Fredericton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fredericton
City
The City of Fredericton
From top to bottom; left to right: Fredericton skyline, Pedestrian bridge of the Nashwaak River, Christ Church Cathedral, New Brunswick Legislative Building
Flag Coat of arms Logo
Nicknames:  Freddy, Freddy Beach
Motto(s):  "Fredericopolis, silvae filia nobilis"  (Latin) "Fredericton, noble daughter of the forest"
Fredericton Location in New Brunswick Show map of New Brunswick Fredericton Location in Canada Show map of Canada
Country	Canada
Province	New Brunswick
County(s)	York, Sunbury
Metropolitan area	Greater Fredericton
Erected	1786
Incorporated	1848
Named for	Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
Government
• Type	Fredericton City Council
Area
• City	133.93 km2 (51.71 sq mi)
• Metro	5,745.41 km2 (2,218.32 sq mi)
Elevation	20-100 m (66-328 ft)
Population  (2021)
• City	63,116
• Density	471.3/km2 (1,221/sq mi)
• Metro	108,610
• Metro density	17.7/km2 (46/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Frederictonian
Time zone	UTC−04:00 (AST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−03:00 (ADT)
Postal code(s)	E3A, E3B, E3C, E3E, E3G
Area code	506 and 428
NTS Map	21G15 Fredericton
GNBC Code	DAFMJ

Fredericton (/ˈfrɛ.drɪk.tən/; French pronunciation: [fʁedeʁiktœn]) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, also known by its Indigenous name of Wolastoq, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the dominant natural feature of the area. One of the main urban centres in New Brunswick, the city had a population of 63,116 and a metropolitan population of 108,610 in the 2021 Canadian census. It is the third-largest city in the province after Moncton and Saint John.

On 1 January 2023, Fredericton annexed parts of five local service districts; revised census figures have not been released.

An important cultural, artistic, and educational centre for the province, Fredericton is home to two universities, The University of New Brunswick and St. Thomas University, the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design, New Brunswick Community College and cultural institutions such as the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, the Fredericton Region Museum, and The Playhouse, a performing arts venue. The city hosts the annual Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival, attracting regional and international jazz, blues, rock, and world artists. The city also hosts the Garrison Night Market through the summer months which showcases many local vendors and artists and musicians. Fredericton is also an important and vibrant centre point for the region's top visual artists; many of New Brunswick's notable artists live and work there today. Fredericton has also been home to some great historical Canadian painters as well, including Goodridge Roberts, and Molly and Bruno Bobak.

As a provincial capital, its economy is tied to the public sector; however, the city also contains a growing IT and commercial sector. The city has the highest percentage of residents with post-secondary education in the province and the highest per capita income of any city in New Brunswick.

History

The earliest known inhabitation of the area dates back 12,000 years, according to archaeologists, evidenced by recent finds. Excavations unearthed a campsite with firepit and more than 600 artifacts including stone tool fragments and arrowheads.

The area of the present-day city of Fredericton was first used for seasonal farming by the Maliseet peoples. Maliseet cultivated food plants including: beans, pumpkins, Jerusalem artichokes, ground nuts, and maize on the river banks and islands of the Saint John River. In the mid-18th century their principal village of Aucpaque was located several kilometres upriver from the site of present-day Fredericton.

French colony

The first European contact was by the French in the late 17th century. Joseph Robineau de Villebon received a land grant and was appointed governor of Acadia. During King William's War, Villebon built Fort Nashwaak on the north side of the Saint John River, at the mouth of the Nashwaak River. For most of the war, Fort Nashwaak served as the capital of the French colony of Acadia; forces from here conducted numerous military raids on English settlers on the New England/ Acadia border.

Siege of Fort Nashwaak (1696)

French and English hostilities continued along the border. Within weeks of an attack of French and Indigenous forces launched from Fort Nashwaak on Pemaquid, Maine (present day Bristol, Maine), the New Englanders struck back. In 1696, an expedition under command of Major Benjamin Church set out to destroy Fort Nashwaak (present-day Fredericton). Commander Villebon had been alerted and prepared his defences. On 18 October, the British troops arrived near the fort, landed three cannons, and assembled earthworks on the south bank of the Nashwaak River. For two days gunfire was fiercely exchanged, with the advantage going to the better-sited Acadian guns. The New Englanders were defeated, with 8 soldiers killed and 17 wounded. The Acadians sustained losses of one killed and two wounded.

After Villebon's death in 1700 and a devastating flood that destroyed several French farms in the area, the fort was abandoned. The Fredericton area was first permanently settled and named Pointe-Sainte-Anne (later often anglicized to "Ste. Anne's Point") in 1732 by Acadians fleeing Nova Scotia after the British took over the territory (1710). Their townsite was on the south side of the river, approximately a mile upriver from Fort Nashwaak.

Raid on Ste. Anne's Point (1759)

The British captured Ste. Anne's Point during the expulsion of the Acadians, burning the settlement to the ground in the St. John River Campaign (1759) during the French and Indian War, the North American front of their Seven Years' War in Europe against France.

A 1762 settlement attempt by the British was unsuccessful due to the hostility of local Acadian and Aboriginal populations. These settlers eventually erected a community downriver at what is today the town of Maugerville (pronounced "majorville"). However, three fur traders settled permanently here in 1768.

The flag of Fredericton

British colony

In 1783, United Empire Loyalists were settled in Ste. Anne's Point after the American Revolution, having left their properties in the United States. They were granted land in compensation in British North America by the Crown. Many died during the harsh and long first winter in Fredericton. The dead were buried in what became the Loyalist cemetery, which is still found on the south bank of the Saint John River. When spring came, more Loyalists left the new settlement to take up land grants in other areas.

When New Brunswick became a separate colony from Nova Scotia in 1784, Ste. Anne's Point became the provincial capital, winning out over Parrtown (present-day Saint John) due to its central inland location. This made it less prone to American attack from the sea. A street plan was laid out to the west of the original townsite, King's College (now the University of New Brunswick) was founded, and the locale was renamed "Frederick's Town", in honour of the second son of King George III of the United Kingdom, Prince Frederick Augustus, Duke of York. The name was shortened to Fredericton shortly after the city became the official provincial capital of New Brunswick on 25 April 1785. Thus, in a period of less than three years, the area of Fredericton went from being a sparsely populated region to being the capital of the new colony of New Brunswick.

The same attributes that made Fredericton the capital city also made it an ideal spot for a military installation. Many of the original military buildings downtown still stand, and are now tourist attractions.

Canadian era

The building constructed to house the colonial-era legislative assembly in 1788 was destroyed by a fire in 1880. Two years later, the present Legislature Building was constructed.

The first major expansion of the city occurred on 1 July 1945 when it amalgamated with the town of Devon. Today the city of Fredericton comprises Fredericton proper, and the boroughs of Silverwood, Nashwaaksis, Barker's Point and Marysville, which were incorporated into the city in 1973.

The commemorative brass cenotaph plaques were stolen in October 2015, and were replaced by replicas cast by an Amherst foundry called Liberty Enterprises.

Historic Marysville

One of the communities amalgamated into Fredericton in 1973, Marysville, has a unique and distinctive history of its own. Marysville is located on the Nashwaak River, a tributary of the Saint John River, just north of pre-1973 Fredericton. The community is distinguished by its 19th-century mill and historic buildings, which include 19th-century company houses and buildings patterned after those of British industrial towns.

Marysville can be described as a prime example of a 19th-century mill town. In the 1830s a sawmill was built on the site of Marysville by two local entrepreneurs. However, the mill frequently changed ownership and never showed a profit. Alexander Gibson (popularly referred to as "Boss Gibson") turned this situation around and built a prosperous industrial town. In 1883, under the direction of Gibson, construction began of a cotton mill, which was state-of-the-art for its time. "Boss" Gibson named the company town that grew up around the mill Marysville in honour of his wife.

In 1908, having faced financial problems, Gibson sold the mill to a Montreal-based company which, in turn, sold it to Canadian Cottons Ltd. After World War II, foreign competition devastated the mill's business; jobs moved offshore and it ceased operations in 1954. There were numerous attempts to re-open the mill; however, in 1980, it closed its doors permanently.

The mill was renovated and re-opened in 1985 for use as provincial government offices. The mill remains the dominant feature in the Marysville skyline.

Central to Marysville is Alexander Gibson Memorial School, or AGMS. It was constructed in 1926. Additions to the school occurred in 1957 and in 1977 following a fire. It holds over 300 children from kindergarten to grade 5. The school is no longer running and the building is now used by the Ville Cooperative.

Geography

The Saint John River runs through Fredericton. The city's downtown core lies on the flat low-lying ground on either side of the river, with most of the city's post-war suburban development occurring on the gently sloping hills of the river valley.

At an altitude of about 17 m (56 ft) above sea level, Fredericton is nestled in the Pennsylvanian Basin. It differs markedly from the geologically older parts of the province. There are prominently two distinct areas in the region that are divided around the area of Wilsey Road, in the east end of the city. In the west side, the bedrock underneath the earth is topographically dominant, whereas the other is controlled by Pleistocene and recent deposits leading to the rivers (resulting in the area being shallow and wide). Fredericton and its surroundings are rich in water resources, which, coupled with highly arable soil, make the Fredericton region ideal for agriculture. The Saint John River and one of its major tributaries, the Nashwaak River, come together in Fredericton. The uninhabited parts of the city are heavily forested.

Climate

Fredericton has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb under the Köppen climate classification system), with short, warm summers and long, cold winters. The city has high humidity and precipitation year-round; on average, Fredericton receives approximately 1,100 mm (43 in) of precipitation per year.

Demographics

In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, Fredericton had a population of 63,116 living in 28,478 of its 29,892 total private dwellings, a change of 7.5% from its 2016 population of 58,721. With a land area of 133.93 km² (51.71 sq mi), it had a population density of 471.3/km² (1,221/sq mi) in 2021.

At the census metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Fredericton CMA had a population of 108,610 living in 46,357 of its 48,761 total private dwellings, a change of 5.8% from its 2016 population of 102,690. With a land area of 6,014.66 km² (2,322.27 sq mi), it had a population density of 18.1/km² (47/sq mi) in 2021.

The 2021 census reported that immigrants (individuals born outside Canada) comprise 7,790 persons or 12.6% of the total population of Fredericton. Of the total immigrant population, the top countries of origin were United Kingdom (765 persons or 9.8%), China (645 persons or 8.3%), United States of America (570 persons or 7.3%), Syria (505 persons or 6.5%), Philippines (500 persons or 6.4%), India (460 persons or 5.9%), Egypt (300 persons or 3.9%), Iran (245 persons or 3.1%), Lebanon (205 persons or 2.6%), and Democratic Republic of the Congo (180 persons or 2.3%).

Ethnicity

In 2021, Fredericton was 82.5% white/European, 3.5% Indigenous and 14.0% visible minorities. The largest visible minority groups were Black (2.9%), South Asian (2.9%), Arab (2.5%), Chinese (1.8%) and Filipino (1.0%).

Fredericton accepted the highest number of refugees from the Syrian Civil War per capita of any Canadian city.

Language

English is spoken as a mother tongue by 80.2% of residents. Other mother tongues spoken are French (6.1%), Arabic (2.1%), Chinese languages (1.4%), Spanish (0.7%), Russian (0.6%), and Persian languages (0.5%). 1.4% of the population listed both English and French as mother tongues.

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Fredericton included:

• Christianity (32,295 persons or 52.2%)
• Irreligion (25,150 persons or 40.7%)
• Islam (2,305 persons or 3.7%)
• Hinduism (820 persons or 1.3%)
• Buddhism (225 persons or 0.4%)
• Sikhism (190 persons or 0.3%)
• Judaism (160 persons or 0.3%)
• Indigenous Spirituality (15 persons or <0.1%)
• Other (670 persons or 1.1%)

Those who declare a religion are predominantly Protestant. Fredericton has a synagogue, a mosque, a Hindu temple, a Unitarian fellowship, and a Shambhala Buddhist meditation centre.

Economy

The Government of New Brunswick and the universities are the primary employers. The policies of centralizing provincial government functions during the 1960s led to an expansion of the population.

The 1960s also saw an expansion of the University of New Brunswick due to increased post-war university enrolment, as well as the construction of Saint Thomas University. The Law School, now the University of New Brunswick Faculty of Law moved from Saint John to the Fredericton area.

The city has been investing actively in IT infrastructure. The City of Fredericton won the "Judges Innovation Award" at the 2004 Canadian Information Productivity Awards due to their "Fred-eZone" free municipality wide Wi-Fi initiative. This and other innovations by the city's utelco, e-Novations, led Intel to do a case study on their successes. Fred-eZone spans much of the city's downtown and parts of surrounding residential areas, as well as peripheral commercial areas such as Fredericton's Regent Mall. In 2008 and 2009 the Intelligent Community Forum selected Fredericton as a Top 7 Intelligent Community, based partly on the city's work in the IT sector.

Arts and culture

The Playhouse is the main venue for Theatre New Brunswick, the province's largest professional theatre company.

Festivals include the Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival, the New Brunswick Summer Music Festival, the Silver Wave Film Festival, the Flourish Arts & Music Festival, and Symphony New Brunswick.

Fredericton has a long literary tradition, having been home to Jonathan Odell, Charles G. D. Roberts, Bliss Carman, and Francis Sherman. Writers living in Fredericton include Raymond Fraser, Herb Curtis, David Adams Richards, Mark Anthony Jarman, and Gerard Beirne.

Fredericton's beloved fountain "Freddy the ... Dude", officially known as "Putto with Fish" sits outside City Hall at 397 Queen St. "Freddy the ... Dude" was donated to the city by Mayor George Edward Fentey, in 1885. ..... The famed statue has had some trouble since its historic arrival in 1885. ..... The original Freddy is kept safely inside City Hall where it is protected from further weather damage.

Architecture

Styles range from Victorian to modern. There are 12 National Historic Sites in the city, beyond the dozen National Historic People and two National Historic Events honored there.

Museums and historic buildings

Sports

There are no professional sports teams in Fredericton, although both universities have extensive athletic programs. The UNB Reds play in the Atlantic University Sport conference of U Sports and St. Thomas Tommies play in the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association conference of the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association for most sports, although their women's hockey team, cross-country teams, and track & field teams play in the Atlantic University Sports conference of U Sports.

Fredericton's high schools compete in a variety of sports in the New Brunswick Interscholastic Athletic Association.

UNB's men's hockey team are 8 time National Champions, and the highest attended sporting events in the city.

The Junior A hockey team is the Fredericton Red Wings. The former Fredericton Express and Fredericton Canadiens were American Hockey League teams.

Each summer the Fredericton Loyalists host the New Brunswick Timber team which competes in the Rugby Canada Super League.

Parks and recreation

• Carleton Park, part of the Northside Riverfront Trail, includes a boat launching area. The park was once the site of Alexander "Boss" Gibson's rail yard.
• The Green, along the north and south banks of the Saint John River, a walking and biking trail.
• Killarney Lake Park, a lakeside park with a beach and picnic spots as well as an extensive network of nature trails.
• Odell Park features preserved forested areas, trails, spaces for picnics and gatherings, and the Fredericton Botanic Garden .st
• Officers' Square is a venue for outdoor concerts and has an outdoor skating rink in the winter.
• Queen Square Park, in the heart of Downtown Fredericton.
• Reading Park (ⁱ/ˈrɛdɪŋ/ RED-ing) is a 33 acres (130,000 m²) passive use park incorporating an open meadow, and a 1.1 km (0.68 mi) walking trail through an old-growth forest. The park's old-growth forest is one of the city's last remaining habitats for the pileated woodpecker.
• Wilmot Park - a recreational park downtown.

Trail system

Fredericton has a network of 25 trails totaling more than 85 km (53 mi) on both sides of the Saint John and Nashwaak Rivers. Many of the city trails are rail trails that follow old railway lines. These include the Fredericton Railway Bridge that spans 0.6 km (0.37 mi) across the Saint John River. The rail trail system in Fredericton is part of the Sentier NB Trail system and some of these trails are also part of the larger Trans-Canada Trail network.

Education and research

The Anglophone West School District and the District Scolaire Francophone Sud (District 1) run schools including Fredericton High School, École des Bâtisseurs, and the École Sainte-Anne. Leo Hayes High School is a public–private partnership

There are two universities, the University of New Brunswick, and St. Thomas, the province's only Catholic university.

Colleges include the New Brunswick College of Craft and Design, the New Brunswick Community College, and the Maritime College of Forest Technology.

For-profit universities include University of Fredericton and Yorkville University.

The Hugh John Flemming Forestry Centre researches in forestry management. Fredericton's Provincial Research Organization specializes in aquaculture, mining, manufacturing, energy and the environment.

Transportation

Air service is provided out of the Fredericton International Airport.

Fredericton Transit provides bus service 7 days a week.

Fredericton started installing bicycle lanes in July 2008.

Passenger rail service ended in the 1960s, and freight in 1996. All railway tracks have been abandoned and removed.

Fredericton is served by the Maritime Bus fleet which provides connections to points throughout the Maritimes.

The Trans-Canada Highway passes along the southern municipal boundary. Routes 7 and 8 (the latter being a former alignment of the Trans-Canada) also pass through the city. Two highway bridges, the Westmorland Street Bridge and the Princess Margaret Bridge, cross the Saint John River. Those bridges feed into controlled-access roads (Routes 8 and 105 serving the city's north side).

Gallery

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  Princess Margaret Bridge

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  The Nashwaak River Trail

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  The Beaverbrook Art Gallery, prior to the addition of the Harrison McCain Pavillion in 2022

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  Celebration of Acadian culture in Fredericton

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  Queen Square Park

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  The New Brunswick Legislative Building

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  Marysville Place houses a number of offices for the provincial government.

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  Downtown Fredericton

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  Fredericton Transit bus with bike rack

See also

In Spanish: Fredericton para niños