Arthur Scammell

Who was Arthur Scammell?

Arthur Reginald Scammell, CM was a Newfoundland and Labrador writer.

Scammell was born in Change Islands, where he grew up and received his early education. He was a schoolteacher in several Newfoundland outports during the 1930s. He left to attend McGill University and did not live full-time in Newfoundland again until 1970, after his retirement from teaching.

Scammell is perhaps best known for his songwriting, most notably, The Squid-Jiggin' Ground, which he wrote while still in high school, and The Six-Horsepower Coaker. However, he also produced a significant body of work that was originally published in the magazine Atlantic Guardian, of which he was also a co-founder. Through essays and stories, Scammell attempted to convey some of the positive aspects of life in Newfoundland outports, which, despite their disadvantages, he saw as providing a sense of community and personal satisfaction that larger centres lacked.

A collection of Scammell's work was published as My Newfoundland in 1966. In 1987 he became a Member of the Order of Canada.