~ The Origins of Our Past ~
The community of Rider's Harbour was the first permanent settlement on Random Island. It was settled in the 1760's, and people lived there for about a hundred years, right up until the 1860's.
Rider's Harbour was visited by fishermen from Trinity in the early 18th century, and many people from Ireland and England were married at Rider's Harbour between 1770 and the 1830's.
The next communities to be settled were Deer Harbour, Silldown and Thoroughfare. Actually, many different people visited all the various coves around Random Island, but Deer Harbour and Thoroughfare weren't permanently settled until about 1830.
In 1884 there were 679 people living on Random Island, and then, in 1981 the population had reached 1,537 people.
Any maps and historical information used on the Random Island site can be found in "Random Island Pioneers" by Wilfred B. W. Martin