If you ever thought the village of Neil’s Harbour looks like a fishing village in Newfoundland, you were right. There is a reason why they look the same.

Around 1814, the English and Irish settlers who were living in Newfoundland ran into hard times. They were very poor and sometimes did not have enough to eat. They began to spend their summers fishing near Neil’s Harbour.

John MacLeod was a businessman who had come to Cape Breton Island from Scotland with his parents. When he moved to New Haven, near Neil’s Harbour, he found hardworking Newfoundlanders who spent their summers in the area fishing. He encouraged them to move to Neil’s Harbour with their families. He made them an offer. He would help them move and provide supplies for their boats. In return, they were to sell their fish only to his store.

True to his word, he sent a boat to Newfoundland for the wives and families of the fishermen. In some cases, the boat even brought the fishermen’s houses! The houses were taken apart in Newfoundland, loaded on to the boat, and put together again at Neil’s Harbour.

Once they were settled at Neil’s Harbour, the fishermen found they had a problem. In places such as Cape North, the land was good enough for small farms. Families there could provide most of what they needed for themselves. But not at Neil’s Harbour. There was no land good for farming, so the men were forced to fish. Women tended one or two animals in front of their houses, but real farms were impossible.