Posts - Page 5 of 15 - The History of Little Bay

The British connection (and a project update)

Hey all,This is just a little note outlining Little Bay’s British connection and an update on what’s going on with the project as a whole.Newfoundland was a British colony when Little Bay was founded in 1878 by the German Baron Franz Von Ellershausen. Much of the town’s early population were German. The town was not assigned a Magistrate until 1880 when the mining company started changing hands.The town was an international port with both international media attention and globetrotting residents ...

Warford

Spelling variants: Warford, Wharford, Wauford, WarlordLittle Bay was once again covered by international media after the tragic drowning deaths of the Warford family in December of 1883. They were traveling to visit Little Bay from their home on the south west arm of Notre Dame Bay when a sudden wind capsized their boat. All five members of the family traveling in the craft died. They were Henry Warford, his wife Sarah, their infant daughter Amelia, and their two nephews named Mathias and George ...

294064144_476507291141897_5014284962343383833_n

Cahial

I don’t have much yet to go on for the name Cahial. The two I can place in Little Bay are named Michael and Richard and my earliest record is from 1882. I think it likely that Richard is Michael’s son. Almost all of my references come from the text “All Quiet” by Doyle Wells. I’d welcome any help.Spelling variants found: Cahial / Cahal / Cahill / Cahail / CahanSources:1878, April 12 - Michael Cahill is a clothier in St. John’s (Will of Michael Cahill)1881 - Michael Cahan at Little Bay Bight (Vot ...

Mansfield

The Mansfield family is first found in my Little Bay records in 1885. They are members of the Church of England but unlikely to be tied to the Temperance Movement. The family is absent from the 1882 Voter’s list for Little Bay so I’m placing their arrival as likely in 1883 or 1884. They are represented by John and Anthony. I think it likely that Patrick Mansfield was also present. Anthony and Patrick are brothers but I suspect the trio are all brothers as Anthony would later name a son John. The ...

Inder

According to Milt Anstey the Inders are first present at Back Harbour, Twillingate North Island and spread out to Green Bay, Botwood, and Greenspond-Gambo from there. The family is represented in Little Bay by James (1849-1908). James likely travelled from Mill Island seeking work in the mine. This is supported by James’ son William later working as a miner at Tilt Cove. His 1894 listing as a fisherman is found at a time when many of Little Bay’s miners had switched into fishing due to mining sh ...

Folks

My first record of the Folks family being at Little Bay is for 1883. They’d arrived from Betts Cove following the German mining operations. The men worked as miners when mining operations were lucrative and otherwise switched into fishing. Some were Methodists while others were members of the Church of England. They resided at Shoal Arm and could have been there as early as 1878. The family remained there well into the 20th century. If you’re working on this family you can find the military file ...

Sexton

I don’t have very much for the name Sexton. The name is absent from the 1882 Voter’s list and my first record of them in Little Bay appears in the summer of 1888. They were living on the New Line Road about a mile from the shore. I feel it’s safe to assume they’d been there at least one year due to the new road being cut in 1887. This gives them some time to get the house built. Houses in this new area of Little Bay, known as The Valley, were said to be presentable with flowers planted outside t ...

Osbourne

The Osbourne family moved to the mining region from the east coast at the start of the boom. They were composed of the families of brothers Richard and Thomas. It is likely that they arrived by schooner and families arriving together often traveled by their own ship. They appear in both of the Baron’s towns first arriving in Betts Cove before following the German mine managers to Little Bay when the new deposit was discovered there. This would indicate that they had earned the respect of managem ...

The Fire of 1888

If you’re a descendant of John Joy (1842-1923) I’ve got some bad news for you. I think your ancestor may have killed four people. On December 8th of 1888 he appeared in Little Bay’s Courthouse to answer for starting a brush fire on June 6th which raged beyond control. It was found to have been started in his garden but they were unable to prove that it was he who’d lit it. The blame never fell elsewhere and he remains our prime suspect.Newfoundland was struck by disastrous fires in the summer of ...

Adolph Guzman

I keep learning more about historical mining in Newfoundland as I research Little Bay. I see a lot of ways it could be beneficial today. There are the obvious ways it contributes to Newfoundland heritage and tourism but I think there is untapped potential here for a method to assist current mining efforts, especially with prospecting. I further think we can find some insights into culture. Let’s consider Little Bay’s first mine manager - Mr. Adolph Guzman.Adolph Guzman was born in Germany in 183 ...

© 2025 History of Little Bay