Moments in Time
A Cultural Portrait of Green Bay, Newfoundland
© 1994 Green Bay Economic Development Association
Three Arms
Schooners once were anchored together so tightly in the tickle that one
could walk across from the island to the mainland on their decks. From a thriving, busy and
widely known fishing centre, to a deserted, but charming beauty spot, it can certainly be
termed Newfoundland's Lost Hamlet. All that is left is an allusion of prominent
stories and memories of the past.
Three Arms is situated at the mouth of three arms on the
northeast section of a peninsula separating Southwest Arm from Halls Bay. In the days of
settlement, several fishermen came to this location: Western Arm, Middle Arm, and Southern
Arm. As the middle arm was nearest to the fishing grounds and had the most protection, it
provided the best harbour. Its unique formation provided perfect shelter. Dozens of schooners
took advantage of the safe anchorage Three Arms offered during the fishing and shipping
season. Even though there were three arms from which to fish, settlement only occurred in
the middle arm. This is how Middle Arm obtained the name of the Three Arms that it
represented.
The initial community of Three Arms was settled mainly on an island. It
was separated from the mainland by a very narrow channel commonly known as the Tickle.
However, settlement also occurred on the mainland after the community became populated.
The island became known as Back Tickle and the mainland became Front Harbour.
Three Arms was known in the late 18th and early 19th centuries only as
an exceptional seasonal fishing site. It wasn't until the mid-19th century that permanent
settlement occurred.
There were two stages of migration. The first settlers were John B. Wells
[1],
William Wells and Solomon Strong
[2].
The Wells and Strongs originally came from
Ringwood, England, and
settled in Back Harbour, Twillingate. The story goes that John Wells married Solomon Strong's
sister
[3]
and Solomon married John's sister
[4].
With their new families, both eventually moved to Three Arms
[5]
for the fishing. At the time, fish were extremely plentiful in the Green Bay
area, and Three Arms was a perfect harbour from which to operate an industry. Another member
of the Wells family also settled here, along with his brother, to set up a family business.
After Three Arms was settled, a man by the name of James Norris,
originally from Waterford, Ireland, moved in from Petty Harbour - also to get involved
in the fishery. He became a familiar large-scale merchant.
These first settlers were followed by families with names such as the:
Shearings, also from Ringwood,
England; plus the Bartletts, Batstones, Budgells, Coopers, Moores, Rideouts, Rowsells, Youngs
and others - until Three Arms became the best known fishing harbour on the coast.
John Wells was the first merchant to start up a business in the bay at
Three Arms. For numerous years fishermen came from all over the region for supplies. Old
account books still exist, dating back from 1862 to 1875, with dealers who came all the
way from Round Harbour, White Bay, to Leading Tickles, Notre Dame Bay. These books are now
believed to be in the possession of his great great grandchildren. John's great granddaughter,
Mrs. Nellie Moore
[6]
of Harry's Harbour, recently held these
valuable ledgers, but she has passed them on to another generation.
Mr. Wells also had the first post office in the bay. He once kept an old
book, dated 1885, where he counted all the letters passing through his hands - both those
received and those sent. His salary for that year was three pounds.
When the business of Mr. Wells died out, James Norris, an Irishman, took
over the merchant requirements in the bay. He expanded, and had much larger and far-reaching
results. Later, after passing the business over to his son, James Norris Jr., branch
businesses were set up all over Green Bay and White Bay. At the time Mr. Norris' operation
was the only local one. Ships came from all over the bay to trade fish for goods.
He also had many ships built which were used in his business. Mr. Norris
would send local ships, including his own, to St. John's with loads of fish, having them
return with freight for his business. Also, ships would come from St. John's and other ports
with shipments of freight to trade for fish. Fish was even exported all the way to Oporto,
Portugal, by Mr. Norris.
Three Arms was so immensely involved in the fishing and trade industries,
that boat building was a natural progression for the local economy.
John and William Wells were the first to build schooners. John set up a
sawmill at Western Arm, and cut logs for himself and others. The brothers built five schooners
in all, along with a large sailing ship called the Bulley. It is said that this old
boat was later sawn in half. The stern part made a well house for the Wells and the bow part
made a well house for the Strongs.
There is a unique story about the local boat building industry. John and
William had a schooner called the Royal George. On a trip from Back Harbour, Twillingate
to Three Arms with a load of provisions and household effects, the vessel caught fire. Since
the cargo also included hay, the boat became a virtual tinderbox and could not be saved. The
crew reached Triton with no loss of life, but the schooner and cargo were a total loss.
As soon as the Wells brothers settled back in Three Arms, they started boat
building again. They built a 40-ton vessel called Sweet Home, which was said to be the
worst vessel to ever sail the seas, but it was the pride of John's heart.
Once, on a trip to St. John's, John was going for a nap and he told William
to keep a sharp watch. When he came up again, William was gazing out over the stern.
John yelled, "Bill, I thought I told you to keep a good look out."
"So I am," said Bill. "I'm looking out to see that no one runs us down."
When the Wells business died out, James Norris, son of the original James
Norris, the Irishman, started a merchant and boat building business. With headquarters at
Three Arms, he set up other branch businesses all around White Bay. He operated a fleet of
fishing and trading vessels that were built at Three Arms. The first schooner was a 40 tonner,
the Mary, built by a man by the name of Con Lake.
There were 24 boats built for Mr. Norris with such picturesque names as
Irish Lass, Alright, Ready and Go, Ellie in the Bay,
Bonanza, Rover's Bride, Merry Heart, and Fuchsia. In the year
of Halley's Comet, 1910, Mr. Norris had three boats built at 16 tons each. He had one
constructed for himself, named the Comet, one for the Stempleton Family in Bonavista,
named the Planet, and one for a Father Tickle, the Catholic priest in Conche, named the
Mission.
These vessels were produced by Charlie and Thomas King of Harry's Harbour.
They were also fitted with marine engines. The last schooner to be built at Three Arms for
Mr. Norris was the Nell, produced by Abraham Rideout in 1916.
The story of boat building at Three Arms went on and on, in spite of the
town's decline as a fishing centre. In the early 1920's a boat builder by the name of John
Rideout moved there to live. The story goes that he built over 60 boats, all from 15 to 20
tons. The remarkable thing about this man was that he did all the work himself. He cut all
his boat timbers and sawed all his plank with a pit saw, single-handedly. He was known to
have built a 23-foot boat in less than a month. It is also said that he built a boat for
each year of his life - a remarkable feat.
Three Arms was known for the first telegraph office in the bay, and a
very busy one it was. There were many active times at the harbour, when visiting men were
all anxious to send messages home. All of these communications were worded in practically
the same manner: "Harboured at Three Arms; All Well".
The telegraph operator for approximately 20 years, Mrs. Nellie Moore
remembers living on the Island and having to row her boat across the tickle to the mainland
to get to the telegraph. The rowboat was given to her by the government. After she got
married the government sank a cable across the water and put the office in her house on
the island.
Telegraph connections with Springdale were put in place, and messages
would be relayed in and out of the Arms from there. Messages arriving were delivered
personally until telephones were put in the local communities of Jackson's Cove, Harry's
Harbour, Silverdale, Southern Arm and Wild Bight. These were then conveyed by telephone
by the telegraph operator.
Three Arms was a community that represented social togetherness between
two families and two religions. The Wells family was Methodist (Protestant) and the Strong
family was Roman Catholic
[7].
The number of residents who followed
each of these religions was about equal. The Methodist church was on the mainland, while the
Roman Catholic church was on the island. Families often had to row across the tickle to get
to their respective places of worship. Today, there still stands
remains of the Roman Catholic church on the island
[8],
along with a cemetery
[9]
that has many weathered headstones.
Three Arms represents a storyteller's paradise. The place teems with
accounts of tragedy, happiness, great strength, prowess and humour.
One such yarn tells of the man who was Strong by name and strong by nature.
Uncle Solomon, as he was called, was of very large stature. At the age of 80, he was known to
have single-handedly cut and hauled a schooner's spar out of the woods from Saunder's Pond, an
incredible distance. This and many other great feats he was said to have performed. Impossible
they may seem, his fantastic feats were well publicized around the Green Bay area.
There is also a story of an old Irishman who had his grave prepared about
25 years before his death. On his tombstone he had inscribed that he died at the age of 73,
but actually he died at 85. For 30 years he had been a planter, for 20 years a sailor, and
for 50 years he entertained strangers and shipwrecked mariners at his home in Three Arms.
All together this adds up to a century. This man's headstone still stands today in the Roman
Catholic cemetery.
There are also stories of the great abundance of fish at Three Arms. Fish
were so plentiful, as one story goes, that Grandmother Wells and Grandmother Strong put out
a cod net in Green Bay one summer, and caught ten quintals of fish themselves.
The first population count of Three Arms was taken in 1845, when 29 people
lived there. This included 18 males and 11 females, living in four dwelling houses
[10].
From this point the hamlet grew, not just in population and housing,
but also in industry. It's high point came in 1884 when the total hit 102 people. It was from
this point that the settlement started its decline. There were only 47 inhabitants in 1921,
and the population decline continued until 1956 when the last people moved out.
The Wells and Batstone families were the last to move away, relocating to
Harry's Harbour and Jackson's Cove. They left on December 20, 1956, occasionally revisiting
during the summer months, but this practice also came to an end.
Natives of Three Arms have scattered through the years to all parts of the
world. The early migrants have gone to New Zealand, Wales, the United States and mainland
Canada. The most recent to leave, such as the Wells' and Batstones, uprooted their houses
and situated them in surrounding communities. It seemed that, when the Norris family left
with their business, there was no lifestyle for the people to depend on.
In any other part of Canada, Three Arms would undoubtedly be an artist's
paradise. Few places in Newfoundland still exist which possess the breathtaking scenery
which can be found in this deserted outport. Only the Methodist and Roman Catholic cemeteries
are still there to prove to future generations that the prosperous little area known as Three
Arms was once inhabited.
These few lines of poetry, which were written by one of Three Arm's
inhabitants, clearly describe the area's attraction:
There is romance in the moonlight,
There is magic on the sea,
There is beauty in the starlight,
Three Arms is the place to be,
Glorious sunsets, dreamy twilights,
All in perfect harmony,
Seem to blend the earth with heaven,
And fill one with great ecstasy.
My Notes:
[1] John Burge Wells (b. 18 Mar 1811, d. 23 Mar 1897).
[2] Solomon Strong (b. 12 Sep 1811, d. About Mar 1894).
[3] Elizabeth Strong (b. 22 Apr 1818, d. 19 Aug 1906).
[4] Jane Wells (d. 13 Apr 1888).
[5] John and Elizabeth Wells moved to Three Arms in 1841, followed soon after by Solomon and
Jane Strong.
[6] Nellie Estelle Wells (b. 15 Oct 1902).
[7] The Norris family was Roman Catholic; the Strongs were Methodist.
[8] The Roman Catholic church was no longer there in 1999.
[9] There are two cemeteries on the island, Methodist and Roman Catholic.
[10] Presumably: James Norris, Solomon Strong, William Vincent, and John Wells.
The Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador article about Three Arms :
http://enl.cuff.com/entry/82/8217.htm
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© copyright 1999 - 2000 by Charles G. Strong
Last Updated on December 14, 2000