Hall of Fame

1995 Hall of Fame Inductees

THE BLACKHEAD CREW
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The Blackhead Crew of 1904 stands among the giants of Regatta History. Yet, the memory of that great crew and their achievement has all but faded from public consciousness. Very few people today are even aware that the tiny community of Blackhead ever participated in the Royal St. John's Regatta.

Blackhead was an unlikely community to compete at the Regatta. According to the Daily News of August, 1904 there were only a half dozen families at Blackhead. Yet for the decade starting with 1904 they sent crews to the Regatta. The Regatta spirit was strong in the community. In those days crews generally did not practice either long or hard for the Regatta. But the rowers from Blackhead would row from their community to Quidi Vidi Harbour. From there they would walk to Quidi Vidi Lake to practice and become familiar with the race course. On Regatta Day the entire community would set out in boats at 6 am for Quidi Vidi Village. They carried with them a supply of food for a traditional type boil up at lakeside. Although, they were few in number, their spirit was apparent at lakeside during the races. They provided a strong and loud cheering section for their men, and regularly waded out into the water to greet the crew after they rowed in over the finish line.

The small band from Blackhead had much to cheer about on Regatta Day 1904. This was just three years after Outer Cove set the famous 9:13 record. It was the era when Outer Cove, and fishing communities like Torbay, Middle Cove, Logy Bay and Petty Harbour put strong crews in the Regatta.

When the little boats from Blackhead tied up at Quidi Vidi Harbour before 8 am it was overcast and they did not know what to expect from the weather. However, the clouds dispersed, the sun shone brilliantly and by the time the races started it was an ideal day, similar to Regatta Day of 1901 when Outer Cove rowed into history.

As usual, betting was heavy at lakeside. The favoured crew in the Fishermen's Race was the crew from Outer Cove. Participating in that race were four crews: Blackhead in the Togo; Petty Harbour in the Doctor;Logy Bay in the Red Cross and Outer Cove in the Blue Peter.

The next day the Daily News reported, "It was generally felt the Blue Peter would carry off the Palm and few would bet against her, however; but the victory fell to the Togo (Blackhead) which was only considered in the running for second place."

Not only did Blackhead outclass the favourite Outer Cove crew by two boat lengths but recorded the significant and outstanding time of 9:21 1/5. Many observers impressed by the performance of the Blackhead men suggested they could have beaten the 9:13 record. However, coming up the Pond their pace slowed to wave to their supporters on Shore. This was an outstanding time even for that period. Most times in that era were in the 10 minute range.

However, the true measure of Blackhead's greatness lies in the fact that their time of 1904 remained the second best time during the reign of the Outer Cove 9:13 from 1901 to 1981. Approximately, 1,000 crews competed in Regattas during this 80 year period and the crew from Blackhead stood at the top second only to Outer Cove.

Later that day only two crews faced off for a championship race. Outer Cove hoped to regain its lost pride by winning this contest over the crew from Blackhead. When word spread among spectators that Mike Healy had a sore hand (rowed so hard in the Fishermen's Race that his hand bleed) the betting again shifted in favour of Outer Cove. There was even some doubt that Blackhead would row.

According to press reports the race was not a disappointment. The two crews turned the buoys together and were neck to neck coming up the Pond. Blackhead gained a few feet on Outer Cove and maintained this close lead to the finish. For the second time that day, and this time under trying conditions, Blackhead made another excellent time-9:24. This too, remained a remarkable time over the next 80 years of Regatta History. The Daily News referred to the injured Blackhead rower. The paper said that by the finish of the race Healy,"... was in excruciating pain."

For their victory the Blackhead Crew was awarded silver medals and a coat each from the Newfoundland Clothing Company. Members of the crew were:
A.G. Williams,Cox
M.Healy,stroke
G.Cook
M.Healy
J.Healy
W.Healy
J.Cook.

In 1905 the competitive spirit was still strong between Blackhead and Outer Cove. These were the only two crews competing in the Fishermen's Race that day and Outer Cove were again the favourites. Yet, Blackhead took the lead from the start and remained a half boat length ahead until turning the buoys. They pulled ahead and won the race by three boat lengths. Their time an impressive 9:40 415 and a very good time even in those days. For this win the Blackhead Crew were awarded gold medals and two dollar gold pieces. The two crews were scheduled to compete in the championship but several Blackhead rowers became very ill and the crew was forced to withdraw. Outer Cove rowed for time only and recorded a time of 10:30 2/5.

In 1906, G.Lewis replaced Williams as cox. This time they rowed in the Red Lion and again won the Fishermen's Race winning the prize for the best time of the day 9:34. The Daily News commented the next day that if Blackhead had been steered better they would have recorded a better time. There was no championship race in 1906. It had been on the program but was dropped by the Committee.

Blackhead rowed for another six or seven years but did not win any races. It appears the community was too small to sustain crews over the long haul as other fishing communities were able to do and Blackhead dropped out of participation in the Regatta. The feat of Blackhead in that 1904 Regatta remained a part of the oral folklore of Regatta History but in time faded completely. Today, only a handful of people at Blackhead have any memory of the great Blackhead rowing crew of the early part of this century. I put them forward for admittance to the Regatta Hall of Fame so that future generations will know and appreciate the contribution of the tiny community of Blackhead to the Royal St. John's Regatta.