History

Burgeo has a rich history of nearly 500 years.

The Name “Burgeo”

It is believed by some that the area was initially settled by the Portuguese and given the name Virgio; over time, this became Burgeo (possibly a British pronunciation or adaptation).

Early Inhabitants & European Settlers

Before Europeans came to the area, indigenous peoples such as Dorset and Beothuck Indians frequented the many bays of the local archipelago and adjacent mainland. This part of the island was also inhabited by Mi’kmaq Indians (although not indigenous to Newfoundland). They originated from mainland Canada, possibly Nova Scotia and/or New Brunswick. In 1766, Captain James Cook, who was surveying and exploring the local islands, experienced a solar eclipse. In recognition of this astonishing event, he named one of the isles Eclipse Island. The 1790s saw the first influx of permanent settlers who made a living fishing the inshore waters mainly for cod. In the early years, Burgeo was essentially several smaller pocket communities grew and inevitably became one. The Town of Burgeo was officially incorporated in 1950.

Churches

The first Anglican and Methodist churches were built during the first half of the nineteenth century to serve the fast-growing religious population. Reverend Blackmore was the first Church of England clergyman to be stationed here. During this period, the first public (church-run) school(s) opened. The Catholic Church was built and donated to the small Catholic community in the 1960s by Margaret Lake, a local business woman originally from Ramea.

Professional Development & Health Care

The mid-nineteenth century was a proud and poignant time for Burgeo. This is when the Newfoundland government took the initiative to establish several professions here. Mr. Morris was the first doctor to set up practice helping the vulnerable and isolated folks on the south coast. Magistrates and teachers were some of the also appeared. Incidentally, it was less than a century later before the first hospital, Burgeo Cottage Hospital, was built. It opened its doors in 1935. In the early 1990s, the Cottage Hospital was replaced by a more modern facility that was named in honor of Doctors Ann and Mike Calder who aided the local sick and injured of Burgeo for most of their professional lives.

Fishery and the FFAW

Burgeo has always been a fishing town. The first fishing merchant to setup an operation here was a Mr. Cox sometime in the early 1800s. Later, there were others such as Newman and Co., Clement & Co., and Burgeo & Lapoile Exports Ltd. established by Robert Moulton. In the 1940s, a modern fish processing facility was built in the Short Reach and Burgeo experienced growth that continued unabated for the next five decades. During the 1950s, Spencer Lake started a large fishing enterprise located at the same site as the 1940s operation. In 1971, the Fishery Food and Allied Workers union (also known as the FFAW) turned the tide for fishery workers; they would no longer have to work under unfavorable conditions. This arose partly due to the help of the charismatic and articulate Father Des McGraw. The union gained momentum and began to spread provincially; it has become a major entity influencing fishery-related decisions and policies in our province.

Authors Farley and Claire Mowat

1962 saw the arrival of the famous and controversial author Farley Mowat and his wife, Claire Mowat, who was also an author. They took up residence here, living a simple lifestyle like the local people who were insulated from the modern world due to the community’s relative isolation. While living here, Farley wrote A Whale For The Killing and The Boat Who Wouldn't Float, and Claire penned Outport People, using Burgeo and local residents as their backdrop. Around 1967, after the infamous shooting of a whale (Moby Josephine) by some locals, Farley became bitter with some residents. Because of the bad publicity the town got on a national and international level, Farley and the people of Burgeo became estranged. This tension caused Mr. Mowat to leave a town that he loved dearly. After living here for about five years, the Mowats packed up and sailed away.

Painter Christopher Pratt

Renowned Newfoundland painter Christopher Pratt was born in St. John’s in 1935. In 1980, he designed the Newfoundland provincial flag. Pratt visited Sandbanks Provincial Park and frequently drove Route 480, the 146 km road that leads from the Trans Canada Highway to Burgeo. He painted both the park and the highway, featuring the area in paintings such as West of Sandbanks: Endless Summer (2012) and Burgeo Road: The Blue Hills of Couteau (2014).

In 1999, Pratt began his book Thoughts on Driving to Venus on the Burgeo road:

Burgeo Road, 10:30 am. 3 °C, breezy, mixture of sun and cloud. Enroute Sandbanks on a chilly but very inviting day. I always remember these "Car Books" began on this road—intended to be a short-hand, stream of consciousness, trigger-happy sort of thing, a sequence of responses, not considered efforts at insights or forced philosophies.

Infrastructure, Route 480, and Modernization

The town of Burgeo and its neighbors relied upon a daily coastal boat and ferry service. These boats traversed the south coast from Port Aux Basques to Fortune, disembarking at every inhabited port. This was, for the most part, a lifeline to the outside world for these isolated communities. In 1979, the town (and region) become connected to the rest of the province by a 146 kilometere road called Route 480 that is more commonly known as the Caribou Trail. Since then, and with advances in telecommunications and the addition of high-speed internet, the town has modernized in an astounding way, embracing technology with the same fervor as larger urban centers of mainland Canada.

Image: Drying fish, Burgeo, NL, 1908 (Public domain)