 The oldest known European contact was made over a thousand years ago when the Vikings briefly settled in L'Anse aux Meadows.Five hundred years later, European explorers (John Cabot, Gaspar Corte-Real, Jacques Cartier and others), fishermen from England, Portugal, France and Spain and Basque whalers (the remains of several whaling stations have been found at Red Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador) began exploration and exploitation of the area.Early European (primarily from England, Ireland and France) settlement in Newfoundland was confined to the coast.