Abstract

In August, 1610, Newfoundland's first official colony was established at Cupers Cove (now Cupids) in Conception Bay under the direction of John Guy. In the autumn of 1612, Guy and 18 other colonists set sail from Cupids into Trinity Bay in an effort to establish friendly relations with the Beothuk Indians. On 26 October, the colonists discovered a Beothuk camp on the shores of a 'great fresh water lake' about a mile inland from the bottom of Trinity Bay. The Russell's Point site is located on the western side of Dildo Pond in the community of Blaketown at the bottom of Trinity Bay. It was discovered in 1988 using information contained in John Guy's journal of his voyage and is generally believed to be the site visited by him on 26 October, 1612. Excavations were conducted at the site during 1994 and 1995 by the author. The results of these excavations combined with documentary evidence suggest that Russell's Point was a caribou kill site utilized by the Beothuk during the annual fall migration. Roughly 1,000 artifacts have been recovered to date and a high proportion of these are stone arrowheads typical of the protohistoric period. A small amount of European material has also been recovered, indicating that the Beothuks at Russell's Point had some contact with either migratory fishermen or colonists. The author will describe the results of the excavations to date and utilize archaeological data and documentary evidence in an attempt to better understand both the Russell's Point site and the Beothuk occupation of Trinity Bay.