Industrial heritage denied

What happened on that fateful night in the early hours of 3 February 1940 near what is today called Pioneer Street, Port Hope Simpson is inextricably bound-up with the history of Port Hope Simpson. Until the true cause of deaths is fully investigated by the R.C.M.P. Serious Crimes Unit then the history of the town can never be truly known and at the very least the town's people are being denied full knowledge of their own past. At worse, personal knowledge about what really happened is still being kept hidden in a cowardly sort of way.

Arthur Eric Williams b. 30.07.13, eldest son of John Osborne Williams, owner of the Labrador Development Company Ltd. based in Port Hope Simpson from 1934-48 and Erica Anitoff Williams b. 15.07.36 his daughter from Cardiff, Wales died in suspicious, acrimonious circumstances. The findings of the R.C.M.P. investigation in 2002 has still not established the cause of their deaths nor have they found whether or not foul play was involved. No police report about any Newfoundland Rangers' investigation into the deaths has come to light. Yet Clarence Dwyer, 18 was the Ranger on duty at the Port Hope Simpson Detachment when the deaths occurred. Neither has any medical report been found. Yet it was reported at the time that a doctor from Mary's Harbour attended to Olga, wife and mother of the deceased after she was rescued from the burning house.

Olga, who is still alive today and is now living somewhere in Canada, married one of her rescuers, Sid Wiseman . She complained that she had been cut off from all contact with the Williams family after the deaths. On the other hand. J. O. Williams was able to bequeath considerable funds after his own death.

A tombstone was built on the same spot where they had perished. It was erected on top of a concrete grave in which the bodies had been hastily buried by order of Keith Younge, the local manager of the Company.