South Brook was not listed as a community until the 1940s, although history documents suggest it may have been in existence as a winter community as early as 70 years prior.[1]
South Brook has historically had a strong logging industry and at one time there was also a rabbit-canning factory in town.[1]
The area is rich in Beothuk and Mi'kmaq history and artifacts have been recovered by local residents which only solidify this history. Rowsell's Hill, a prominent hill which rises as a backdrop to the town, was named for an early settler who died to the Indian band at the time. He is known to have caused much trouble for them because of his dislike for natives and this led to his death.[2]
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, South Brook had a population of 420 living in 202 of its 243 total private dwellings, a change of -12.9% from its 2016 population of 482.[4] With a land area of 8.72 km2 (3.37 sq mi), it had a population density of 48.2/km2 (124.7/sq mi) in 2021.[5]
