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The Newhook family are the greatest family of shipbuilders in the history of Newfoundland. In this monograph, are listed the eleven of them that I have established to have been "master shipbuilders", from either reliable traditions or written records, or both.

There was evidently a committee of the House of Assembly in 1858 on local shipbuilding. In it's issue of January 25, 1858, "The Patriot", a St.John's newspaper, reports the evidence given before the committe by the Hon. John Munn, merchant and shipowner or Harbour Grace, ending with this sentence:

"...No country can offer such an exhibition of genius and native talent, as our Kearneys, Stevensons, Newhooks, Curtises, Pittmans, etc., have already produced in the science of shipbuilding"

INTRODUCTION

When I was a small boy at Elliston, Trinity Bay, the grand old lady of the place was Mrs. Robert Tilly. Her husband, the first resident supplying merchant, had died as far back as 1872. I recall her speaking to me about three times: I had even come to know that she used to say three things about herself...

1. She was born at New Harbour, Trinity Bay, to the name of Catherine Newhook
2. Her father, and his father, were shipbuilders in Newfoundland
3. Her paternal grandfather was a Frenchman

In the course of research, I have contacted several elderly Newhooks, but all of generations younger than Mrs. Tilly's.

CHARLES NEWHOOK (the first) 1752-1799

I call him progenitor Charles Newhook (first), because he is the immigrant from whom all subsequent Newhooks in Newfoundland have sprung, and to distinguish him from those of them also named Charles. He was brought out from Europe to Newfoundland about 1777, by the mercantile firm of Benjamin Lester, to be it's master shipbuilder at Trinity, Trinity Bay. George Lester-Garland, of England, has told me thet Newhook is mentioned in the surviving Lester letterbooks of the eoghteenth century. He was a young man when he came settle at Trinity, and he must have brought his wife with him, as the Trinity church register has no entry of his marriage. His wife's maiden surname is unknown today. He was the grandfather of Mrs. Tilly.

This Charles Newhook (first) was of French extraction, but whether he was a native-born Frenchman is now unknown. But I am inclined to think he was a native Englishman of near French extraction, as it would be very unusual for a firm to bring out to Newfoundland either as a fishery youngster or as a tradesman, anyone except of English or Irish birth.

At Trinity, or elsewhere in that bay, there were born all his now traceable eight children, between 1778 and 1799, six sons and two daughters. Of the sons, three became master shipbuilders in Trinity Bay; Charles (second) William, and James. Of them, the elder two, Charles and William, were old enough at their father's death to have received some shipbuilding training from him.

Whether Charles (first) resided and worked at Trinity continuously, or wintered occasionally for timber cutting and-or shipbuilding at New Harbour or elsewhere in the Bay, is not known today. The Trinity Anglican baptism register, in which all his childrens' entries are found, records "Trinity Bay" as the birthplace of the elder two, and "Trinity" for te others. But one must not assume from this that these two children were not born at Trinity, seeing that the term "Trinity Bay" was often used by the registering officiants to include both Trinity and other places in the extensive parish, I myself assume that all eight children were born in Trinity, and that Charles Newhook (first) resided and worked only at that place.

Charles Newhook (first) died at Trinity relatively Young. The epitaph on his headstone, in St.Paul's churchyard there, reads as follows...

"In memory of Charles Newhook, who departed this life November 18, 1799, aged 47 years. Also of his daughter, Sarah Newhook, who departed this life November 7, 1798, aged 2 years and 9 months."

CHARLES NEWHOOK (the second) 1778-1839

Born at "trinity Bay", assumedly Trinity, in 1778, eldest child of Charles Newhook (first). This man probably succeeded his father as master shipbuilder at Trinity for the Garland firm (formerly the Lester firm) after his father's death. He married his first wife nee Catherine Newell, of Trinity at that place in 1804.

About 1806, he moved to New Harbour, where he resided, as as master shipbuilder for the Garland firm and leading inhabitant, until about 1832, when (with his second wife) he moved back to Trinity, to be again Garland's master shipbuilder there.

He had four children by his first marriage, one being a son named Charles Newell Newhook born at New Harbour in 1806

Pages 155-56 of "The Methodist Magazine" London, for February, 1819, carry a long extract from the diary of Rev. William Ellis, thenMethodist minister at Trinity, describing his missionary visitation of places in the bay in 1817. Mr. Ellis records that, on arrival of Mr. Garland's boat at New Harbour, in which he had taken passage from Trinity,

...we were met in the harbour by Mr. Newhook, in his pleasure boat, and conducted to his house, where we were hospitably entertained. In 1815, the inhabitants built a neat little church..."

The church stood for many years, predecessor of the present Anglican church. It's notice board is preserved in the Anglican Cathedral's museum, St.John's. The end portion of the board that carried the name of "Charles Newhook, Architect" is broken off and lost. Years ago, I saw a photograph of the board, ending with these three words, which indicate that Charles Newhook (second) was the church's designer and, no doubt, master carpenter.

In Accession no. 253, at the Newfoundland Archives, there is a manuscript "List of all Ships Surveyed in the port of Trinity, between February 4, 1835, and December 17, 1841, by Robert Bayly, Surveyer of Navigation". There are listed five vessels, built or rebuilt at Trinity, with the name of C. Newhook given as the re-builder of one, the [?] "Bee", of 40 tons, and that a C. Newhook senior, listed as the builder of three new brigs and a schooner named "George Robinson", "Garland", "Victoria", and "Dart", all owned by the Garland firm and of the average size of 146 tons.

The foregoing C.Newhook and C. Newhook, Senior, are obviously Charles Newhook (second).

In some St.John's newspaper, probably "The Evening Herald", there is a lengthy article, evidently composed in 1893 when the narrator, Captain Andrews, was 87, and now reprinted entitled " Biography of Captain Henry Andrews, of Port de Grave". He was a noted sealing master, and lived for some years in Trinity about 1835. Paragraph five reads: " The next year, 1830, I went to the ice in a brig called the 'Beaver', built at New Harbour by John Newhook, 150 tons burthen... ".

Now, there is no John Newhook as a master shipbuilder in or about the year 1830, and the above name is a mistake, in Andrews' memory, for Charles Newhook (second) or William Newhook (Trinity).

Charles Newhook (second) was in St.John's in the spring of 1839, when he fell from a vessel's mast and was killed. "The Times", a city newspaper, in it's issue of May 15, 1839, has the following news item: -

"Died at this place Monday last of concussion of the brain, accasioned by an accidental fall while engaged in the duties of his proffession, Mr. Charles Newhook, aged 65 years, for upwards of thirty years master shipbuilder in Trinity and neighbourhood for Messrs John Bingley Garland and Co. Mr. Newhook was a most skillful, active and persevering man, and his death is sincerely regretted by all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance."

"In the afternoon of yesterday, the coroner was called in to hold an inquest on the body of Mr. Charles Newhook, S., of Trinity, who was accidentally killed by falling from the mast of a wrecked vessel at the South Side of this harbour, a verdict to this effect was returned by the jury. The deeased Mr. Newhook was well known and much respected both in this community and in Trinity Bay."

No names or particulars are known to me of other vessels that Charles Newhook, second, master-built or repaired.