Reidville

	Reidville History Newfoundland Labrador

The Bonne Bay Connection

William Thomas Reid, son of John Reid and grandson of William (Bampton) Reid is credited as the founder of Reidville. The following is an attempt to highlight events that lead to this settlement.

The Bonne Bay Parish Anglican Marriage Records, (1891 - 1904) indicates that on "June 11, 1903, William Thomas REID, age 27, bachelor and fisherman of Neddy Harbour, son of John REID, fisherman...married.... Mary Ann MAJOR, age 18, spinster of Wild Cove, daughter of George MAJOR, fisherman." William Thomas and Mary Ann built their house and stages on the waterfront of Neddy Harbour and had twelve children. They were; Phillip Douglas(b.1903), Steadman(b.1904), Matilda Jane(b.1906), Martha Pearl(b.1910), Charlotte(b.1912), Herbert(b.1914), George William (b. 1916), Rhoda(b.1917), Alexander(b.1919), Thomas Henry(b.1922), Fronie(b.1924) and Lorne (b. 1927).

In the Bonne Bay area fish stocks were unpredictable and during the 1890's an attempt to increase stocks was made by returning cod and lobster eggs to the ocean. During the early 1900's four lobster factories were forced to close, and between 1925 and 1927 the lobster fishery was completely shut down to allow the stock to recover. During the early 1900's herring boomed, but declined again after 1915 and never recovered. Some fishermen tried trapping fur-bearing animals as an alternative to the unpredictable fishery. The Newfoundland government looked to other alternatives for the people in the area. The tremendous stands of white pine, spruce and fir trees on the west coast of the Island was seen as a great opportunity to develop a vibrant forest industry.
Stanleyville and Lomond
In 1895 two brothers from Nova Scotia, John and Scobie McKie built the first commercial steam-powered logging mill at Payne's Cove (Stanleyville). By 1910 this mill employed 60 men. The St. Lawrence Timber, Pulp, and Steam Ship Company bought the mill in 1916, and relocated to Murphy's Cove where there was more room for expansion. George Simpson, a native of Scotland and mill manager, renamed Murphy's Cove as Lomond after the Lomond Hills in Scotland. At the time, the mill was the largest in Newfoundland. The town had all of the necessities, including houses, bunkhouses, a meal hall, a store, a school and vegetable gardens. During its boom Lomond had as many as 500 workers employed there. During World War I a shortage of timber in the United Kingdom forced the mining industry to seek pit props overseas. Newfoundland's pit prop industry was started and a major project was launched to build a "Million Log Raft". That is, a huge raft of tree trunks held together with steel bars to be sent across the Atlantic Ocean.

Million Log Raft of 1917 *Courtesy of CBP&P Ltd.*

It took nearly two years to build the "million log raft" and when completed in 1917 it was 76 meters long, nearly 8 meters deep and 14 meters across. After being launched in August of 1918 the raft was met with severe weather conditions and broke up off the Newfoundland coast.

William Thomas Reid sustained his family by fishing in the summer months and trading some of his bounty with the French Ships. However, when the fishery took a downturn he cut logs for the St. Lawrence Company in Lomond. It is likely that he participated in the building of the Million Log Raft between 1916 and 1918 at Lomond. By the mid-1920's Lomond lost its prominence in the forest industry because of a shortage of good timber. However, in 1923 Corner Brook and Deer Lake had been selected by the Newfoundland Power and Paper Company Ltd (NP&P) for development of Newfoundland’s second pulp and paper mill. Originally the intention was to establish both power house and Mill at Deer Lake and to carry the paper by rail to Port-aux-Basques. Later it was decided to take advantage of the excellent shipping facilities at Bay of Islands and the Mill was constructed at Corner Brook. In 1925 the mill was acquired by the International Power and Paper Company (IP&P).

A view of Lomond in the 1930's

Courtesy of CBP&P Ltd.

A view of Lomond in the 1940's - Courtesy of CBP&P Ltd.

In 1880 the "Newfoundland legislature enacted legislation to construct a trans-island railway. Construction began in 1881 and ended in 1897". During the latter part of the 1800's telegraph and telephone communications rapidly grew in eastern Newfoundland and by 1904 telephone services had been expanded to western Newfoundland. In addition, there was great demand for lumber and pit props resulting from shortages in Britain, during the early 1900's and leading up to World War I. An abundance of timber in the Humber Valley region encouraged loggers to setup sawmills to meet the demands for lumber. Furthermore, the construction of the Mill in Corner Brook and the Power House in Deer Lake provided many opportunities for employment. Each of these developments attracted families from many communities around the Island to settle in the Humber Valley region and William Thomas’s son, Steadman, was one of those fishermen/loggers that took the risk.

A view of Lomond - Winter 2003
Photo by Cliff Reid