The francophones of the region can trace their origins to Continental French fishermen who settled in the late 1800s and early 1900s, rather than the Québécois.

France contested ownership of Newfoundland from 1662 until 1713, when it ceded the island to Great Britain as part of the Treaty of Utrecht.

This period saw an influx of Breton, Norman and Basque fishermen to the region, though most of the activity was seasonal, and French settlement before the late 1800s was forbidden.

In the first half of the twentieth century, the west coast of Newfoundland was roughly evenly distributed with English-speaking and French-speaking families, mostly working within their own linguistic communities.

Families were grateful for the economic opportunities brought by the base, but transmission of French across generations dropped-off dramatically.

The absence of French-language education and the mandatory attendance of all children in English-speaking schools, as well as both radio and television programs in English, caused more recent generations to fail to master more complicated grammar and subject matter in French.

The presence of French was ignored by both governments, similarly to the Mi'kmaq populations, with there being no official position on the matter, but with the de facto policy of assimilation.

As a result of the absence of francophone education and religious teaching, Newfoundland French is now spoken by only a handful of elderly residents and is considered moribund.