Editing New Brunswick (section)

===British colony of New Brunswick (1784–1867)===
[[File:Henry Sandham - The Coming of the Loyalists.jpg|thumb|upright|left|A romanticized depiction of the arrival of the [[United Empire Loyalists|Loyalists]] in New Brunswick]] Loyalists who received land allocations around the St. John River valley, the Bay of Fundy or the Northumberland Strait became dissatisfied with being governed from [[Halifax, Nova Scotia|Halifax]] because it was so far away. Therefore, on 18 June 1784, the British government created a new province for them: New Brunswick. New Brunswick was formed from the partition of [[Sunbury County, Nova Scotia|Sunbury County]] from the remainder of Nova Scotia.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Slumkoski |first1=Corey |title=The Partition of Nova Scotia |url=https://web.lib.unb.ca/winslow/partition.html |website=The Winslow Papers |publisher=Electronic text centre (UNB Libraries) |access-date=5 May 2020 |date=2005 |quote=On 18 June 1784 ... the province of New Brunswick formally came into existence. |archive-date=4 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804075421/https://web.lib.unb.ca/winslow/partition.html |url-status=live}}</ref> In that same year, New Brunswick formed its first elected assembly.<ref name="responsible-government">{{cite web |title=Responsible Government |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/responsible-government/ |website=Historica Canada |access-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212171105/http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/responsible-government/ |archive-date=12 December 2017}}</ref> The first governor was [[Thomas Carleton]], and, in 1785, he chose the [[Hamlet (place)|hamlet]] of Sainte-Anne as the provincial capital. Sainte-Anne was later renamed Frederick's Town (and then later [[Fredericton]]) after the third son of [[George III]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Fredericton (History) |url=https://www.fredericton.ca/en/about-fredericton/about-fredericton-history |access-date=26 November 2023 |website=City of Fredericton |language=en |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126180449/https://www.fredericton.ca/en/about-fredericton/about-fredericton-history |url-status=live }}</ref>

In total, it is believed that around 14,000 loyalist refugees came to New Brunswick. However, 10% eventually returned to the United States.<ref>Christopher Moore, The Loyalists, Revolution, Exile, Settlement, 1984, pp. 244–252 {{ISBN|0-7710--6093-9}}</ref> In 1785, Saint John became New Brunswick's first incorporated city.<ref name="brit">{{cite web |title=New Brunswick |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/New-Brunswick-province |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114041700/https://www.britannica.com/place/New-Brunswick-province |archive-date=14 November 2017}}</ref>

Economically, New Brunswick was a poor environment for agriculture and mining. Its fishery was also far inferior to that of Nova Scotia's. New Brunswick's forests were rich in wood, but as wood is a bulky and low-value commodity, accessible markets were limited. Essentially, in the late 1700s, New Brunswick was a peripheral corner of the British Empire and North American world. Geopolitical events in Europe would change this situation. In 1806, [[Napoleon|Napoleon Bonaparte]]'s [[Continental System|continental blockade]] forced the United Kingdom, which usually relied on the [[Baltic Sea]] for supplies, to import timber from its North American colonies. This stimulated the lumber trade in New Brunswick, as well as in [[Lower Canada]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Keyes |first=John |date=1982 |title=WYNN, Graeme, Timber Colony. A historical geography of early nineteenth century New Brunswick. Toronto, University of Toronto Press, 1981, xiv-224 p. $10.00. |journal=Revue d'histoire de l'Amérique française |language=fr |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=126–128 |doi=10.7202/304041ar |issn=0035-2357 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Between 1805 and 1812, New Brunswick annually exported 100,000 tons of squared timber. In 1819, the number exceeded 240,000 tons, and in 1825 exports reached their highest level at 417,000 tons.<ref name="brit" /> This also resulted in the emergence of a shipbuilding market. These industries were then bolstered by the [[Canadian–American Reciprocity Treaty]] of 1854, and demand from the [[American Civil War]] of 1861 to 1865. [[St. Martins, New Brunswick|St. Martins]] became the third most productive shipbuilding town in the Maritimes and produced over 500 vessels.<ref>{{cite web |title=Living History |url=http://www.stmartinscanada.com/about-area/living-history/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804125041/http://stmartinscanada.com/about-area/living-history/ |archive-date=4 August 2017 |access-date=14 September 2017}}</ref>

From 1800 to 1851, New Brunswick's population grew from 25,000 to 200,000, and it saw large-scale immigration from Ireland and Scotland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Irish Migration Within New Brunswick |url=https://www.newirelandnb.ca/culture/irish-trail/early-settlement/irish-migration-within-new-brunswick |access-date=26 November 2023 |website=www.newirelandnb.ca |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126180448/https://www.newirelandnb.ca/culture/irish-trail/early-settlement/irish-migration-within-new-brunswick |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1848, responsible home government was granted.<ref name="responsible-government" /> The 1850s saw the emergence of political parties largely organized along religious and ethnic lines.<ref name="brit" />

From the late 1700s to mid 1800s, [[Acadians]] became a minority, and they lived largely on the fringes of society, fearful of the English. They were mostly illiterate due to laws preventing them from opening schools.<ref>{{Cite web |title=L'histoire |website=Assemblée nationale de l'Acadie |url=https://anacadie.ca/lacadie/lhistoire/ |access-date=26 November 2023 |language=fr |quote=En 1800, les Acadiens sont pour la plupart illettrés en raison de l’application de lois les empêchant d’ouvrir des écoles. |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126180448/https://anacadie.ca/lacadie/lhistoire/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They were also not part of the economic boom, and had troubles asserting their land rights.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Histoire des Acadiens et de l'Acadie - Économie et société au début du 19e siècle |url=http://cyberacadie.com/cyberacadie.com/index7248.html?/enracinement_histoire/Economie-et-societe-au-debut-du-19e-siecle.html |access-date=26 November 2023 |website=cyberacadie.com |archive-date=26 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231126180448/http://cyberacadie.com/cyberacadie.com/index7248.html?/enracinement_histoire/Economie-et-societe-au-debut-du-19e-siecle.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 1860s, the notion of unifying the maritime colonies of British North America was being increasingly discussed. This was due to multiple factors. For example, some felt that the American Civil War was the result of a weak central government and wished to avoid the same fate.<ref name="confed">{{cite web |title=Confederation |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/confederation/ |website=Historica Canada |access-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171126081754/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/confederation/ |archive-date=26 November 2017}}</ref> Some also wanted to increase trade between the colonies, and be less economically tied to the US. In 1864, the [[Charlottetown Conference]] was held to discuss a possible [[Maritime Union]] between [[Nova Scotia]], New Brunswick and [[Prince Edward Island]]. However, the [[Province of Canada]], caught wind of the conference and decided to send representatives to attend. They asked that the agenda be expanded to discuss a union that would also include them.

In 1866, the United States cancelled the Reciprocity Treaty, leading to a loss of trade and a stronger desire to build up trade within British North America.<ref>{{cite web |title=Reciprocity |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/reciprocity/ |website=Historica Canada |access-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214113323/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/reciprocity/ |archive-date=14 December 2017}}</ref> A [[Fenian raids|Fenian raid]] in 1866 also increased public support for a potential union.<ref name="nb-confed">{{cite web |title=New Brunswick and Confederation |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/new-brunswick-and-confederation/ |website=Historica Canada |access-date=13 November 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214232617/http://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/new-brunswick-and-confederation/ |archive-date=14 December 2017}}</ref>