PILLEY'S ISLAND HISTORY
Written by Ben Callahan
Long before European settlers stepped foot on Pilley’s Island or on to Newfoundland, Maritime Archaic, Dorset Eskimo and Beothuk peoples roamed our shores as they would make their way from Newfoundlands interior, to the coast in the springtime, to hunt and fish.
The mummified body of a Beothuk child, wrapped in birch bark, was discovered in a cave on Big Island, just to the East of Bumblebee Bight, Pilley’s Island and is now housed in the Rooms Museum in St. John’s.
Local oral tradition says that European / early generation Nefoundlanders first settled Pilley’s Island, at least part time, by the early to mid 1800’s. However, the first permanent settler recorded was Richard Rideout.
The population of Pilley’s Island started to bloom after the discovery of base minerals in the 1860’s by Captain Phillip Cleary and the opening of the mine in 1887. As part of an ancient Volcanic system, Pilley’s Island is rich in minerals and although chiefly pyrite, the mine produced some Copper and iron.
The pyrite was produced for its sulfur content which was in high demand in New York and was used in the production of paper.
On return trips, the ore carriers would take passengers north with stops in Halifax and St. John’s, picking up adventure seekers looking to explore the untamed landscape of Newfoundland.
Even though it was the largest pyrite mine in Newfoundland, fully equipped with electric lights, (Pilley’s Island was the only place outside of St. John’s to have electricity at the time) and after going through several operators, the mine closed its doors for good in 1908. The workers finished their shift only to find the doors closed the following day with no word of the closure from the company and with the final payroll never being met.
After the closure of the mine, many miners moved on to the next new mine on Bell Island. However Pilley’s Island was still a hub for the Northeast coast with at least 6 merchant establishments, Courthouse and in 1911, the opening of the Grenfell mission hospital.
The hospital was converted from the hotel established by the mining company and could house 25 patients.
The hospital was in operation until 1925 when the decision was made by the Grenfell mission, to move the hospital to a more central and accessible location in Twillingate.
When the Great war broke out in 1914, the Country of Newfoundland was proud to do its part by sending a contingent of soldiers. Pilley’s Islanders answered the call with over 60 men, approximately 10% of its population, volunteering to go overseas to fight.
Sadly not all returned and those who did were not the same as when they left.
After the war and with the opening of the paper mills, the men of Pilley’s ISland took to the logging industry. Between the fishery and the logging industry, the population of Pilley’s Island remained fairly stable and in the mid 1980’s the population was approximately 550 people.
In 1992, due to mismanagement and over fishing, the Federal government announced the Cod moratorium. This caused the largest loss of employment in Canadian history and with the modernization in the logging industry, young Newfoundlanders, especially in outport Newfoundland, moved to the “mainland” in droves to find employment.
Communities, such as Pilley’s Island, have had to struggle to hold on. Many of the remaining men found work either at the local fish plant, now processing crab instead of cod, in aquaculture on the local mussel farms, at the local marine center, at the local diamond drill production facility, Duralite or finding rotational work at different sites around Canadaand around the world.
In the last census, Pilley’s Island had a population of 290 people with the population still in decline. However, Pilley’s Island is starting to see more of those “Pilley’s Islanders” who moved away for employment, return home to retire. That coupled with the tourism interest garnered with the introduction of a new micro brewery/Inn and a B&B, the future of Pilley’s Island is starting to look up. Already, 2 new Airbnb’s have started and a new property owner is proposing to develop Crown land with the purpose of selling approximately 30 new housing lots. This would be the largest development for Pilley’s Island in over 30 years.
All that said, prospecting still goes on every few years and the consensus is there is still a whole lot of minerals to be mined on Pilley’s Island, when the market economics make it right to do so.
