An Introduction to Our Research into the Elliott Clan of Fogo and Notre Dame Bay Area
In the beginning, there was an idea. That I would begin a search into the Elliott tree, of which I found little was known. The Elliott family then hopped a plane at Calgary, Alberta, for Gander, Newfoundland, where we planned to visit the Island of Fogo, driven there by the knowledge that the Elliott family came from "out-the-bay", meaning from the outer extremities of the Notre Dame Bay, namely Fogo/Twillingate area.
Fogo Island, was indeed an experience and to this day my children have not forgotten that trip. Although mostly barren of trees except to the south of the Island, the water, boats, and even the ice-berg in the distance, culminated to produce a warm and friendly atmosphere. This was complimented by the friendly nature of the people we met along the way. It would have been easy to forget our purpose for being there.
Parish church records would have been very helpful at this time, but unfortunately I had not done my homework, and a search of the local United Church parish records turned up very little. Still the visit to the rectory was not without its rewards, when the minister was kind enough to point out places of interest such as the local cemeteries etc. (I should mention that the period of our search was before any of these people were born, therefore it was not anticipated that we would receive any knowledge first hand.) The visit to the cemetery was not any more productive, however it was amusing.
The minister had volunteered that because of the scarcity of soil on the Island, it was necessary to bury, the deceased of long ago in very shallow graves, which I quickly filed as trivia at the time. However, on arriving at the cemetery, which was small, unkempt, and overgrown with shrubs I told my children to wait outside the fence, while I scaled it to take a look around. Any markers that were still standing, held no Elliott names, and were extremely hard to read. As I strolled from marker to marker, suddenly the ground gave way before me and I dropped into an open grave. The minister's remarks returned in an instant, and I was out of that grave. In unbelievable athletic ability, I was over the fence and down the hill before I realized the kids were still at the top of the hill. I realized later that I 'had nothing to fear but fear itself'.
After a brief visit with some friends at Joe Batts Arm, which incidentally did not come off without its amusement, we left the Island of Fogo by ferry to drive back to Gander. Truly the day was a roaring success on one hand, and a failure on the other.
The next day we proceeded to St. Johns, a pleasant trip in itself. The weather for July 1975 was designed with our holiday in mind. Our next adventure would be a visit to the Provincial Archives at the Colonial Building in St. John’s.
At the Archives, the search began as usual with the records kept by the parishes at Fogo and district on file at the Provincial achieves at the Colonial Building in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Assisted by my wife and three children, we literally attacked the archives, with much help from the librarian and staff. At the end of the first day we had gleaned some 200 or so records of marriages and births from the records of Fogo and area, with only one interruption. Throughout the excitement, on one occasion my 12-year-old son reached for a large book, only to have it slip behind the shelves and fall to the floor, where it was retrieved with some difficulty. The staff however handled the whole thing with exceptional courtesy, even though they were very busy.
All in all, we had had a pretty good holiday and had produced a very good collection of data concerning the Elliotts who lived in Fogo and Twillingate from 1840 to the 1890s (when the records are protected and still the property of the church). We also learned that the Elliotts had arrived in Newfoundland, not Methodist, as earlier believed, but as Anglicans. This was the reason we had such little success at Fogo.
Out of the data collected, I was able to construct a very good scenario for the period of 1849 to the time when they moved 'up-the-bay' to Burnt Arm, across the Bay of Exploits from Botwood. The records for Burnt Arm were destroyed in a fire at the rectory in 1905, at Lewisporte. The Government records at the Department of Vital Statistics would contain them, but time was running out and we had to return to Lethbridge, Alberta. To our School and Work.
In time, two years or so, I did return to St. John’s to seek more information about the Elliotts of Fogo. A quick perusal of the parish records (still not on Fiche) to verify the information that I already had, was necessary, before proceeding with endless days searching other information; deaths and land grants, etc. Also days combing the business ledgers of The Slade Co. in Fogo. Great were the rewards, but also confusing. Experience in genealogy was a definite asset, and I was lacking. I neglected to search the records at the Dept. of Vital Statistics, and I did not have time to visit Botwood to look at the records there.
It was on this occasion that I did see a copy of a rare document on file, of 19 pages of baptisms for the period of 1819-23, by Rev. T Langherne, and witnessed by Mr. A Tucker. This was a boon to my research because it supported the data from the Slade Ledgers. The Elliotts on the Slade ledgers were having children in Fogo, Twillingate, and Change Islands, and were the source of the Marriage records in 1840, when the earliest parish records began.
Returning to Lethbridge, I realized the expense of pursuing a dream and decided to enlist some help. The next step was letter writing to a David Owens, at St. John’s (who has since died of leukemia, I'm sad to say). He was most helpful in providing me with copies of pages of the Slade ledgers dealing with the Elliotts, which I spent countless days scanning until I became as one with the Elliotts who lived in Fogo so long ago. Knowing their very sorrows, their hardships; the very product of their being. A fantastic story will someday unfold concerning these little-known pioneers to our shores.
I must say something at this time about the Slade Ledgers, which taught me not only the history of the Fogo and Twillingate area but also the history of the world commerce at that time. While John Slade of Poole, England, was selling the tools of the trade to the John Elliotts of Fogo, Change Islands, and Twillingate, it was a minor part of the worldwide network of commerce. The colonies depended on these merchants for their subsistence, and each account was a bartering system; merchant to servant or planter. In return, the fishermen or planter sold their catch to the merchant, at the going world prices. This product was delivered to the West Indies or the Mediterranean, where it would be exchanged for wines, cloth, and other luxuries desired by the English. Then back to England. Here the ship would again take on supplies and sail for Newfoundland and other colonies. This Triangle was a very lucrative venture for these merchants, and many a family estate was built in England from the gains. Enough said at this time.
As I said before, through the Slade ledgers, the parish records, and T Laugharne's doc., I was able to put together a scenario of the arrival and growth of the Elliott clan at Fogo and the area of the Notre Dame Bay. However, this still left unanswered the question of where they came from, and I would spend the next ten years finding that answer, even though it had been right under my nose all the time.
Fogo Island, was indeed an experience and to this day my children have not forgotten that trip. Although mostly barren of trees except to the south of the Island, the water, boats, and even the ice-berg in the distance, culminated to produce a warm and friendly atmosphere. This was complimented by the friendly nature of the people we met along the way. It would have been easy to forget our purpose for being there.
Parish church records would have been very helpful at this time, but unfortunately I had not done my homework, and a search of the local United Church parish records turned up very little. Still the visit to the rectory was not without its rewards, when the minister was kind enough to point out places of interest such as the local cemeteries etc. (I should mention that the period of our search was before any of these people were born, therefore it was not anticipated that we would receive any knowledge first hand.) The visit to the cemetery was not any more productive, however it was amusing.
The minister had volunteered that because of the scarcity of soil on the Island, it was necessary to bury, the deceased of long ago in very shallow graves, which I quickly filed as trivia at the time. However, on arriving at the cemetery, which was small, unkempt, and overgrown with shrubs I told my children to wait outside the fence, while I scaled it to take a look around. Any markers that were still standing, held no Elliott names, and were extremely hard to read. As I strolled from marker to marker, suddenly the ground gave way before me and I dropped into an open grave. The minister's remarks returned in an instant, and I was out of that grave. In unbelievable athletic ability, I was over the fence and down the hill before I realized the kids were still at the top of the hill. I realized later that I 'had nothing to fear but fear itself'.
After a brief visit with some friends at Joe Batts Arm, which incidentally did not come off without its amusement, we left the Island of Fogo by ferry to drive back to Gander. Truly the day was a roaring success on one hand, and a failure on the other.
The next day we proceeded to St. Johns, a pleasant trip in itself. The weather for July 1975 was designed with our holiday in mind. Our next adventure would be a visit to the Provincial Archives at the Colonial Building in St. John’s.
At the Archives, the search began as usual with the records kept by the parishes at Fogo and district on file at the Provincial achieves at the Colonial Building in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
Assisted by my wife and three children, we literally attacked the archives, with much help from the librarian and staff. At the end of the first day we had gleaned some 200 or so records of marriages and births from the records of Fogo and area, with only one interruption. Throughout the excitement, on one occasion my 12-year-old son reached for a large book, only to have it slip behind the shelves and fall to the floor, where it was retrieved with some difficulty. The staff however handled the whole thing with exceptional courtesy, even though they were very busy.
All in all, we had had a pretty good holiday and had produced a very good collection of data concerning the Elliotts who lived in Fogo and Twillingate from 1840 to the 1890s (when the records are protected and still the property of the church). We also learned that the Elliotts had arrived in Newfoundland, not Methodist, as earlier believed, but as Anglicans. This was the reason we had such little success at Fogo.
Out of the data collected, I was able to construct a very good scenario for the period of 1849 to the time when they moved 'up-the-bay' to Burnt Arm, across the Bay of Exploits from Botwood. The records for Burnt Arm were destroyed in a fire at the rectory in 1905, at Lewisporte. The Government records at the Department of Vital Statistics would contain them, but time was running out and we had to return to Lethbridge, Alberta. To our School and Work.
In time, two years or so, I did return to St. John’s to seek more information about the Elliotts of Fogo. A quick perusal of the parish records (still not on Fiche) to verify the information that I already had, was necessary, before proceeding with endless days searching other information; deaths and land grants, etc. Also days combing the business ledgers of The Slade Co. in Fogo. Great were the rewards, but also confusing. Experience in genealogy was a definite asset, and I was lacking. I neglected to search the records at the Dept. of Vital Statistics, and I did not have time to visit Botwood to look at the records there.
It was on this occasion that I did see a copy of a rare document on file, of 19 pages of baptisms for the period of 1819-23, by Rev. T Langherne, and witnessed by Mr. A Tucker. This was a boon to my research because it supported the data from the Slade Ledgers. The Elliotts on the Slade ledgers were having children in Fogo, Twillingate, and Change Islands, and were the source of the Marriage records in 1840, when the earliest parish records began.
Returning to Lethbridge, I realized the expense of pursuing a dream and decided to enlist some help. The next step was letter writing to a David Owens, at St. John’s (who has since died of leukemia, I'm sad to say). He was most helpful in providing me with copies of pages of the Slade ledgers dealing with the Elliotts, which I spent countless days scanning until I became as one with the Elliotts who lived in Fogo so long ago. Knowing their very sorrows, their hardships; the very product of their being. A fantastic story will someday unfold concerning these little-known pioneers to our shores.
I must say something at this time about the Slade Ledgers, which taught me not only the history of the Fogo and Twillingate area but also the history of the world commerce at that time. While John Slade of Poole, England, was selling the tools of the trade to the John Elliotts of Fogo, Change Islands, and Twillingate, it was a minor part of the worldwide network of commerce. The colonies depended on these merchants for their subsistence, and each account was a bartering system; merchant to servant or planter. In return, the fishermen or planter sold their catch to the merchant, at the going world prices. This product was delivered to the West Indies or the Mediterranean, where it would be exchanged for wines, cloth, and other luxuries desired by the English. Then back to England. Here the ship would again take on supplies and sail for Newfoundland and other colonies. This Triangle was a very lucrative venture for these merchants, and many a family estate was built in England from the gains. Enough said at this time.
As I said before, through the Slade ledgers, the parish records, and T Laugharne's doc., I was able to put together a scenario of the arrival and growth of the Elliott clan at Fogo and the area of the Notre Dame Bay. However, this still left unanswered the question of where they came from, and I would spend the next ten years finding that answer, even though it had been right under my nose all the time.
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