u a n titie s o f to b ac co w ere traded th ro u g h N ew fo u n d lan d in e xchange. But as interesting as w as the illicit use o f N e w fo u n d lan d by N ew E ngland, it w as b u t a small m a tte r econom ically even a t its height, w hen c o m p a red w ith the tw o a re a s' general legal tra d e .4' D riving F orces f o r L e g itim a te Trade. T he p o p u latio n o f the A m e ric an c o n tin e n ta l colonies, d u rin g th e seventeenth a n d e ig h ­ te e n th c e n tu rie s , in c re a s e d ra p id ly fro m 20 0,00 0 in 1660 to 300,000 in 1700 a n d to 2,500,000 by th e beg in n in g o f th e R ev o lu ­ tio n a ry W ar.4" S om e m an u fa ctu rin g h a d been dev elo p ed , but in g e n era l, the m ain e m p lo y m en t w as in p rim a ry p ro d u c tio n , and m an u factu red g o o d s w ere im p o rte d . T he supply o f these m a n u fa c ­ tu red goo d s w as lim ited , th ro u g h th e vario u s N avig atio n L aw s, to G re a t B ritain, b u t th a t n a tio n did not offer a large a n d steady m a rk e t for m an y o f th e p rim a ry p ro d u c ts o f th e A m erican colonies. Even th e so u th ern colonies, th a t d id offer an acc ep ta b le e x p o rt to G re a t B ritain, co u ld not b alan ce their im p o rts a n d ex p o rts by a d irec t trad e.

S U P P L IE S

113

T h e solu tio n to th e trad e deficit can be m o st clearly seen in the co m m erce o f N ew E ngland. A s early as 1640, by w hich tim e the influx o f British capital w ith th e P u ritan m ig ratio n largely had ceased, th e New E nglanders had begun to scour th e N o rth A tlantic for m a rk e ts for th eir e x p o rts. T h e goal w as to e arn sterling ex­ ch an g e, th ro u g h any m ea n s.4' By selling to a th ird a re a th eir goo d s for w hich the m ark e t in E ngland w as unsu itab le, they could h o p e to gain e ith e r (i) bills o f exchange on E ngland, o r (ii) articles that could be turned into bills o f exchange in a n o th e r a re a , th eir value having been increased by freight charges. Places th a t offered ex­ change on E ngland we shall call “ re m itta n ce a re a s” . T h e g re atest o f th e re m itta n ce a re a s in th e eig h te en th c en tu ry was th e W est In d ies.4' F ro m th em , E ngland w as buying sugar, a n d to them th e m iddle a n d n o rth ern A m e ric an co n tin e n ta l co lo n ies could supply lu m b e r a n d p ro v isio n s m o re cheaply th a n could E ngland. T he flow o f sterling, th erefo re, w as d iverted from d irect exchange betw een th e W est Indies and B ritain to a B ritain W est Indies A m e ric an colonies B ritain triangle. H aving gain ed bills o f ex­ change on E ngland, how ever, the A m erican tra d e rs d id not usually c o m e back in ballast. R a th e r, they took on rum a n d m olasses, a m o n g o th e r item s. T h e m olasses w as distilled in th e A m erican colonies, fu rth er a d d in g to its value. W ith b o th the distilling a n d the freight to increase its value, the re su lta n t rum w as sold in A frica in exchange for slaves, w hich could be carried to the W est Indies, again w ith freight as a d d ed value, fo r tra d e for bills and local p ro d ­ ucts, o r th e rum co u ld b e sold at N ew fo u n d lan d for bills o r local p ro d u c ts, i.e. fish; o r to fur tra d e rs in exchange for furs w hich then gave access to English bills. E xchange on E ngland w as th e goal in every case. T h e W est Indies offered a n exp an d in g m a rk e t d u rin g the second h a lf o f th e seventeenth a n d th ro u g h th e eig h teen th cen tu ries as p o p ­ ulation, engaged largely in th e cu ltiv atio n o f su g a r c an e , grew at re m a rk ab le rates. W ith a n increasing specialization in su g ar, fur­ th er, th e p ro p o rtio n o f land d e v o te d to food c ro p s becam e less and th eir d ep en d e n ce on an A m e ric an supply becam e m ore. L u m b er w as also needed in c o n sid era b le q u a n titie s, a n d w as also supplied from th e A m e ric an co n tin e n ta l colonies. T h e m aterials for th e seco n d ary exchange described above rum a n d m olasses w ere availab le in q u a n tity in the eig h teen th century. In the F rench W est Indian islands especially, w here rum a n d m o ­ lasses sto o d sh u t o u t o f th e h o m e la n d 's m a rk e ts for fear o f c o m p e ti­ tion w ith F rench b ra n d y , they w ere availab le a t ab su rd ly cheap rates. A second rem ittan c e area w as th e W in e Islands ( M a d e ir a , the

114

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

C a n aries, etc.). T ra d e betw een them a n d the A m erican colonies had begun in roughly th e sam e p e rio d as th a t w ith th e W est Indies. T h e W ine Islands did n o t, o f co u rse, offer a s large a m a rk e t as did th e W est Indies, b u t they re q u ire d sim ilar g o o d s food a n d lum ber. W h ere as the W est Indies to o k for its slaves th e cheapest available food, such as th e low est g ra d e codfish, the W in e Islands to o k b e tte r p ro d u c ts, a b e tte r g ra d e o f cod a n d grain s. In re tu rn , th e islands yielded w ine a n d tro p ical p ro d u c ts, usually to b e sold in th e W est Indies o r E ngland for bills a n d g o o d s, o r in th e A m erican colonies. G ra n te d th e need in the A m e ric an colonies for exchange on E ng­ land, a n d in view' o f the m ea n s they w ere tak in g to g et it, N ew ­ foun d lan d w as also a logical p o in t o f colonial trad in g interest. A t th e island each y e ar English sack and fishing ship c a p ta in s w ere buying fish: fu rth erm o re, th e re w as a stro n g local d e m a n d for food a n d saw n lu m b e r. N ew fo u n d lan d offered th e possibilities, there­ fore, o f bills on E ngland, a carg o o f fish for th e W est Indies o r the W in e Islands, a n d a m ark e t for pro v isio n s and lu m b er. All p ossibil­ ities w ere exploited. N u m b e r o f V essels Involved. T h e firm est evidence w e have o f the v olum e o f th e trad e betw een th e A m erican colonies a n d N e w fo u n d ­ land is the n u m b e r o f vessels engaged. T h is evidence com es as sta­ tistics o f colonial vessels at N e w fo u n d lan d , o f vessels leaving colo­ nial p o rts for N e w fo u n d lan d , a n d as chance references to trade betw een the W est Indies a n d N e w fo u n d lan d . N o n e o f th e evidence is c o n tin u o u s in tim e, n o r availab le for all ports. T h e n u m b ers o f colonial vessels recorded as being a t N e w fo u n d ­ land each year, including sh ip p in g not only from th e A m erican contin en tal colonies, but also from th e W est Indies, p ro v id es us w ith th e clearest in dication o f th e grow ing tra d e betw een th e tw o areas. T h is tra d e increased from only a half-dozen o r so vessels a y e ar in the late seventeenth c en tu ry to 42 by 1715, 138 by 1770. and a m axim um o f 175 in 1774 a n d fu rth erm o re, average vessel size on this ro u te increased from 38 to n s in 1684, for exam ple, to 51 to n s in 17 74.-w R elatively th o ro u g h reco rd s w ere also kept at th e A m e ric an c o n ­ tinental p o rts, w here a full-blow n custom s system existed. O f the p o rts largely involved in th e N e w fo u n d lan d tra d e , th e " N a v a l O f­ fice L ists” for P iscataqua, B oston, and N ew Y ork have in large p a rt su rv iv ed .'" A lthough th o se fo r P hilad elp h ia are alm ost c o m ­ pletely lost, cu sto m h o u se clearan ces p rin te d in th e w eekly new spa­ p ers supplied system atic th o u g h less d etailed in fo rm a tio n fo r that p o rt, and w ere used to help fill g a p s for o th e r p o rts as w ell.51 A c o m p ilatio n from th ese tw o sources is p resen ted for each o f the

S U P P L IE S

115

p o rts largely involved in the N e w fo u n d lan d tra d e as F ig u re 6.2. N ew fo u n d lan d also received a supply o f c ertain item s, p a rtic u ­ larly m olasses, sugar a n d ru m , d irec t from th e W est Indies. In 1676, th ere w ere th ree vessels loading fish in N ew fo u n d lan d for B arba­ dos, a n d o n e fo r St. Lucas, m ost o f them W est C o u n try o w n e d .52 S im ilar o p e ra tio n s w ere reco rd ed for m any o f th e y ears until the end o f th e seventeenth, a n d into th e next century; presu m ab ly , the recorded years ch ara cte riz e th e p e rio d . T h e in b o u n d supply to N e w ­ fo u n d lan d seem s, how ever, in th ese years, n o t to have equalled the sh ip m en ts o f fish. M o st years offer o n ly o n e exam ple o f such d irect sh ip m en t from th e W est Indies, exclusively from B a rb ad o s.53 D uring the eig h te en th cen tu ry , th e d irect im p o rt tra d e o f N ew ­ fo u n d lan d from th e W est Indies a p p e a rs to have increased b u t, as w ith so m uch o th e r d a ta relative to N e w fo u n d lan d trad e , since the scattered statistics co n cern only p o rtio n s o f th e island, usually St. J o h n ’s alo n e, few stro n g conclusions can be d ra w n . In 1714, nine vessels are recorded as having a rriv e d a t N e w fo u n d lan d from B ar­ b ados, a n d th e follow ing y e ar eleven are recorded from th e sam e place, along w ith th re e from A n tig u a; all b ro u g h t m olasses, sugar a n d rum alm o st exclusively.'4 In 1742, a t St. J o h n ’s alo n e, six ves­ sels tied up from B arb ad o s a n d o n e from S t. C h risto p h e r's, b ring­ ing the sam e th ree ite m s.55 F ro m 1742 until th e A m erican R evolu­ tio n , only scattered a n d obviously in com plete notices o f this direct tra d e have been found by this w rite r;" 1 specific p o rt reco rd s m ay exist in th e W est Indies, but have n o t, as yet, been so u g h t. S tatisti­ cal d a ta on the c o m m o d itie s involved in th e trad e are available, how ever, for th e years 1773 a n d 1774, and so m e o f these a re noted below . The C o m m o d ities. T h e full n a tu re a n d q u a n tity o f th e cargoes carried by th e vessels involved in th e A m erican trad e to N e w fo u n d ­ land c an n o t be know n w ith any certain ty . T h e few im p o rt records available for N ew fo u n d lan d itself are usually for th e p o rt o f St. J o h n ’s only, w hich p o rt, a lthough hand lin g a very large percen tag e o f th e A m erican g o o d s com ing into N e w fo u n d lan d , c a n n o t give us the pictu re we seek o f total im p o rts o f th e island. H ow ever, by exam ining the im m e d ia te orig in o f im p o rts into S t. J o h n ’s it can be observed th a t th e tra d e w ith A m e ric a involved essentially th e ports o f B oston, N ew Y ork a n d P h ila d e lp h ia .'' W e can th erefo re a p ­ p ro x im a te th e q u a n titie s o f v a rio u s g o o d s im p o rte d in to N e w ­ fou n d lan d from c o n tin e n ta l A m erica if w e can d e te rm in e th e q u a n t­ ities exp o rted for N ew fo u n d lan d from these th re e p o rts for a n y one year. S om e years have good d a ta for tw o p o rts, a n d offer p o ssibili­ ties o f estim ating d a ta for th e th ird ; o th e r years, w hile n o t having

116

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

60 40-

BOSTON

i

-------

NEW YORK

P H IL A D E LP H IA

1720

f ig u r e

1740

1760

1780

6.2: Newfoundland-bound shipping from three American ports.

q u ite as good d a ta , a re valuable fo r c o m p a riso n w ith sim ilar m ate­ rial fo r E n g la n d (se e a b o v e , p p . 104-106). T h e y ears for w hich th e m ost useful in fo rm a tio n a b o u t to tal im ­ p o rts into N e w fo u n d lan d from A m erica is av ailab le a re 1715, 1742, 1754, and 1763. F o r c o m p a riso n w ith E nglish e x p o rts an a ttem p t will also be m ad e to reco n stru ct, very roughly, th e A m e ric an car­ g oes fo r 17 3 1 (T ab les 6.6 to 6 .10 ).58 It m ust first b e no ted th a t th e g o o d s listed in th e a b o v e tables are only th e m ost p ro m in e n t o f those th a t w e k n o w to have g o n e . T o a p p ro x im a te com pleteness, a tab le o f som e five pages w ould be necessary for each year, a n d still the ru b ric “ s u n d rie s" w ould be n eed ed . Besides th e m o re c o m m o n a n d expected m aterials exported to N e w fo u n d lan d , w ent such things as a p p les, axes, candles, cho co ­ late, vario u s g ra in s, fu rn itu re , hay, d yew oods, o n io n s, th e occa­ sional b arrel o f pickled fish, m eal and m alt, p o tato e s, m uch live­ stock, so a p , m uch to b acco , w ine, and v a rio u s w o rk ed pieces o f w ood such as shingles, cla p b o ard s, staves, a n d even th e occasional h o u se fram e, p receding o u r p re -fa b rica te d h o u se o f to d ay by som e tw o h u n d re d y e a rs .'9 C e rta in item s tab u la te d in the above tab les w ere, o f course, staple necessities, and it is these w ith w hich w e a re largely in terested so

S U P P L IE S

117

th a t we m ay ju d g e the im p o rta n ce to N e w fo u n d lan d o f an external supply a n d the relative im p o rta n ce o f different a re a s in this supply. M o st im p o rta n t fro m th is s ta n d p o in t a m o n g th e e x p o rts from A m erica are b re ad . Hour, p o rk , ru m , m olasses, naval stores (pitch, ta r and tu rp e n tin e ) a n d lum ber. T he to tal flow o f som e o f these item s fo r v a rio u s y e ars from th e three A m e ric an p o rts to N ew ­ foun d lan d and th e sh a re o f each p o rt in th e to tal is p resen ted in the g ra p h s, Figure 6.3. T h e d irect tra d e from the W est Indies, n o t included in th e above figure, also supplied c o n sid erab le q u a n titie s o f m olasses, rum and su g ar. In 1715, th ese islands sent som e 4 8 ,0 0 0 gallons o f rum , 41,228 gallons o f m olasses, a n d 142 casks o f su g ar. " In 1742, as we h av e n o te d in T a b le 6.2, p. 102, th e W e st In d ia n vessels d e liv ­ e re d 238 h h d . (26,200 gals.) o f ru m , 71 h h d . (7 ,8 0 0 g a ls.) o f m o la sses a n d 188 bbls. o f s u g a r a t St. J o h n ’s a lo n e . F in a lly fo r th e y e a rs b e fo re th e A m e ric a n R e v o lu tio n w e h a v e d a ta fo r 1773 a n d 1774 sta tin g th e e x p o rts o f in d iv id u a l W e st I n d ia n isla n d s to N e w fo u n d la n d , a n d th is is p re s e n te d as T a b le 6.11. T h e o u t­ s ta n d in g ite m is B a rb a d o s ’ la rg e s h a re o f th e tra d e . In th e e ig h ­ te e n th c e n tu ry y e a rs u p u n til th e R e v o lu tio n a t lea st, th e re fo re , th e d ire c t tr a d e to N e w fo u n d la n d fro m th e W e s t In d ia n islan d s w as o f c o n sid e ra b le p r o p o rtio n s . C o m p a ris o n o f a few a v a ila b le fig u res o n its q u a n tity w ith th e A m e ric a n c o n tin e n ta l tr a d e as sh o w n in T a b le s 6.6 to 6.10 in d ic a te s th a t th e d ire c t tr a d e p r o ­ v id ed q u a n titie s o f ru m (a n d , a t tim es, m o la sse s a n d su g a r) e q u a l to o r g re a te r th a n th o se b e in g b ro u g h t to N e w fo u n d la n d via B oston, th e ° re a te s t s u p p lie r o n th e m a in la n d . M a rk e tin g . T h e A m e ric an s w ere in terlo p ers at N e w fo u n d lan d , for they inserted them selves in th e closed system o f b a rte r betw een the “ W estern A d v e n tu re rs” a n d th e fisherm en. A s w e will n o te in a later c h ap ter, th e m erch an t u n d e rto o k to supply th e fish erm an with necessaries such as h o o k s, lines, nets, salt, food and clothing on c redit a t th e beg in n in g o f th e season, expecting in re tu rn to be paid o u t o f th e fish cau g h t th a t su m m er. T h e N e w fo u n d lan d fishery, like all fisheries, w as highly un certain ; th ere w ere g o o d su m m ers and bad sum m ers. A g o o d y e ar m ig h t allow th e fisherm an to rep ay his d eb t, b u t a bad one w ould m ean th a t the o u tfittin g m erc h an t m ust c arry th e credit a t least a n o th e r y ear. P erh ap s th e next y ear, too, failed to yield a “ saving v o y ag e” , so th e c re d it m ust be further e xtended. It w as in th ese bad years th at th e ten sio n b ecam e c o n sid ­ erable betw een m erc h an t a n d fisherm an o r p la n te r. If the la tte r had a large d e b t w ith th e m erc h an t, but needed m o re food o r o th e r sup plies he m ight h av e been tem p ted to deal w ith th e cruising A m er-

RU M

M O LASSES

I73J

«74?

I/M

1763

PORK

1/33

F IG U R E

111

174?

I7S4 1763

6.3: Selected com m od ities to N ew fou ndland from A m erican cities, 1715-1763.

NEW FO U N D LA N D

— P H IL A D E L P H IA

CENTURY

from -N EW YORK

E IG H T E E N T H

from — BOSTON 171S

S U P P L IE S

119

ican tra d e r, pro m isin g aw ay secretly som e fish as p ay m en t selling, in fact, w h a t w as a lre ad y b u rd e n ed by lien to th e British o u tfitter. T h e A m e ric an tra d e r w as th u s u n d e rstan d a b ly u n p o p u la r w ith the W estern A dv en tu rers.

T a b le 6 .6 E x p o rts to N e w fo u n d la n d fro m A m e ric a n C o n tin e n ta l C o lo n ie s 1715 Boston Bread (lb .) Flour (lb .) Pork (b b l.) Rum (gals.) Molasses (gals.) N aval Stores (b b l.)

T o ta l o f Three

N e w Y o rk

Philadelphia

211.900

50,300 74.300 206 4,244

10.900 \ / 247

67

9,350 147

660 3,500 4

|

347.400 520 15,625 159

2,775 8

T a b le 6 .7 E x p o rts to N ew fo u n d lan d fro m A m e ric a n C o n tin e n ta l C o lo n ie s 1731 Boston Bread (lb .) Flou r (lb .) Pork (b b l.) Rum (gals.) Molasses (gals.) N a v a l Stores (b b l.) Lum ber (m . bd. ft.) Staves (m .)

N ew Y ork

332,500

351.000 \ 537,600 / — 424 51.600 31,300 326 403 ?

Philadelphia

20

15

0

45

8

45

15

1, 2 2 1 ,1 0 0

618 59,640 37,460 379 423

149 8,040 6,160 —

T o ta l o f Th ree

120

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

Table 6.8 Exports to Newfoundland fromAmerican Continental Colonies __________ 1742 N e w Y ork

Boston Bread (lb .) Flou r (lb .) Pork (b b l.) Rum (gals.) Molasses (gals.) N aval Stores (b b l.) Lum ber (m . bd. ft.) Staves (m .) Bacon (cw t.)

351,000 \

425,700

1

Philadelphia 358,000 2 0 2 .0 0 0

134 880 3,610 32

42 51,000 31,300 326 403

1

T o ta l o f Three \ /

1,154,900

16

329 52,480 38,210 358 420

5,000

5,000

153 3,300

2

2

Table 6.9 Exports to Newfoundland fromAmerican Continental Colonies ______________ 1754 Boston

N e w Y ork

Bread (lb .)

38,300 Flour (lb .) 176,000 Pork (bbl.) 115 Rum (gals.) 56,400 Molasses (gals.) 19,410 N aval Stores (b b l.) 264 Lum ber (m . bd. ft.) 671 Staves (m .) — Bacon (cw t.) —

\

>

749,400 236 3,630 2,640

Philadelphia 178,000 151,000 166

T o ta l o f Three ) /

1,292,700 517 60,030 23,650

1,600

284 689 37

20

9 10

—

9 27 2,400

2,400

Table 6.10 Exports to Newfoundland fromAmerican Continental Colonies _______ __ _________ 1763 Boston Bread (lb .) 134,200 Flour (lb .) 135,000 Pork (b b l.) 299 Rum (gals.) 49,140 Molasses (gals.) 1 1 ,0 0 0 N aval Stores (b b l.) 147 Lum ber (m . bd. ft.) 181 Staves (m .) 107

)

N e w Y o rk

Philadelphia

539.900

113,000

169 6 ,1 2 0

225,000 185 2,160

8,580 85 36

5 114

T o ta l o f Three

)

/

1.025,600 653 57,420 19,580 232 186 257

121

S U P P L IE S

T a b le 6.11 E xports o f W est Indian Islands to Newfoundland

1773 Barbados Dominica Tobago St. George’s Savanna la Mer

Rum

Sugar

51,930 gal. 11.470 gal. 6,030 gal. 2,349 gal. 35 puncheons

39,8001b.

1,000 lb.

1774

Barbados Savanna la Mer

Rum

Sugar

120,740 gal. 35 puncheons

63,792 lb.

N evertheless, th e A m erican tra d e to N ew fo u n d lan d grew , and utilized a n u m b er o f differen t m ea n s o f m ark e tin g its goods. Som e g o o d s w ere sold th ro u g h coastal h aw king, but o th e rs w ere disposed o f th ro u g h a resid en t factor. In these cases, th e A m e ric an s ow ned th e g o o d s until they sold a t retail, a n d th e p ro fits w ere th u s A m e ri­ can. P ro b ab ly m o re p o p u la r w ith th e W estern A d v e n tu rers w as o u trig h t purchase o f th e g o o d s a t th e A m erican d ocks, and tra n s­ p o rt o f this m erch an d ise to th eir agents at N ew fo u n d lan d in their ow n vessels o r even as freight on a n A m e ric an o n e. Each o f these m ethods o f m ark e tin g will be ex am in ed in tu rn . C oastal haw king seem s to have been th e e arliest system o f m a r­ keting g o o d s at N e w fo u n d lan d . T h e sm all vessel w ould assem ble a m ixed cargo, a n d call from p o rt to p o rt selling o ff sm all q u a n titie s to individuals. A tab u la tio n w ould be kept o f th e d e b ts (see, for exam ple. Figure 6.4),,:, and late in th e season o r even th e next year th e v essel w o u ld re tu rn to c o lle c t b ills o f e x c h a n g e o r fish fro m d e b to rs. T h e fish co u ld b e sold to sack ships, o r could be carried by the N ew E nglanders to b e exchanged in the W ine Islands o r the W est Indies for bills, w ine, rum o r m olasses. N ew E ng lan d ers ex­ celled in this b a rte r tra d e a t N e w foundland as th ey did all alo n g the w estern A tlantic coast, a n d it w as c o n tin u ed th ro u g h o u t th e e ig h ­ teenth century. T h e best exam ples we have o f this coastal h aw k in g com e from th e late sev en teen th a n d th e early eig h teen th cen tu ries. T he account book o f W illiam P ickering o f B oston for 1708 a n d 1709 show s clearly th e process o f c oasting, selling o f sm all q u a n titie s, a n d g e n ­ erally p icking up a n y earnings to b e m a d e . ' 1 H is brig o r bark H ope, was larg er th an m ost vessels used in N ew E n g la n d 's N ew fo u n d lan d

122

E IG H T E E N T H C E N T U R Y N E W F O U N D L A N D

tra d e , tallying eighty to n s a n d , since it w as w a rtim e, she w as arm ed w ith eight g u n s. P ickering a rriv e d at N ew fo u n d lan d a b o u t Ju n e 5th, 1708, and he sold g o o d s lo r a b o u t a w eek a t F e rry lan d . T here, for exam ple, he p u t o ff som e 17 h h d s. o f m olasses, 8 h h d s. o f rum , 19 bbls. each o f p o rk a n d flour, nearly 1600 lbs. o f tobacco and 4 bbls. o f c id e r to 25 p a rties, including all b u t fo u r o f the p lanters a ttrib u te d to th a t p o rt by th e census o f 1708."4 His m ost c om m on sale a m o u n te d to I h h d . o f m olasses, I bbl. o f p o rk , and 1 bbl. o f flour, w ith som e ru m . A fte r a sh o rt sto p o f only a c ouple o f days at St. Jo h n 's , w hich place w ould p ro b ab ly have been well supplied by factors, h e a rriv e d at B onavista by Ju n e 22nd. T h ere a n d at T rinity Bay he sold pro v isio n s a n d to o k goo d s on local freight. By m idA u g u st, P ickering had re tu rn e d to the St. J o h n ’s a re a w hich w as becom ing th e c e n te r o f th e fish m ark e tin g activity, th e place w here the price o f fish w as a n n o u n c e d for th e season. H e disposed o f g o o d s a t St. J o h n 's , a n d a t Bell Island a n d P ortugal C ove in C o n ­ c eption Bay before re tu rn in g to B onavista a n d T rin ity in late A u ­ gu st and m id -S ep te m b e r to collect fish ow ing on p ro v isio n s sold th ere earlier. Finally, Pickering w as back in St. J o h n ’s by S e p tem ­ b e r 22nd a n d concluded his dealings th ere by O c to b e r 16th, then p resum ably h ead in g h om e to B oston. N o t all c u sto m e rs p a id up in 1708, how ever, a n d th e acc o u n ts for 1709 show Pickering receiving d e b ts from his last y e a r's voyage in a d d itio n to m aking new sales. T h e b a rte rin g a n d h aw k in g o f pro v isio n s by the A m erican s in N e w foundland c o n tin u ed th ro u g h the eig h te en th c en tu ry , a n d was p u rsu ed by th e m erc h an ts o f p o rts o th e r than B o sto n ." S tephen R ich a rd s" left N ew Y ork, fo r exam ple, on such a voyage on July 15, 1732, a n d betw een A u g u st 1 Ith and S e p tem b e r 2 6 th , a t Placen­ tia , he m an ag ed to p u t o ff his cargo to tw enty-six differen t people, th e largest sale being to T h o m a s S alm on, a m erch an t th ere for £ 1 8 5 .3 .11'/’d . (N .Y . c u rr.) for o n io n s, ham s, flour, m olasses, peas, sugar, bread a n d p o rk , a n d th e sm allest bein g for 4 / 6 d . to one C a p ta in W ad h a m for 6 ro p e s o f o n io n s. In re tu rn he to o k 769 q u in ta ls o f fish, valued in to ta l a t L 3 2 6 (N .Y . c u rr.), bills o f ex­ c hange for a b o u t £ 2 5 , a n d a m in o r a sso rtm en t o f o th e r paym ents including cloth goods, dress clothing, cash a n d even his expenses at M r. S a lm o n 's pub lic house. T h e account book gives no indication o f m ark ets, b u t m ost fish th a t he to o k in w as e ith e r refuse, o r fish from vessels tak e n as prizes a n d p u rc h ase d a t a ra te little ab o v e that for refuse, suggesting th a t th e m ark e t w ould be W est Indian. U rged to this o u tp o st o f th e c o n tin e n t by c o n tin u e d pressu re for m e a n s o f m a k in g re m itta n c e s , A m e ric a n m e rc h a n ts c o m p e te d strongly a m o n g them selves. Sam uel V ernon o f N e w p o rt, R hode Island, a p p are n tly a su p ercarg o on o n e o f his b ro th e r's vessels at

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N e w fo u n d la n d in 1743, d e sc rib e s fro m T re p a sse y th e a n x io u s search for go o d m arkets: W e haveing a long passage, a n d a g re a t n u m b e r o f New E ngland m en here before w e could not sell any p a rt o f y e Vessel nor indeed ye C arg o , for Bills o f E xchange w ith o u t a p ro d ig io u s loss, so r a th e r ch o se to s e n d C o ffin [th e m aster] to y e p o rts N o r th ­ w a rd h e a rin g M a rk e ts w e re m u c h b e tte rn a n d F ish c h e a p e r, h a v e giv en him O rd e rs to D isp o se o f p t o f y e V essel to a n y S p o n sib le m an th a t w ill give him D isp a tc h e ith e r fo r M e d e ra o r y e W est in d ie s o th e rw a y [s] to sell fo r Bills & F ish a n d p ro c ee d h o m e .67 If the N ew fo u n d lan d dealin g s w ere n o t a m ajo r p a rt o f a m e r­ c h a n t’s to tal tra d e how ever, it w as usually b e tte r for him to a p p o in t a factor th ere than to go along him self, and th e evidence w e have suggests th a t th e A m e ric an s m ost frequently chose o n e o f th eir ow n cou n try m en for this tru st. T h e e stab lish m en t o f th ese factors dealing in A m erican goo d s a t N ew fo u n d lan d com es fairly early in th e eigh­ teenth cen tu ry . W illiam K een cam e to S t. J o h n 's a b o u t 1 7 0 5 from New E ngland a n d b ecam e a large m erch an t th e re , supplying the capital to establish a salm on fishery in B onavista Bay a n d ow ning vessels a m ongst o th e r th in g s, a n d eventually b ecam e th e m ag istra te for St. J o h n 's .'-* O n e A rnold S o u th m ea d w as a c u sto m e r o f W illiam Pickering a t St. J o h n ’s in 17 0 8 , ' 9 a n d is rep resen ted by 1 7 1 7 as “ . . . a N ew E ngland surly fellow th a t keeps a sto re h ere, a n d sells stinking N ew E ngland ru m m . . . ” .7" T h o m a s H an co ck , m erch an t o f B oston, w orked th ro u g h several ag en ts in N e w fo u n d lan d , m ost o f w hom w ere co n n ec te d in som e w ay w ith N ew E ngland fam ilies: Jo sh u a W inslow ( 1 7 1 9 ) ; L em uel G o w en a n d W inslow ( 1 7 2 0 - 1 7 2 3 ) ; G o w an a n d G ill ( 1 7 2 3 - 1 7 2 6 ) ; G ill a n d R oger D ench ( 1 7 2 7 - 1 7 2 9 ) ; Jo sep h S h e p h e ard in 1 7 2 9 ; a n d Jo s h u a W inslow in 1 7 3 1 / 1 R o b ert Bulley w as established, p ro b a b ly w ith reluctance, as a factor for the P h iladelphia m erch an ts dealing w ith St. Jo h n 's . T h e activities o f H ancock are particu larly well d o c u m e n ted , and can be c o m m en ted upon here. M o st o f his dealin g s w ith N ew ­ fou n d lan d seem to have been th ro u g h agents on th e island, both civil and m ilitary, a lth o u g h an occasional cargo w ent consigned to a vessel’s m aster to b e disposed o f as he saw fit, in sm all lots if n e ce ssa ry . H a n c o c k ’s b u sin e ss b i o g r a p h e r 2 re p re s e n ts h is tra d e w ith N ew fo u n d lan d as b eginning so m etim e a ro u n d 1729, but ac­ c o u n t b o o k s a ttrib u te d to H ancock show th at h e w as sending sh ip ­ m en ts th ere as early as I 7 I 9 . '! F ro m th a t tim e until th e 1730s he sent consignm ents o f goods, including m uch ru m , valued a t som e £ 2 0 0 to L 1000 each y ear, so m etim es on only o n e vessel, but m ore

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