Wynne, Edward

Governor of Avalon Colony, 1621-1625

This Welshman served as governor of the colony at Ferryland and was an important part of this attempt to introduce permanent settlers to Newfoundland. George Calvert, Lord Baltimore, called on Wynne to establish a colony at Ferryland, possibly having met him through William Vaughan. In August 1621, Wynne landed at Ferryland with 12 men.

With the cooperation of unseasonably good weather, Wynne and his men completed a large shelter by November and, before the end of the year, a stone kitchen with a room above it. By the time summer rolled around, a store room had been constructed and crops were in the ground. Because of the rapid establishment of the colony and Wynne's favourable, (and perhaps exaggerated), comments, a second group of colonists led by Daniel Powell was dispatched in 1622. This group included seven women, and its arrival in Ferryland brought the resident population to 32. After only the first couple of years, the colony already contained housing and other buildings, a palisade, a warehouse, a forge, a sawmill and a wharf. In 1623, the Province of Avalon was created when Calvert's grant was confirmed.

Despite the fact that Wynne had managed a successful colony at Ferryland and that the population had grown to 100 by 1625, he was replaced in that same year. The reason for his dismissal is not evident, but it was probably that his lack of experience in governing a colony made him unable to manage through difficult times. In addition, Calvert wanted to govern the colony himself at this time. After 1626, nothing is known of Wynne.

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