Ferryland

Not to be confused with Fairyland (disambiguation).
Ferryland
Town

Seal
Motto: "Tolerance, Courage, Endurance"
Ferryland

Location of Ferryland in Newfoundland

Coordinates: 47°01′N 52°53′W / 47.017°N 52.883°W / 47.017; -52.883
Country  Canada
Province  Newfoundland and Labrador
Settled 1621
Government
  Type Ferryland Town Council
  Mayor Leo Moriarity
Area
  Total 13.62 km2 (5.26 sq mi)
Elevation 48 m (157 ft)
Population (2011)
  Total 465
  Density 38.8/km2 (100/sq mi)
Time zone Newfoundland Time (UTC-3:30)
  Summer (DST) Newfoundland Daylight (UTC-2:30)
Postal code span A0A
Area code(s) 709
Highways Route 10
Website http://www.ferryland.com/

Ferryland is a town in Newfoundland and Labrador on the Avalon Peninsula. According to the 2011 Statistics Canada census, its population is 465.[1]

Seventeenth century settlement

Excavated foundation of mansion house.

Ferryland was originally established as a station for migratory fishermen in the late 16th century but had earlier been used by the French, Spanish, and Portuguese. By the 1590s it was one of the most popular fishing harbours in Newfoundland and acclaimed by Sir Walter Raleigh. Ferryland was called "Farilham" by the Portuguese fishermen and "Forillon" by the French—it later became anglicized to its current name "Ferryland." (This should not be confused with the Forillon National Park in Quebec, which still keeps its French name.)

The land was granted by charter to the London and Bristol Company in the 1610s and the vicinity became the location of a number of short-lived English colonies at Cuper's Cove, Bristol's Hope, and Renews and adjoined the colony of South Falkland. In 1620 the territory was granted to George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore who had obtained the holdings from William Vaughan.

Map of Ferryland in 1663
Map of Ferryland in 1693

Calvert appointed Edward Wynne to establish a colony which became the first successful permanent colony in Newfoundland growing to a population of 100 by 1625. In 1623, Calvert's grant was confirmed and expanded. The Charter of Avalon was granted to Lord Baltimore by James I. Dated 7 April 1623 it created the Province of Avalon on the island of Newfoundland and gave Baltimore complete authority over all matters in the territory. That same year Baltimore chose Ferryland as the principal area of settlement. In the 1660s, the colony was attacked by Dutchmen.

The town was destroyed by New France in the Avalon Peninsula Campaign (1696). Virtually forgotten for centuries, excavations of the original settlement began in earnest in the late 1980s and continue to this day.[2]

Historic designations

The site of the 17th-century Colony of Avalon was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1953.[3] It was also designated a Municipal Heritage District in 1998.[4]

The Historic Ferryland Museum was designated a Municipal Heritage Site in 2006.[5]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ferryland.
Wikisource has the text of the 1920 Encyclopedia Americana article Ferryland.

Coordinates: 47°01′N 52°53′W / 47.017°N 52.883°W / 47.017; -52.883

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/13/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.