Captain Jack Randell was born in Ship Cove, now Port Rexton,
Trinity Bay, on January 1, 1879. He fished of the Labrador coast with his
father until age sixteen when he became an able seaman on a ship commanded by
his brother and engaged in the South American trade. He went on to fight in the
South African Boer War in 1899.
After the war, he got his captain’s ticket and his work at
sea took him too many places, including West Africa and Russia. In World War
One, he served with the Royal Naval Reserve, chasing submarines about England.
He got into the rum-running business in 1922 when Prohibition was in full
swing. He was in command of the schooner I’m Alone and loaded with booze destined
for the States when he was chased and sunk by the US Coast Guard in 1929. He
said he was in international waters when he was sunk, the Coast Guard
disagreed. The case was referred to international arbitration and took six
years to settle, proving Captain Jack was right. He went on to serve in the Second
World War. He died in 1944. His story is like a thrilling movie, filled with
the daring deeds and fascinating adventures of a fantastic Newfoundland
