" Discover the Heritage of the Baccalieu Trail "
1675 Arthur Varder, his wife and mother and the widow of Joan Clay are listed as planters.
1677 - Census mentions that planters Varder and Clay are keeping thirty-four head of cattle, twenty-two sheep and nine hogs.
1729 Newfoundland was divided into Judicial districts; Bay Roberts was included in the Carbonear Judicial District.
1800s (early) The power of settling trivial disputes is given to three of the oldest and most respected residents, and stocks are set up.
1810 Robert Pack starts a business and is the first recorded merchant. Mr. Fryer joins Mr. Pack a short time later.
1816 James Hickson, a resident missionary, is appointed by the Wesleyans to Bay Roberts and Spaniards Bay.
1818 First Church of England Mission is established.
1820 The first schooner (about 60 tons with a crew of 20 men) is used.
1827 Stocks set up in early 1800s are removed.
1832 First Church of England Church is constructed.
1845 Newfoundland is divided into educational districts and boards; Bay Roberts is placed under the Board at Harbour Grace.
1850 - A Shipyard is opened by C.A. Dawe.
1860 During Christmas time, Isaac Mercer is killed by mummers; a reward is offered for the discovery of the murderers and three men are arrested but afterwards released.
1864 Charles and Azariah Dawe form a business in Port de Grave but move to Bay Roberts shortly afterwards because of better business opportunities.
1872 Two schools are opened; Church of England and Methodist.
1872 (April 28) The Huntsman of Bay Roberts is lost in the Strait of Belle Isle, with 44 men, most of whom are from the town, including Captain R. Dawe.
1874 (April 2) Captain I. Bartlett and 21 men are killed during the boiler explosion on the Tigress. (Most of the men are from Bay Roberts).
1877 Rev. J. Lister, first resident minister is appointed; prior to this the minister had visited from Port de Grave.
1881 (September 7) First court session is held at Bay Roberts.
1887 First Salvation Army Corps in Newfoundland is at Bay Roberts.
1900s (early) Captain A. Dawe, Lewis Dawe and W.H. Greenland begin to send their ships across the Atlantic to Spain and Portugal full of fish, they return with stores of salt.
1905 1906 The Court house is moved to the Crossroads and located in a building which housed the telegraph office, lockup, customs office and police residence.
1906 The Outlook, a newspaper is founded.
1909 The firm of Charles Dawe is dissolved because of his death.
1909 The Outlook is sold to C.E. Russell, who published it under the name Bay Roberts Guardian until 1949.
1913 A new Court house building is constructed.
1913 Bank of Nova Scotia opens in Bay Roberts.
1915 A movie house is opened on the second floor of Thompsons Drug Store; where movies where shown until the late 1950s.
1921- 1944 Students attend St. Matthews School.
1944 The Anglican school and United Church school come together under the combined school system.
1948 The Amalgamated school is built.
1949 William Dawe and sons Limited plant is destroyed by fire; it is one of the largest wood-working firms in Newfoundland employing almost 150 men.
1959 The association for the Help of Retarded Children establishes a school.
1964 Ascension Collegiate is built in Bay Roberts to accommodate all the Anglican students from Upper Island Cove to Brigus.
1964 Bank of Montreal opens in Bay Roberts.
1965 Bay Roberts has 10 wholesale concerns, 7 schools, 8 churches, banks, supermarkets and insurance offices.
1965 Bay Roberts is the largest salt-fish producing center in Newfoundland with two large fish plants along its harbour front. Bay Roberts fisheries are handling about 60,000 quintals of fish a year for export to European, Brazilian and Caribbean markets. Keefes Poultry Farm is daily producing 1,000 eggs and has more than 20,000 heads of poultry.
1965 The boundaries of the municipality of Bay Roberts are extended to include Coleys Point, most of Country Road and most of Shearstown.
1969 Royal Commission on Education and Youth is implemented to accommodate all the Protestant students.
1970s About 50 crews from the general area leave for Labrador each summer on CN boats and a few in Bay Roberts East still carried on a local fishery.