Introduction . . .Gowan Brae is situated northwest of Souris in
Lot 44. It was probably named for John MacGowan, and early Kings County sheriff and mill operator on the Souris River. There was a school district established here in 1865 and a post office served the area from ca. 1886 until 1913.
A brief history . . .
John Cambridge brought out a number of tradespeople in 1820 and settled them at the head of the Souris River to work in his shipyards. He dubs the Souris area as a whole, New Bristol.
The Governor Ready, a barque of over 500 tons was launched at the head of the Souris River in the Cambridge yards in 1825. The vessel was named for the Governor of the day, who had recently toured the shipyards.
Images from the Past & Present . . .
old Gowan Brae School | 
The Lizzie Cameron
was built at the head of the Souris River in 1874.
She was lost at sea in 1882, after colliding
with an iceberg, 150 miles off the coast
of Newfoundland. |
Copyright
Waldron H. Leard
