Howley: Located between the eastern head of Grand Lake and the western head of Sandy Lake, east of Deer Lake, Howley is primarily a logging settlement.

Through out this book the name "Howley" appears many times, however, there is not just one Howley but several, in fact there were 13 children of Eliza Burke and Richard Howley, who had emigrated from Tipperary, Ireland, to start a small business in Newfoundland.

Of the seven sons, the two that are most often referred to in this particular book are James Patrick Howley (1847-1918; geologist and author), and his older brother Michael Frances (1843- 1914; historian and Archbishop of St. John's).

The community of Howley is named after J.P in honour of his work exploring and mapping the area, with specific attention to the coal seams along the shores of Grand Lake.

His explorations were undertaken in 1879 and the following year he and his partner A. G. Bailey were contracted to survey the area for railway construction which reached the area in 1894.

It was shortly around that time, in the late 1800s and early 1900s that the town was settled. It is believed that he actually never lived in Howley, though.

In addition to his geological work, according to the material included in the ENL, Howley was also a renowned historian: Probably his most outstanding literary accomplishment was his publication, in 1915, of his lifetime research and study of the Beothuk, the native inhabitants of Newfoundland who had become extinct by 1829, The Beothucks or Red Indians.

This was a monumental work and gathered into one volume as much knowledge of this unfortunate tribe as had been recorded or discovered to that time. The author made no claim that the book contained all that would ever be known about the Beothuk, but it has served scholars ever since as the main source of information about them; little has been added to that knowledge since.

It may well be an indication of Howley's devotion to preserving what was known about the Beothuk that the financing of the printing was undertaken by himself.

The Anglo- Newfoundland Development Company Limited assisted in some measure by pre- purchasing 100 copies of the book at five dollars apiece. However, all solicitation was entirely his own responsibility.

The town of Howley had a population of 205 in 2016; this figure reflects a 7.2% decrease from the 221 of 2011.

Grand Lake: Located on the interior of the island of Newfoundland, 24 km (14.9 mi) southeast of Corner Brook, and even though it has a presumptuous name, in reality it is very small compared to the "titans" of Labrador.

It should be noted, however, that it is the largest lake on the island of Newfoundland. Someone however must have thought it to be pretty grand, but who is unknown.

Even with its small size it does rank as fourth in the province. It has an area of only 543 km2 (210 mi2). It is 100 km (62 mi) long and its maximum width is 10 km (6.2 mi).

It has a maximum depth of approximately 300 m (980 ft) and its shore extends for 283 km (176 mi). This lake could be also called a reservoir, as it was created in 1924 when the Main Dam on Junction Brook was constructed but it is known as a lake.

According to ENL sources, the first recorded description of Grand Lake is that of geological surveyor J. B. Jukes, who had been told by an old fisherman about a branch of the Humber that comes out of a large pond in the east which stretched far to the southwest almost reaching St. George's Bay:

When Jukes reached St. George's Bay he hired a Micmac guide who knew the "Grand Pond" and arranged to be taken there. Jukes records in his Excursions that on August 30, 1839, "We... caught our first sight of the Grand Pond.

And a beautiful sight it was; a narrow strip of water, widening as it proceeded to about two miles [3.2 km] lay between bold rocky precipices covered with wood, and rising almost directly from the water to a height of 500 to 600 feet [150-180 m] . . .

the pond stretched directly from us for the first six or seven miles [10-11 km] towards the eastsoutheast, when it curved gradually round towards the north, enclosing the end of a lofty island, and the water passed out of sight between the hills".

Jukes continued up the lake with his guide and discovered a coal seam on the northeast shore, which was further explored by Alexander Murray and J.P. Howley, who found the seam not to be commercially viable".

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/Howley