Minimal amount -2. (M).
A small quantity. (GR).
Jan 5th, ice meadows 10m long, 14′ high, Cape St. John. (GR).
Northern ice arrived St. John’s Mar 1st, departed Mar 5th. (GR).
At Ferryland, no drift ice seen for the winter. (JW in GR).
Strait of Belle Isle free about the last of May, very little ice upon the coast, bad weather, frequent rain. Fishery very good on the coast of Newfoundland, bad on the Labrador coast. (CH in GR).
Greenland Weather Report: Winter of 1880-81 was the mildest ever experienced in that locality. No ice formed in the bays and fiords and little snow fell. On the Ivigtut coast ice ran early beginning in January making it 2½ – 3 months earlier than usual. May be due to strong westerly gales ……. . “Owing to these facts there will be but little ice met with or on the Banks of Newfoundland this season, but in the following year very large quantities may be expected throughout the North Atlantic” (June 22 issue of NYMR.).
From Twillingate Diary: Jan 29, Harbour full of slob; ice in and out frequently during Feb. and March; seems to be more around in April but with many sealers coming and going; 21st, vessels out in the ice drifting south; Not much mention of ice after beginning of May except for Jun 1 – a great deal of ice off. (#509).
Early issues of NYMR almost totally illegible.
January/February
Jan — Arichat [ by cable ] British Barque “Journal” from Georgetown for Baltimore, cut through by ice and sunk in the Harbour. (LL).
Feb 11 Extraordinary mildness of weather continues. (Newf.).
Feb 11 SS “Scandinavian” , arrived here from Glasgow today reports that yesterday afternoon she passed large fields of ice 30 miles south of Whitehead. (LL).
Feb 11 SS “Newfoundland” ,arrived here today from St. John’s (NFLD) reports having passed through 40 miles of scattered Gulf ice off Scatterie.
Feb 22 SS “George Shattuck”, arrived here from St. Pierre Miquelon, reports very much ice SE off Scatterie and extending a long distance, had experienced very heavy weather. (LL).
Feb 28 – SS “Austrian” from Glasgow, which arrived at Halifax reported that from 2 pm of the previous day until 3 am the next morning , she passed 10 miles of ice , and also passed through large fields of slab ice. (LL).
March
Mar ** SS “Isabel”, from Pernambuco supposed lost, Cape St. Mary’s. (LL).
Mar 1 Schooner “Romo” drifted from her moorings and was totally wrecked , every boat in the harbour was destroyed. The harbour is packed with drift ice and navigation has completely stopped. (LL).
Mar 4 SS “Curlew” arrived from Westward but couldn’t get in because north-easterly had blocked Narrows with ice.(Newf.).
Mar 4 Harbour completely blocked in slob ice the last few days by easterly winds severely restricting movement of vessels. Barquentine “Racer” jammed off Black Head. (PL).
Mar 10 Bonavista Bay full of slob. (PL).
Mar 10 The sealing fleet of 23? large steamers left St. John’s. Prospects have never been better. (SS).
“Leopard” returned 22nd(March) with 15,000 seals. Seals are abundant in Bonavista Bay. (NYMR).
Mar 22 6 sealers jammed in Green Bay. (PL).
Mar 25 All but 3 of the sealing steamers got free, taking seals around Patridge Point and between Horse Is. and land.(Newf.).
Mar 25 All points of the coast from the SW point of Anticosti to Father point report very little ice. (LL).
Mar 27 SS “Northern Light” drifting in the ice in the Straits of the Northumberland for nearly a fortnight, arrived at Pictou yesterday. She landed her passengers safely, but on account of heavy drift ice was unable to land any freight. She left for PEI this morning. (LL).
Mar 31 Sealers at work along northern shore of White Bay. (PL).
April
Apr 6 The harbour of North Sydney is now quite free of ice. (NYMR).
Apr 6 The seal fishery is reported to be doing well. (LL).
Apr 7 … a small sealing craft was lost near Twillingate a few days since, two for a long distance had experienced very heavy weather. (LL).
Apr 8 Taking seals from the land around Bonavista. (Newf.).
Apr 12 The ice is now passing down the River St. Lawrence, and navigation is being resumed. Several schooners have made the journey to Anticosti and back. (LL).
Apr 14 SS “Habsburg” 4721’N 4854’W saw an iceberg about 80′ high and large fields of drift ice. (NYMR).
Apr 18 Light SW wind; mild weather. The Gulf is clear of ice. (LL).
Apr 19 SS “Donan” 4325’N 5225’W passed an iceberg. (NYMR). Apr 26 SS “Valetta” from Cow Bay which arrived here this evening, reports the Straits of the North Bay are still full of ice. A narrow passage was found 20 miles W of Cape Ray. There was 90 miles SE of Scatterie. (LL).
Apr 29 Very little ice of Channel to interfere with shipping operations. (PL).
May 1 Ship damaged by ice off Nova Scotia. (NYMR).
May 2 Immense fields of ice reported off Cape Breton Island. (MWR).
May 4 Norw. Barqentine “Immanuel”, for Sydney has put in today. She reports that six days ago she encountered small pieces of ice, and the following morning was surrounded by heavy ice. (LL).
May 7 SS “Canima” from St. John’s, reports that she encountered a large field of ice off Scatterie… Also saw several icebergs grounded off the coast of Newfoundland. (LL).
May 10 Bark “Gananoque” collided with iceberg 4m from Bird Rocks, Magdalen Is. (MWR).
May 11 SS “Valleta” from Montreal was stuck in ice on the coast of Cape Bretton West… (LL).
May 12 SS “Canonbury”, from Liverpool for Havana (coals), put in with bows damaged by ice. (LL).
May 13 SS “Valetta” from Montreal and Sydney C.B. arrived in St .John’s encountered large ice fields in the mouth of the St. Lawrence; the vessel was jammed in the ice for three days…. (LL).
May 22 SS “Razoni” collided with heavy ice floe 40m SE of Gull Island off Cape John. (MWR).
May 27 SS “Olympia” passed several small icebergs in 4255’N 5045’W. (MWR).
May 27 An immense ice pack with numerous icebergs of gigantic size, was reported from St. John’s, Newfoundland, as passing the eastern coast of that island in a southerly direction, having probably reached latitude 4630’N on that date. (MWR).
Jun 7 “Reuben J. Hart” hit ice and sank 20m ENE of C. St. John (see Jun 16). (JPA).
Jun 16 Steamers “Nestorian”, “Mississippi”, “Riverdale”, and “Quebec” reported large quantities of ice in the Straits of Belle Isle, compelling the last 2 to take more southern passage. (MWR).
Jun 16 Schooner “Reuben”, J. Hart, master, bound from Conception Harbour for Labrador, struck huge ice floe 2m ENE of Gull Island, off Cape John. (MWR).
Jun 17 Issue: Schooner “R J Hart” lost in the ice off Cape John. (Newf.).
Jun 20 Schooner “Trust” reported heavy ice floes as far south as Gravois Islands, off the mouth of White Bay; also an impenetrable wall of ice along the Labrador coast, turning out to the eastward in latitude 53N. (MWR).
Jun 21 SS “Iceland” reported heavy ice floe along the south coast of Labrador. Whole fleet of Newfoundland fishing vessels were arrested in their course northward by a heavy body of ice extending as far south as the White Bear Islands. (MWR).
From account of schooner “Mary M.”: Jun 9, left St. John’s; 11th, passed Cape St. Francis 30m, saw ice running all night; 12th, ice close to Western Gray Islands, running through loose ice; 13th, off Hare Bay, running through strips of ice; 15th, passing through Indian Tickle, met SS “Iceland” on way home. (#400).