Smith, Harold. Interview about the Fowler House in Brigus.

• Main Authors: Webb, Megan, Barrett, Terra
• Other Authors: Smith, Harold
• Format: Audio
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: Migration/settlement; Houses; Smith; Harold; William George Spear; John (James).; Newfoundland
• Online Access: http://collections.mun.ca/cdm/ref/collection/ich_avalon/id/8914

Megan Webb and Terra Barrett interview Harold Smith about his familial relation to the Brigus J & G Smith company, his connection to the Fowler House, and historical research and records pertaining to the history of Brigus. 00:00 Start of recording; 00:01 How he came to contact us; 00:50 The story of the house as he understands it; 02:15 He talks about his family tree and ancestors from Teignmouth, England. He is the descendant of William George Spear Smith, who lived in Fowler House; 04:10 John and George Smith were the J & G Smith company in Brigus; 04:40 George was the sailor who went to Labrador for the fishery; 05:10 Brigus at that time was well known for its skippers, captains, etc.; 05:53 Talks about Nicholas Smith’s book, and that Nicholas was one of the captains that worked for J & G Smith; 07:50 An oral history description of the Fowler House that he suspects comes from Olive Cornick, who had a house in the Gullies of Brigus; 10:40 He had offered to buy the Fowler House from Richard and [Daisy] Sadie but didn’t get it; 11:37 Harold [Hal] Bart owned the other house that John [Jack], the other brother, lived in, which is the white house up from Fowler House that is now owned by Harold Smith; 12:08 The white house is still mostly original; 12:47 He reads out a document of the description of the house; 17:00 Nicholas Smith’s book states that in 1888 the J & G Smith business failed; 17:20 He shows a scan of an Indenture of Sale for the white house in 1883 between John James Smith and William George Spear Smith; 17:43 This house was owned cooperatively by the J & G Smith business, and he suspects that the Fowler House was the same; 18:01 The white house was sold in 1888 to a Mr. Samuel Edwards; 18:17 There are a lot of deeds in the binder of research he has in his possession regarding the land the Smith’s owned; 19:55 The houses were built by William Greene; 21:40 Aunt Olive’s thought that the lean-to attachment was made when the Smith’s had twins; 22:48 The Smith’s had 14 children and ...