Hall of Fame

1994 Hall of Fame Inductees

John Coaker
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John Coaker rowed for approximately 10 years on Quidi Vidi - (1882 - 1891).

The Evening Telegram records indicate he rowed in the Sculling race in 1882, when he placed second to Allan Barnes.

He won the sculling race in 1883. There appears to be no mention of this race in 1884, (which may be attributable to the drownings of 3 Torbay men that year.)

In 1885 he again won the sculling race, and was later challenged to another race by a Nova Scotian, Thomas Leahy, to a distance of three lengths of the Lake. (2 1/4 miles.)

The challenge to race was issued by Leahy and his supporters through the local paper, The Evening Mercury.

The record indicates this was more than a challenge to race by Leahy. It was indeed a challenge by a foreigner to a local. (This challenge is mentioned in Jack Fitzgerald's book "Up the Pond", Creative Publishers, St. John's Newfoundland, 1992) and an article in The Evening Telegram by Michael Harrington, 29 December 1986.

Coaker won that race by 20 boat lengths, in the time of 13 minutes, 5 seconds. When we keep in mind the race was 3 lengths of the pond, the time he rowed is remarkable by itself.

In the records in the Evening Telegram (Newfoundland Archives) indicate he rowed in the Sculllng race from 1886 - 1891 in the (Native Built) category.

In the records of the 11st of prizes won by the Different Boats for these years, John Coaker's name was always mentioned, however it is unknown what these prizes were for.

We can only assume, they were prizes for finishing in the top 3 place of the races.

There is no question, John Coaker also rowed in other boats during these years, as a member of the Total Abstinence Society; however the accounts of the regattas did not list the crews as we do today.

John Coaker was more than a rower! After his 1885 victory over Thomas Leahy, from Nova Scotia, he became very well known around St. John's, and entered municipal politics in 1910.

Be was a councillor from 27 June 1910 to 1 July 1914 when the entire council was replaced by Commissional government. (Provincial Archives)

During this time he was one of the councillors who approached Sir Edgar Bowring to pay off the outstanding loan of Sir Edward Morris. Sir Edward has paid the equivalent of $12,000 for the land on the northern banks of Quidi Vidi from a land developer by pledging his Beaconsfield Estate as collateral.

A picture of John Coaker and these councillors with Sir Edgar hangs in Bowring Park Bungalow, Bowring Park.

John Coaker

John Coaker is a Regatta legend. However, his total accomplishments will never be chronicled because comprehensive records were not kept of his involvement in the St. John's Regatta. Yet, sufficient information has survived to show that Coaker was an extraordinary rower of the 19th century.

In assessing Coaker, or any nominee from the 19th century it must be recognized that the primary source of information is newspaper records. These represent the only surviving reliable witness accounts of each Regatta. Together they resemble a diary. Each year beginning with the first Regatta, reporters visited lakeside and penned summaries of the events witnessed during the day. During this era little attention was paid to the individuals rowing. Instead, published reports most often listed the names of winning boats without naming crew members.

Considering this practice, any individual rower who gained prominence for involvement in 19th century Regatta's had to be exceptional. The name John Coaker did emerge as one of a few who had become household names and Regatta legends by the turn of the century.

Scull races were very popular during the early Regatta's. National and international scull racing contests took place. These races received attention from our local press. This may account for the popularity of our own local scull race. Repeatedly, visiting seamen to the port of St. John's would challenge local rowers to a scull race. Sometimes, the foreign seaman would be a champion in his own country. A contest between a local rower and a foreign sculler was viewed as a great patriotic event.

Coaker first rowed on the pond in 1882. In 1884 he took part in the Regatta and won four scull races; a testimony to his endurance and dedication to the sport of rowing. Coaker's skill as a rower was compared to Richard Squires. Squires had thrilled Regatta fans in 1874 by defeating the Nova Scotian scull champion, George Ferguson. The win sparked celebrations in the city and the carrying of Squires on the shoulders of fans through city streets. He was acknowledged as Newfoundland's best.

In 1885, after another win and with Coaker's reputation as Newfoundland's best sculler growing, a challenge was issued by another great Nova Scotian sculler, Thomas Lahey. As in the case of Squires and Ferguson, Newfoundland's pride was on the line. These matches, in the public mind went far beyond a simple rowing contest. Coaker won an easy victory over the Nova Scotian. He covered the two and a half mile course length in l9min. 5 sec and defeated Lahey by 20 boat lengths.

Fans carried Coaker and his boat on their shoulders through the city and over to Southside Road where he lived. There was celebrating, and Coaker was the toast of the town. The famous John Foran, a Regatta builder himself, treated Coaker to a week of free dinners at his Atlantic Hotel.

John Coaker's skill, perseverance and dedication to rowing is reflected in the fact that during a ten year career on the pond he participated in 35 races. In one Regatta he rowed seven races. In addition to being a famous sculler, Coaker also rowed with several crews in the Regatta's of his era. While surviving records fail to supply information on these crews they do indicate that he had accumulated many rowing awards during his career on the pond. Coaker's success in getting elected to the St. John's City Council in 1910 is attributed to the popularity he earned as a rower in the St. John's Regatta.

After his rowing days he participated as an active Regatta Committee member. He always had a love for the Regatta and he was one of the City Councillor's who enlisted the help of Sir Edgar Bowring in saving the north bank from a private developer. It is significant that during the era when little attention was paid by the press to individual rowers, the name John Coaker emerged as a Regatta legend.

{ The nominator of John Coaker contacted me in January requesting that the nomination be resubmitted to the Hall of Fame Committee. He asked if I would include any information I had to support this nomination and I have complied by preparing the above. }