Southport: Known originally as Fox Harbour (the name change occurred in 1914), Southport was settled around 1830, making it one of the earliest, surviving communities in the area.

Before settlement, it was one of the many winter tilting sites, according to the SWAHS, "for the communities such as Trinity and Old Perlican", and an early summer fishing station "for Hant's Harbour, New Perlican and other communities on the south side of Trinity Bay".

It has been reported that a Rev. John Smithies, a Methodist minister from Hant's Harbour visited seasonal fishermen as early as June, 1829 and it is believed that this is the first record of any type of religious service in the area.

The name Fox Harbour is believed to have come from the nearby island, Fox Island, where foxes were in abundance.

While there were a number of other communities in the Southwest Arm, but over time they have been abandoned and the families have moved to larger "resettlement towns" - gone are Clay Pitts, Elias, Garrett's Cove, George's Cove, House Cove, Island Cove, Long Island, and Thomas' or Thomas' Point.

Given the actual length of the arm, it seems amazing that there were, at one point, twenty six, communities, albeit in some cases very small ones, but given the proximity to the fishing grounds, the abundance of good trees for logging, and the availability of land that was vacant and just waiting for the building of new homesteads, one can see why.

Used with permission from "Uncovering the Origin of 1001 Unique Place Names in Newfoundland and Labrador" 2021 Jennifer Leigh Hill

Address of this page: http://nl.ruralroutes.com/SouthportNL