Middle Cove Newfoundland
Location: St. John's East District, Newfoundland
Contents |
About
The present day town, Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove, near St. John's Newfoundland, was an amalgamation of three adjacent communities. Logy Bay, Middle Cove, and Outer Cove.
History
The area was within the boundaries of lands granted in 1610 to the London and Bristol Company, and it is possible that the sites were used by fishermen in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Permanent settlement did not begin, however, untill the early 1800s. The Irish migrants who settled in Logy Bay, Outer Cove and Middle Cove were attracted to the region because of the good farm land and easy access to the fishing grounds between Torbay Point and Flat Rock Point. The inhabitants mostly fished and farmed for their own use, but after a rudimentary road to St. John's was built in 1827 — and improved in 1841 — some people were likely selling surplus produce in St. John's.
The predominantly Roman Catholic population was ministered, from St. John's until the mid-1800s, when a parish was established in Torbay. Outer Cove and Middle Cove became part of that parish, while Logy Bay remained within the jurisdiction of the Cathedral parish in St. John's. In 1914 St. Francis of Assisi parish was established and five years later a church was built in Outer Cove to serve that community. Middle Cove and Logy Bay.
Early Families
Middle Cove was smaller than its neighbours, the 1869 census listing 80 residents. At that time Middle Cove had eight farming and three fishing families, although it is unlikely that people relied on one occupation. Early family names included Roche, Kelly, Power, Druken and Malone. Prior to World War II there were three commercial dairy farms and 15-20 fishing stages at Middle Cove. When the U.S. armed forces arrived in the 1940s fishing activity ceased as the older men worked on the American base in Pleasantville, while many of the younger men from the area went to bases in Greenland and Frobisher Bay. Following the war farming largely died out, although a daily farm operated by the Kelly family was still active in 1991. In 1979 Middle Cove beach became a provincial park. It is a favourite site for the annual capelin scull, attracting thousands of people each June.
Resources
- What links to this page.
- Newfoundland's Grand Banks Site, St. John's East District
- Newfoundland and Labrador Genweb, Torbay regional sources
Sources
- Login to edit this profile and add images.
- Private Messages: Send a private message to the Profile Manager. (Best when privacy is an issue.)
- Public Comments: Login to post. (Best for messages specifically directed to those editing this profile. Limit 20 per day.)