Meadows of Memories: An Interpretative History of Colinet Island

Colinet Island is an island in St. Mary’s Bay, Newfoundland. It was initially used to stage the seasonal fishery in the 1600s, mainly by the French. It was settled by the Irish in the late 1700s and abandoned in the 1960s during resettlement. The author has chosen to write an interpretative history; that is, creating a story around available facts. It is hoped that this style will provide a more entertaining read, particularly for descendants of those who lived on Colinet Island. Also included are brief histories of each family that lived there with a focus on their first years on the island. The history of Colinet Island is a microcosm of the history of Newfoundland with some notable differences. Where appropriate, the author has set local stories against regional and global events to give some context and perhaps some motivation and meaning to those stories.