Saint John, New Brunswick

Saint John is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick and the oldest incorporated city in Canada. In 2001 it had a population of 69,661 (metropolitan population/conurbation 122,678).

History

Predated by the Maritime Archaeic Indian civilization, the area of the northwestern coastal regions of the Bay of Fundy came to be inhabited by the Passamaquoddy Nation several thousand years ago, while the Saint John River valley north of the bay became the domain of the Maliseet Nation.

Related Topics:
Passamaquoddy - Maliseet

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The mouth of the Saint John River was first discovered by Europeans in 1604 during a reconnaissance of the Bay of Fundy undertaken by French cartographer Samuel de Champlain. Champlain was assisting an expedition chartered by Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts, which resulted in a French settlement 100 kilometres west at Île-Ste-Croix and was subsequently moved across the bay to Port-Royal the following year. The day upon which Champlain sighted the mighty river emptying into Baie François (as the Bay of Fundy was then called) was St. John The Baptist's Day, thus the name for the river (Fleuve Ste-Jean, or St. John River).

Related Topics:
1604 - Samuel de Champlain - Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts - Île-Ste-Croix - Port-Royal - St. John The Baptist's Day

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A permanent French presence wasn't established at the site until several decades later as the French colony of Acadia was developing. The area of Acadia along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy was largely inhospitable to early French settlers who followed Champlain and de Monts' lead by opting for the Annapolis Valley on the bay's southern shores, however the strategic location at the mouth of the St. John River came to be fortified by Charles LaTour in 1631. The river valley saw limited French commerce as several Acadian communities were established upriver, most notably at Point-Ste-Anne (present-day Fredericton). The Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 saw control of the area of Acadia south of the Bay of Fundy (present-day peninsular Nova Scotia) pass from France to Britain, while the area north of the bay, including the St. John River valley and Fort LaTour, remained in a much-smaller Acadia which included Île-Ste-Jean (present-day Prince Edward Island) and Île-Royale (present-day Cape Breton Island).

Related Topics:
Acadia - Annapolis Valley - 1631 - Fredericton - Treaty of Utrecht - 1713 - Nova Scotia - Britain - Prince Edward Island - Cape Breton Island

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During the Seven Years War, British troops seized Fort LaTour and the surrounding area in 1758 and renamed the fortification Fort Frederick. The same war which saw Britain seize control of Acadia and New France, merged the remaining portions of Acadia under the existing colony of Nova Scotia. Several decades later, Fort Frederick was destroyed during the American Revolutionary War and Fort Howe was built nearby at the insistence of newly-arriving Loyalist refugees. The large numbers of Loyalists in the area of Nova Scotia north of the Bay of Fundy saw success in 1784 by petitioning the Crown to divide the colony of Nova Scotia, creating the new colony of New Brunswick.

Related Topics:
Seven Years War - 1758 - American Revolutionary War - Fort Howe - Loyalist - 1784 - New Brunswick

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The Loyalist-dominated communities of Parrtown and Carleton with a combined population of 14,000 developed around Fort Howe and both towns were amalgamated by Royal charter to become the City of Saint John the following year in 1785, making it the first incorporated city in British North America (present-day Canada). A reconstruction of Fort Howe sits on the original location overseeing the river and harbour entrance from a hill top.

Related Topics:
Royal charter - 1785 - British North America - Fort Howe

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During the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, Saint John's location made it a probable target for American attacks, thus several military forts were constructed, namely Fort Dufferin and one of Canada's sixteen Martello Towers.

Related Topics:
American Revolutionary War - War of 1812 - American - Martello Towers

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The Irish potato famine of the mid-1800s saw Saint John's largest and most influential immigrant influx occur, with the government forced to construct a quarantine station and hospital on Partridge Island at the mouth of the harbour to handle the new arrivals. These immigrants changed the character of the city and surrounding region from its Loyalist-Protestant heritage with their Irish-Catholic tradition. Schools and hospitals soon followed denominational lines.

Related Topics:
Irish potato famine - 1800s - Quarantine - Partridge Island

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Saint John became the province's leading industrial centre during the 19th century, fostering a shipbuilding trade that lasted until 2002, in addition to being a major forestry and manufacturing centre. Much of the city's shipbuilding industry was concentrated on the mudflats of Courtenay Bay on the city's east side; a Saint John shipyard built and launched the famous sailing ship Marco Polo from Courtenay Bay.

Related Topics:
19th century - 2002 - Mudflats - Courtenay Bay - Marco Polo

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As a result of this industrial development and the city's key location for railways and servicing the triangle trade between British North America, the Caribbean, and the United Kingdom, Saint John was poised to be one of Canada's leading urban centres. For the majority of the 1800s the region had a greater population than Halifax, Nova Scotia and even Toronto, Ontario, however a disastrous fire in 1877 destroyed a large portion of the central business district; some historians have argued that this fire, coupled with the decline of the "golden age" of sail and the disappearance of wooden sailing ships, conspired in a way that Saint John never fully recovered. It should be noted that the city has expanded continuously throughout the decades since the fire, albeit not at the same rate of growth.

Related Topics:
Triangle trade - British North America - Caribbean - United Kingdom - 1800s - Halifax, Nova Scotia - Toronto, Ontario - 1877

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During the First World War, Saint John became an important transshipment point for the British Empire's war effort. The Second World War saw the port decline in importance due to the U-boat threat which saw Halifax's protected harbour offer improved convoy marshalling, however Saint John's manufacturing industries expanded considerably during this time, notably the production of veneer wood for De Havilland Mosquito bomber aircraft. On account of the U-boat threat, additional batteries and search light facilties were installed around the harbour and on Partridge Island on the west side of the harbour and at Red Head on the east side of the harbour.

Related Topics:
First World War - British Empire - Second World War - U-boat - Veneer - De Havilland Mosquito - Partridge Island

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Saint John's first airport was located north of the central business district at Millidgeville. At the time, this location on a plateau overlooking the Kennebecasis River was predominantly a summer cottage area, which was used by local residents to escape the coastal fog from the Bay of Fundy. On May 19, 1932 Amelia Earheart landed at the Millidgeville airport during her solo trans-Atlantic flight. The next morning she took a copy of the Saint John Telegraph Journal newspaper with her on the next leg of her journey to Harbour Grace, Newfoundland from where she continued flying to Europe. The current Saint John Airport was developed in the post-war and is located in the eastern part of the city, whereas the former airport property at Millidgeville has been redeveloped into a subdivision.

Related Topics:
Bay of Fundy - May 19 - 1932 - Amelia Earheart - Telegraph Journal - Harbour Grace, Newfoundland - Europe - Saint John Airport - War

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