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Governors' Game: Faces and Facts - Sheet #1
Below are the pictures and clues for 9 of the 18 governors used in the
Governors' Game. When playing the game, you see the clue and the picture but
you have to pick the name out of a list. So take this opportunity to learn
the faces and facts about each of these governors.
Captain Henry Osborne (1729-31)
He was Newfoundland's first naval governor. In order to raise the funds required
to construct courthouses and jails, he imposed a tax on all fishermen. The levy
was upheld by the British Board of Trade even though the migratory fishermen
protested against its implementation.
Captain John Byng (1742)
Through his investigation of colonial trade, he discovered that the island's
commerce was monopolized by a few merchants who bought up all the imports and
resold them at inflated prices. His recommendation that these practices should
be discontinued was basically ignored.
Captain George Brydges Rodney (1749)
As a junior officer, this man first came to Newfoundland in 1738, where he spent two months
visiting coastal communities in order to settle disputes and collect information on the
fishery. He later became a baron.
Captain Hugh Palliser (1764-68)
This man followed Thomas Graves as governor of Newfoundland. In 1775, he succeeded in getting the
Act for the Encouragement of the Ship Fishery passed by the British parliament.
Vice-Admiral Sir Erasmus Gower (1804-06)
As governor of Newfoundland, this Welshman encouraged expansion of St. John's by permitting
land cultivation and residential building in the area around the harbour traditionally
reserved for the fishery. Furthermore, he partially reformed the mercantile credit system
and set up the first free schools in the city.
Admiral John Holloway (1807-09)
Labrador was re-annexed to Newfoundland mainly because of the efforts of this Newfoundland
governor. He believed this to be the most effective method of suppressing the illegal
American fishery taking place off the Labrador coast.
Admiral Sir John Thomas Duckworth (1810-12)
Upon becoming governor, he sought to improve the colony's educational and judicial systems,
as well as to provide protection for the Beothuk. David Buchan's failed 1810 expedition
to establish friendly contact with this aboriginal group was ordered by this man.
Captain Sir Thomas John Cochrane (1825-34)
As the first civil governor of the island, this man occupied the seat of governor for
nine years - longer than any previous person. During this period, there was mounting
pressure to formulate a local legislature. Despite his opposition to the move, Representative
Government was granted in 1832 and the first local legislature was opened the following year.
Captain Henry Prescott (1834-41)
He was Newfoundland's last naval governor. After a controversial duration in office, he
eventually resigned when the Colonial Office refused to accept his proposed reforms to
the Newfoundland constitution.
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