Morning! Just a note to thank you for this article. My grandfather was born in Londonderry in 1873, so looking for anything on Londonderry, and of course my grandfather (Suther Barry). Ruth in California ----- Original Message ----- From: "Heather Waddingham" <hwaddingham@yahoo.com> To: "NB Rootsweb Mailing List" <newbrunswick-l@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, January 20, 2007 6:00 AM Subject: [ NB ] Lost Names in New Brunswick > Morning... > > This article was published in today's (Jan 20, 2007) Telegraph Journal or > Times Transcript. (Not sure which as it is not indicated on the net... I > think it is the Telegraph.) > > Source: > Bill Hamilton > Published Saturday January 20th, 2007 > Appeared on page A6 > > > Aside from cultural interest, place names shed light on the evolution of a > community, county or province. A check of old maps, directories and > gazetteers reveals that a considerable number of New Brunswick place names > have disappeared. Although technically "off the map," they remain > important because of the insight they provide regarding settlement > patterns. > > Londonderry, located on the old Shepody Road in Kings County, is one such > community. As the name implies, it was first settled by immigrants from > Ulster in Northern Ireland. Today little remains, as the forest has > encroached on the land. The exception is St. Paul's Anglican Church, > consecrated in 1857 by Bishop John Medley (1804-92). Described as "a neat > Norman structure consisting of a tower, nave and chancel of pleasing > proportions," it served the community until 1925 when regular services > ended. > > After a period of neglect, the structure was refurbished in 1960. Since > then, services have been held each summer to mark the history of the > community. Just last month, the church was the setting for a special > Advent candlelight service. The congregation of some 100 people included > one person who had been baptized in the church in 1922. > > Second Westcock Hill in Westmorland County has a similar story. It was > settled around 1850 by homesteaders from nearby Westcock and Sackville. As > with Londonderry, the attraction was lumbering. Westcock, for whom it was > named, is traceable to the Mi'kmaq Oakshaak, of unknown meaning. Although > there is a Westcock in Surrey, England, it has no connection with New > Brunswick. The Mi'kmaq version was adopted by the French, who filtered it > through their language as Ouskak. Later, following English occupation, it > evolved as Westcock. > > The last surviving building in the community was St. Stephen's Anglican > Church, torn down in 1925. The first rector was Rev. G.G. Roberts, father > of Sir Charles G.D. Roberts (1860-1943), the prominent poet and novelist. > Second Westcock Hill was later featured in his works. > > Roberts the younger described St. Stephen's as "a quaint and old fashioned > church. The shingles were grey with the beating of many winters; its > square tower surmounted by four spindling posts, like legs of a table > turned heavenward. Down the long slope below the church, straggled the > village, half lost in the snow, and whistled over by the winds of the Bay > of Fundy." > > Today, the only reminder of Second Westcock Hill, beyond a place name and > the whistling wind, is a superb view of Shepody Bay and Mountain with > Grindstone Island in the foreground. > > In the 19th century there were three New Brunswick communities named > Skedaddle Ridge: two in York County and one in Carleton. All had the same > origin. During the American Civil War (1861-65), isolated areas of the > province became a haven for the first American draft dodgers. The American > Dictionary of Slang (1864) defined "skedaddle" as a "disorderly retreat - > probably set afloat by some professor at Harvard." Of the three, only the > last mentioned, located southeast of Knowlesville, is on contemporary > maps. > > Other ghost communities may be found throughout the province. Many > resulted from bad choices by land-hungry immigrants in the 19th century. > Some settlers came as a result of the Scottish Highland Clearances and the > Irish Potato Famine. Established on land ill suited for agriculture, > scores were later abandoned. > > The disappearance of place names was not to cease in the 20th century. In > 1953, a large section of Queens County, west of the St. John River, along > with a smaller part of Sunbury County, was expropriated for the > construction of CFB Gagetown. In all, between 2,000 and 3,000 people were > obliged to leave their homes. Some 25 communities were lost. In August > 2003, a special 50th anniversary celebration was sponsored by the Base > Gagetown Community Historical Association. > > Major projects, such as the construction of the Mactaquac Dam in the > 1960s, have also taken a toll of place names. The descriptive Snowshoe > Islands was obliterated. According to legend, the Mi'kmaq god Glooscap > dropped his snowshoes here when he encountered an early spring. Later, the > legend and name was transferred to nearby Snowshoe Cove. Mactaquac, first > applied to Mactaquac Stream, is of Maliseet origin and was translated by > the late historian William F. Ganong as "big branch," a possible reference > to its relationship to the St. John River. > > On the positive side, two new/old names may be attributed to the Mactaquac > development: Kings Landing and Nackawic. Kings Landing was selected as an > appropriate designation for a historical village depicting life on the > central St. John River during the period 1780-1870. Almost all of the > structures were moved to the new site from flooded communities. The result > has been an unqualified success. Kings Landing now ranks as one of the > most visited tourist attractions in the province. > > As for Nackawic, because about 2,000 people were displaced to create what > became known as Mactaquac Lake, a new town was established midway between > Fredericton and Woodstock. First known as Culliton for an early settler, > an alternate name was suggested by local residents. It was felt that > Nackawic would be more befitting from a historical and geographical > standpoint. This name is traceable to the Maliseet for "straight stream." > Prior to flooding, the Nackawic Stream was in line with the St. John > River. > > Municipal amalgamations have also led to the loss of some place names. > Fortunately, the hyphen has come to the rescue, as in Tracadie-Sheila > (Gloucester). Tracadie is of Mi'kmaq origin and means "camping ground," > while Sheila (pronounced "SHYla" refers to Sheila Foster, an early > resident. Other hyphenated place names are found in all sections of the > province. Some place names lost are still remembered. > > - Bill Hamilton is an historian from Sackville. > > Heather Waddingham > Campobello Parish Coordinator http://www.rootsweb.com/~nbcampob/ > My England and Canadian Roots > http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?db=CDNROOTS > Moncton High School Class of 1983 - 25 Year Reunion in August 8-9 2008 > http://home.cogeco.ca/~genbuf/MHS1983.htm > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Food fight? Enjoy some healthy debate > in the Yahoo! Answers Food & Drink Q&A. > http://answers.yahoo.com/dir/?link=list&sid=396545367 > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > NEWBRUNSWICK-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the > quotes in the subject and the body of the message >