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Merasheen history 1

Adapted from Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador, pp 511-513

(incorporated 1963; pop. 1966, 271). Spread haphazardly around a snug harbour on the southwestern tip of Merasheen Island, the resettled community of Merasheen was once home to almost 400 people. While a local tradition holds that it was named after two Frenchmen (Mere and Jean) who discovered and settled the area in the 1600s, other sources suggest Merasheen was first known as Mer aux Chiens ("ocean of the seadogs or seals").

Merasheen history 2

At 35 km in length and up to 9 km wide, this largest of the Placentia Bay islands was once home to hundreds of people. Its position in the centre of the Bay, between Long Island and Isle Valen, made it an ideal location for prosecuting the region's lucrative fishery.

Merasheen Island is believed to have been occupied by French fishermen as early as the sixteenth century. People of British descent began to settle in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Several communities were

Family Connections

Check out the Family Connections link on the main menu for our database of ancestry and family connections for Merasheen! The material is from the extensive genealogy work of Jack Pitcher and Peter Walsh and will open in a separate browser page!

Currently there are two collections: Merasheen-connections and the Walsh family with information on more than 5000 individuals with charts, lists, reports, photos and calendar!