Arthur Reginald Scammell, CM (February 12, 1913 – August 28, 1995) was a

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

writer. Scammell was born in

Change Islands Change Islands is an outport community in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The community spans two small islands of the same name which lie off the northeast coast of the island of Newfoundland between Notre Dame Bay and the La ...

, where he grew up and received his early education. He was a schoolteacher in several

Newfoundland outport An outport is the term given for a small coastal community in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador other than the chief port of St. John's. Originally, the term was used for coastal communities on the island of Newfoundland, ...

s during the 1930s. He left to attend

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

and did not live full-time in Newfoundland again until 1970, after his retirement from teaching. Scammell is perhaps best known for his songwriting, most notably, " Squid-Jiggin' Ground", which he wrote while still in

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, and ''The Six-Horsepower Coaker''. However, he also produced a significant body of work that was originally published in the magazine ''Atlantic Guardian'', of which he was also a co-founder. Through essays and stories, Scammell attempted to convey some of the positive aspects of life in Newfoundland outports, which, despite their disadvantages, he saw as providing a sense of community and personal satisfaction that larger centres lacked. A collection of Scammell's work was published as ''My Newfoundland'' in 1966. In 1987, he became a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. In 1977, he received his Honorary Doctor of Laws from

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

and, in 2011, he was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (for "Squid-Jiggin' Ground"). In 1985, the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council established an annual award for writers in his honour.

Bibliography

* ''From Boat to Blackboard'' (1987)

References

* O'Flaherty, Patrick, ''The Rock Observed'', University of Toronto Press, 1979. {{DEFAULTSORT:Scammell, Arthur Members of the Order of Canada Writers from Newfoundland and Labrador 1913 births 1995 deaths McGill University alumni

See also

Bibliography

References