Formal Recognition Type

Municipal Heritage Building Structure or Land

Heritage Value

Bloody Point Burial Ground has been designated a municipal heritage site by the Town of New Perlican due to its historic and aesthetic value.

Bloody Point Burial Ground has historic value as it is one of the earliest known burial grounds in New Perlican. As such it is a physical record of New Perlican’s history. It is located in an area that wasn’t farmed or fenced in living memory. 19 stones marking as many as 10 graves have been identified. Some of the stones are posited to be footstones rather than headstones. A ground-penetrating radar survey revealed the presence of east-west aligned burials. The markers are made of local grey slate and sandstone, except for one made of marble located some distance from the stone markers. The existing grave markers are set in two rows facing the sea.

New Perlican is one of the oldest fishing stations in Trinity Bay. The Hefford Plantation, situated across the harbour from Bloody Point, was settled by William Hefford and his family in 1675. From the available historical evidence and the form of the markers, archaeologists who surveyed Bloody Point Burial Ground concluded that it might date to the 17th or early 18th century. They think it likely predates St. Mark’s Anglican Cemetery, another municipally designated cemetery with 300 visible markers. The church associated with that cemetery, also called St. Mark’s, was dedicated in 1832. Unlike St. Mark’s Anglican Cemetery, which has many inscribed stones dating from the 19th century, the stone markers in Bloody Point Burial Ground do not have any surviving inscriptions.

Bloody Point Burial Ground has aesthetic value due to its environmental setting. Situated at the western entrance to New Perlican Harbour, Bloody Point is a smooth rock sloping down to the water’s edge. The Point provides an expansive view of New Perlican Harbour and the waters of Trinity Bay. Additionally, Bloody Point can be seen from many vantage points in the community.

Source: Town of New Perlican Regular Council Meeting Motion #2022-071, June 30, 2022.

Character Defining Elements

Those elements which contribute to the site’s historic and aesthetic value including:
-original grave markers;
-positioning of grave markers;
-grassy groundcover;
-view to and from the burial ground from a variety of vantage points;
-location, orientation and dimensions of the burial ground.

Community

New Perlican

Municipality

Town of New Perlican

Civic Address

Bloody Point

Construction (circa)

1675 - 1832