1757...March 14, 1757..NL.."John Byng, the former governor of Nl, was executed before a firing squad today for 'negligence' in his dutis as admiral with the British Royal Navy. Byng's failure to attack French ships off the British-held island of Minorca and relieve British Fort St. Phillip led to his arrest and trial by court martial. He was executed on the Monarch at Portsmouth. In his three years a governor of NL from 1742-1745, Byng won local respect trying to stop a trade monopoly in St. John's. He also collected extensive statistical data on the fisheries and information on the living conditions of the local population." 1767....London..."All of St. John's Island (PEI), a French possession until it passed into British hands four years ago, was today assigned by lottery to a mere 100 lords, military officers, politicians, high-ranking civil servants, wealthy merchants and business adventurers. In his 1764-65 survey, Samuel Holland, surveyor general of Quebec, divided the island into 67 townships of about 20,000 acres apiece, and today's winners (some in partnerships) each got an entire township for nothing. Some of the lucky ones know King George III, and most are influential. They also share the view that their new holdings are either tomorrow's cash cow or today's speculative opportunity." 1769....London, England..."The king has granted 40,470 hectares of land on the rugged coast of Labrador to a group of missionaries who wish to establish Christian settlements among the northern Inuit. When the missions open , it will be the first time that Europeans have settled on the north coast of Labrador, and the first time that any North American Inuit have heard the Christian message from missionaries. The missionaries are members of the Moravian Bretheren from Germany. Active among the natives of Greenland for many years, the Moravians in Labrador are led by Jens Haven, a carpenter by trade. The 45 yr. old Haven has won the support of Newfoundland's governor, Sir Hugh Palliser, who hopes that the missionaries will befriend the Inuit and make it easier for the British to establish fishing and trading stations in Labrador. It was largely through the persuasion of Haven, who has visited Labrador, that the British government agreed to the grant." 1775....July 31, 1775..NL..." The British government is hoping legislation it recently passed will discourage settlement in Newfoundland and encourage English fishermen in nearby waters to return to Britain at the end of each fishing season. This is because NL is considered a vital 'nursery of seamen' that supplies trained deepwater sailors for British overseas shipping and the navy. The act comes into force January 1, 1776. People are calling the legislation Palliser's Act, since it includes several rules Sir Hugh Palliser enforced here when he was governor from 1764 to 1768. The number of British fishermen coming here then increased from 7,000 in 1764 to 12,000 in 1768, the total of resident fishermen fell from 10,000 to 7,000 and the number of seamen returning to the British Isles more than doubled from 5,562 to 11,811. By Palliser's Act, fishing captains will retain one-half of each employee's wages until his ship is home at the end of the season." 1775...December 31, 1775...Quebec City...."With Montreal already in their power, American rebel forces today attacked Quebec City during a pre-dawn blizzard. Leading them were Richard Montgomery, formerly of the British army, and Benedict Arnold, who had left Massachusetts with 1,100 men, and after a gruelling march, had reached Quebec with half of them still alive. The Americans wanted to get on with the bloodshed and complete their conquest of the colony. The defenders' champion was the unflappable, cautious, yet resourceful Gov. Guy Carlton, 51, who'd been wounded when the British captured the same fortress in 1759. Luckily for him, his meagre forces here were recently bolstered by some Highland soldiers, NEWFOUNDLAND FISHERMEN, crew off British ships, and both French and British-Canadian militia." 1778...June 22, 1778..Labrador.." There are six fewer polar bears in Labrador today. Entrepreneur George Cartwright and his comrades shot the animals on an expedition to Eagle River. Cartwright describes the day's slaughter as "the finest sport that man ever had" --though he recovered only a single bearskin........The bears were abundant here in Labrador, but in the Gulf of St. Lawrence have been hunted almost to extinction." 1778...Oct. 5, 1778.NL..." Recent fighting in and around NL has prompted Rear-Admiral John Montagu to strengthen local defences and oversee the capture of St. Pierre and Miquelon islands from France. The fighting has taken its toll on NL. An American privateer raided Placentia Bay in May and more recently a 22-gun privateer schooner caused great destruction on the coast of Labrador. Businesses operated by Noble and Pinsent and by George Cartwright have been destroyed. While missing the privateer, as ship Montagu sent to Labrador captured another vessel, averting more destruction." 1783....August...Shelburne, N.S. "Veterans of the Black Pioneers, an all-black regiment the British formed in the War of Independence, have arrived at Shelburne with permission to settle around the northwest end of the harbour. The ex-soldiers have arrived with some 1,500 blacks who sailed last month from New York as part of the massive British evacuation of loyalists and troops. Like other loyalsits, the Black Pioneers were promised free land, three years worth of rations, and other forms of aid to settle in British territory." 1784.....May 2, 1784 London, England....."By Order in Council, Britain today declared Cape Breton Island a colony. Until the conquest of New France a quarter-century ago, the island was a French possession for generations. It's been an official part of Nova Scotia for 21 years, but until this spring, Britain has shown no interest in seeing it settled. Cape Breton dozes. Prehaps 300 Acadians live there, and some 400 NEWFOUNDLANDERS, Irish and others use it as fishing headquarters. Today's decision amounts to London's recognition that, with hordes of LOYALIST refugees looking for places to settle, Cape Breton's time as a British colony has come at Last." 1790..June 15th...NL "The first fishermen believed to ever have travelled to the Arctic ice floes in search of seals have returned, their journey a huge success. The fishermen, who left Conception Bay this spring, discovered herds of these sea mammals and brought back valuable cargoes. Before, the only seals caught were those netted in small numbers near shore." 1791...July 31, 1791...NL.."The helter-skelter status of Newfoundland's justice system is about to be remedied. Legislation's been passed creating a Court of Civil Jurisdiction to determine "all pleas of debt, account, contracts respecting personal property, and all trespasses committed against the person or goods and chattels" in Newfoundland. Legal adviser John Reeves is the first chief justice. While fishing admirals, justices of the peace, naval surrogates, the governor and the vice-admiralty court all heard cases in Newfoundland before, recent decisions were overturned in Britain and governors were reluctant to issue rulings." ===== Researching Surnames (and variations) /ancestors, in BNA before 1835.....*Batten *Beauchamp, *Beecham, *Bishop, Buchanan, Butler, Churchill, *Dawe, Fitzpatrick, *French, *Lamb, Morgan, *Russell, *Roswell, Rowell, *Rousell, Snow, *Sparks, Tucker . In-law names of interest include Earle, Babcock, etc. (*Timeline Documents on file for these surnames and the towns of Bay Roberts and St. Mary's. All subject related family history comments, contributions and questions are welcome) __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? SBC Yahoo! DSL - Now only $29.95 per month! http://sbc.yahoo.com