Indian Bay (Parsons Point) is located in
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
.
Geography
Situated on the northwest arm of Bonavista Bay, Indian Bay was until the late 19th century the only mainland community located between Salvage and Greenspond.
['']Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador
''Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador'' is an encyclopedia commissioned by Joey Smallwood to capture the people, places, events and history of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Smallwood's view on the purpose of the encyclopedia was ...
''
History
Records show that Indian Bay was the only inhabited settlement in that region that was connected to the mainland part of the Island of Newfoundland until the 19th century. It was also known as Northwest Arm, and later for a period of time, as Parson's Point, after the surname of its first English settlers. Europeans first came to Indian Bay in the 18th century to fish for salmon. In 1720 George Skeffington was salmon fishing there and by 1786 there were eight salmon operations in the area. Permanent settlement began after 1800. The 1836 ''Census'' of Newfoundland records Indian Bay as having a population of five, William Parsons and his family. The population was slow in growing, and in 1901 there were 40 people living there. The main source of employment was three
sawmill
A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
s, and a
lobster factory was established before 1911. In 1921 the "International Power and Paper Co." arrived in Indian Bay and that same year a
school
A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...
was constructed. The peak of Indian Bay's population was in 1961 with 285 people; afterwards the population began to decline.
Indian Bay is well known for its sports fishing, mainly for Brook Trout and Atlantic Salmon. The community has a licensed salmon river called Indian Bay River, but locally known as, "The Brook", that runs through the town. Fishing is still a very popular sport in the area and with its many ATV and Snowmobile trails (old Bowater's woods roads), Indian Bay is a very popular destination for those that enjoy the great outdoors and everything it has to offer.
Demographics
In the
2021 Census of Population
The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...
conducted by
Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...
, Indian Bay had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Directory
- ''Hutchinson's Newfoundland Directory 1864-1865'' lists:
* Joseph Osmond, ship carpenter
* Phillip Parsons, ship carpenter
- ''Lovell's Newfoundland Directory'' describes Indian Bay as a small fishing community on the west side of Bonavista Bay, distant from Greenspond by 15 miles on boat. The 1871 population was 5. The directory lists one person:
* Adam Parsons, Fisherman.
[Lovell's Newfoundland Directory, 1871.]
See also
*
List of cities and towns in Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the ninth-most populous province in Canada, with 510,550 residents recorded in the 2021 Canadian Census, and is the seventh-largest in land area, with . Newfoundland and Labrador has 278 municipalities, including 3 ...
References
External links
* http://ngb.chebucto.org/
* http://www.ucs.mun.ca/~hrollman/index.html
* http://www.rootsweb.com/~cannf/bbnor.htm
Indian Bay - Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, vol. 3, p. 35.
{{Subdivisions of Newfoundland and Labrador, towns=yes, ICG=yes
Populated coastal places in Canada
Towns in Newfoundland and Labrador