Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
The parish began as part of a much larger Conception Bay mission which was established by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in 1765. The first member of the society in the region was the famous Rev. Lawrence Coughlan who served the area from Harbour Grace.
In 1826, the mission of Port de Grave was established to serve the area from Bay Roberts to Brigus. For the next ten years Coley's Point, along with Bay Roberts, was part of Port de Grave Mission under Rev. Charles Blackman. The mission of Bay Roberts was established in 1837 to encompass the settlements from Coley's Point to Upper Island Cove. Although Bay Roberts was only now receiving the status of a separate mission, its residents already had their own church in Mercer's Cove. The first St. Matthew's Church had been started in 1824 and consecrated in 1827. The missionary society continued to supply clergymen until the Parish of Bay Roberts was created in 1906.