Travels in Canada (St John, New Brunswick)

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After picking up our rental car in Maine, we headed for St John, New Brunswick. We took the scenic route on Highway 1 and crossed over into Canada at St. Stephen. Then it was only about 100 kilometers to St John. It is the oldest incorporated city in Canada and contains a population of about 70,000 people. The city sits at the mouth of the St John River on the north shore of the Bay of Fundy which is known for having the highest tides in the world.

We stayed in the downtown area of the city and all of the attractions that we wanted to see were within walking distance. The fist place we visited was the Loyalist House. The young woman who showed us around was dressed up in the clothing worn during that period. The house was owned by a sea captain who raised a family here and built on to it as his fortunes improved. The loyalists were American colonists who were loyal to England during the American Revolution. They were referred to by the patriots as tories. All of them fled to England, English territories in the Carribbean, and the country that is now known as Canada. Their property in the American colonies was confiscated. Benjamin Franklin's son was a loyalist and they were estranged from each other for the remainder of their lives due to their political differences.

The New Brunswick Museum is located in a shopping mall and contains three floors with exhibits. The top floor contains paintings and miscellaneous items whereas the second floor contains natural science exhibits. The bottom floor is the one which we found the most interesting. It contains information and exhibits about the industrial development of St John and the province since the 19th century. It covers, among others, the timber and shipbuilding industries and has machinery from that era. There is a printing press, a machine used in beermaking, drill presses, and various manufacturing machinery. There's even a section which shows how a wooden ship was built. This museum contains an extensive variety of exhibits from the area's past and is extremely interesting to those who enjoy the history of that period. The museum has a rule that prohibits photos from being taken inside the museum. I don't know why this rule exists as there is really no reason to have it. One would think that state secrets are being stolen if photos were allowed.

When we were ready to leave St John, we drove across the St John Harbour Bridge and headed for the ferry which runs over to Digby in Nova Scotia. On the way, we stopped at Carleton Martello which is located just minutes from the ferry dock. This is a fortification that was erected by the British in the nineteenth century and is similar to those in Quebec City and other places. This one was erected in order to protect the city from an American invasion as the newly formed country had shown agressive tendencies toward British possessions in North America. What makes this one unique is that there is an additional top to it and this was added during the second war war in order to search for German submarines or other seaborne craft which might enter the Bay of Fundy. Another point I would like to make about the martellos is that they became obsolete some time after they wre finished. They were built to withstand a bombardment by cannon, however, advances in artillery technology made them susceptible to destruction by more advanced artillery of that period. This one is huge and stands 40 feet high with thick walls. On the day that we visited it, the structure was covered with the fog drifting in from the harbor which made it look all that more sinister. The young tour guide inside was very knowledgable about its history.

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