PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
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C.O. 885
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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
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Harbour and its advantages.
Road to St. John's
Petty Harbour, Bee Map 1.
Harbour.
Roads to St. John's. See Map 1.
Freshwater Bay. See Maps 1 and 2.
Road to St. John's.
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Facilities for landing at Freshwater Bay.
Deadman's and Black Head Bays.
Quiddy Viddy
Barbour.
Bee Map 3.
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year 1761, a French expedition suddenly appeared and landed a force which, after a toilsome march, during which they were compelled to leave some of their guns by the wayside, succeeded in capturing the capital and compelled the surrender of its very feeble garrison. In 1796 the French again appeared in this bay, apparently with the intention of again landing a force to attack St. John's, but finding it in a complete state of preparation, the plan was abandoned, and the expedition departed after capturing a few prisoners and burning the village and shipping.
The harbour runs in about 2 miles to the north-west, and is a mile wide at the entrance. It is somewhat exposed, and there is a considerable ground-swell after heavy gales from the eastward, but the anchorage is good and roomy, and ships may remain in safety. One of the greatest advantages of this anchorage is that when St. John's harbour is frozen up or beset with ice the bay is often clear, and vessels may anchor and communicate with the capital by land.
The main road to St. John's, a distance of 18 miles, is in excellent order, and suitable for all arms. After ascending to the high ground at the head of the bay it is tolerably level to the capital. The ground on each side of it is hilly, broken, and swampy, and in places covered with young fir trees and stunted timber.
26. Petty Harbour.
An anchorage which has been used by an enemy to land troops is Petty Harbour; this is about 4 miles south-west of Cape Spear, and 9 miles by road from St. John's.
In 1705 a French expedition landed here and made an attack on the forts of the capital, but failed to capture it.
The harbour is situated at the head of an open bay, in a narrow gully between rocks. It is about 100 yards wide and 400 in length, with an anchorage of 18 feet at low water. It is an excellent fishing station, and there is a settlement of nearly 1,000 persons.
There are two roads leading from Petty Harbour to St. John's, one running west and joining the main Bay of Bulls road, about 3 miles from the head of the harbour, at a distance of about 8 miles from the capital, and the other, taking a north-westerly direction, joins the main road about 2 miles from the town. This latter is the best, for not only is it the shortest and most direct road, but it is also better suited for the movements of troops, as the country on each side is very open and less intersected by ponds and lakes. Both roads are in tolerably good order, and after ascending to the high ground overlooking the harbour are comparatively level.
27. Freshwater, Deadman's, and Black Head Bays.
Between the south head of St. John's Harbour and Cape Spear there are three small bays exposed to the sea, but affording shelter to small vessels during the prevalence of south-westerly winds. These are called Freshwater, Deadman's, and Black Head Bays, and are respectively 2, 3, and 34 miles to the southward of Fort Amherst.
The main road from St. John's to Cape Spear, crossing the Southside Hills, is fairly good, and quite practicable for troops. It passes within a short distance of the heads of these bays, and may be easily reached by the existing tracks connecting them with it. Between St. John's and Freshwater the road is exceedingly steep, and the country on cach side broken and very mountainous, but between Freshwater and Cape Spear it becomes more level and little better than a cart track.
Freshwater Bay is a very favourable point for an enemy's boats during foggy but calm weather, to land troops to operate by land against St. John's, and it must, therefore, always be considered as a very weak and vulnerable point in the defences.
could
There is a rough road from the head of the bay connecting with the main road from Cape Spear to St. John's, by which, after a march of an hour and a-half an enemy reach a most favourable and commanding position on the Southside Hills, within easy range of the town and harbour, from whence the place could be set on fire in a very short time.
These remarks on the dangers of Freshwater Bay apply equally to landings effected at the two other bays referred to, but with these latter the distances to march will be greater, and the facilities for landing not so good.
28. Quiddy Viddy Harbour.
About a mile from the entrance to St. John's Harbour to the northward is a small fishing harbour called Quiddy Viddy, which in calm weather small boats may enter
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for the purpose landing troops. It is within 1,000 yards of the crest of Signal Hill, and has always been considered as a vulnerable point in the defences, consequently the small two-gun battery which has been previously referred to at paragraph 12 was constructed to guard it.
There are two very good roads leading from it to St. John's, one on each side Roads to St. John's. of Quiddy Viddy Lake.
29. Logey Bay.
To the northward of Quiddy Viddy and between 4 and 5 miles from the capital is a Logey Bay, small indentation in the coast called Logey Bay, where it might be possible in very
See Map 1. fine weather to land a force, but it is very much exposed, and it is scarcely possible that an enemy would venture to attempt a landing when there are so many other places far more favourable within an easy march of the town.
There are two good roads leading from this place to St. John's, one of which joins Roads to St. John's the road from Outer and Middle Coves, and the other, keeping more to the eastward, passes
at the foot of a range of hills, from which it commands the whole distance until it joins the Quiddy Viddy road near the village of that name.
30. Portugal Cove.
See Map 1.
At the time the French were creating such havoc at Bay of Bulls in 1796 (referred Portugal Cove. to at paragraph 25), considerable alarm was occasioned by the report that they intended to land a force at Portugal Cove, about 9 miles to the north-east of St. John's on the eastern shore of Conception Bay, from which they were to march on the capital. If they had at that time any designs in this direction, it appears strange that they did not take advantage of so favourable a point for such an undertaking, for after Torbay there is scarcely any harbour in the Avalon Peninsula so well suited for a base of operations for an enterprising Its advantages as s enemy. It is, however, probable that at that time the roads, if any existed, were in such landing place to an a state that it was impossible to move troops by them, and therefore the French preferred to fix upon a harbour at double the distance from St. John's, in order to take advantage of the road communicating with it. This is now changed; the road from Portugal Cove is one of the best in the island; consequently the value of this point to an enemy has greatly increased, and the necessity for the utmost vigilance on the part of the garrison in this direction becomes greater than ever.
The cove is the deepest indentation on the eastern shore of Conception Bay, and, with certain winds, not a very secure anchorage, but an enemy's force would experience very little difficulty in effecting a landing at almost any time.
onomy.
The road to St. John's is a very good one, and practicable for all arms; it ascends Road to St. John's. steeply for the first 2 miles from the cove, and for the remainder of the distance is tolerably level. The country on each side to within 3 miles of St. John's is very similar to that in the neighbourhood of the other roads in the peninsula, viz., rugged, broken, and swampy; it is intersected with ponds and lakes, and in places covered with the usual stunted fir trees, but on approaching within 3 miles of the town the ground is open and under cultivation.
There is a small cross-road to Torbay which Icaves the main road about a mile outside Crossroads to Torbay Portugal Cove, and another to the same point half way between the cove and St. John's.
Several favourable positions for disputing an enemy's advance may be found near the Positions. main road, but they are principally between the cove and Windsor Lake, and at least 4 miles from St. John's.
In the spring of 1878, when three Russian steamers were on this side of the Atlantic, it was under consideration how and at what point they could have surprised St. John's, and Portugal Cove appeared to be one, if not the most, convenient place from which to effect such surprise.
It will be seen from the annexed plan (No. 1) that by making Cape St. Francis light from the seaward at about 6 P.M. they could have reached Portugal Cove by 9 P.M., unknown to the authorities in St. John's. Fifty men thrown on shore and pushed up the road for 200 or 300 yards would effectually have prevented any intelligence being sent to St. John's. A force of 800 or 1,000 men could have been quickly landed, and by midnight have reached the narrow neck of land between Windsor Pond and Newfound Pond, and, if not checked at that point, could, after cutting off the water supply of the town, have been in the occupation of the stone buildings overlooking the town by 2 A.M. The steamers baving landed this force could steam round Cape St. Francis and be in position off St. John's Harbour at the same time, 2 A.M., ready to receive the forced
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