Fishermen from Portugal, the Basque provinces of France and Spain, Northern France (perhaps Normandy) and West Country England are known to have frequented eastern Newfoundland during the first half of the 1600s, some as early as the first decade of the 16th century.
Introductory page for the historical documents relating to Ferryland, giving explanations for the selction of documents, spelling and punctuation, and correct citation.
John Cabot may have discovered an ocean route from Europe to North America, but this information did little to clarify the geography of eastern Canada.