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New Brunswick
Nouveau-Brunswick (French)
Map
Coordinates: 48°46′39″N 11°25′52″E / 48.77750°N 11.43111°E / 48.77750; 11.43111
Country Canada
CapitalFredericton
Government
 • PremierBlaine Higgs (Progressive Conservatives)
 • LegistlatureLegislative Assembly of New Brunswick
Area
 • Total
72,907 km2 (28,150 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)
747,101
DemonymNew Brunswicker
Time zoneUTC-4 (Atlantic)
Websitewww.gnb.ca

New Brunswick (French: Nouveau-Brunswick) is one of four Atlantic provinces on the east coast of Canada. According to the Constitution of Canada, New Brunswick is the only bilingual province. About two-thirds of the population declare themselves anglophones and one-third francophones. One-third of the population describes themselves as bilingual. Atypically for Canada, only about half of the population lives in urban areas, mostly in Greater Moncton, Greater Saint John and the capital Fredericton.

Unlike the other Maritime provinces, New Brunswick's terrain is mostly forested uplands, with much of the land further from the coast, giving it a harsher climate. New Brunswick is 83% forested and less densely populated than the rest of the Maritimes.

Being relatively close to Europe, New Brunswick was among the first places in North America to be explored and settled by Europeans. In 1784, after an influx of refugees from the American Revolutionary War, the province was founded on territory from the partition of Nova Scotia.[1] In 1785 Saint John became the first incorporated city in what is now Canada.[2] The province prospered in the early 1800s and the population grew rapidly, reaching about a quarter of a million by mid-century. In 1867, New Brunswick was one of four founding provinces of the Canadian Confederation, along with Nova Scotia and the Province of Canada (now Ontario and Quebec).

After Confederation, wooden shipbuilding and lumbering declined, while protectionism disrupted trade ties with New England. The mid-1900s found New Brunswick to be one of the poorest regions of Canada, now mitigated by Canadian transfer payments and improved support for rural areas. As of 2002, provincial gross domestic product was derived as follows: services (about half being government services and public administration) 43%; construction, manufacturing, and utilities 24%; real estate rental 12%; wholesale and retail 11%; agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting, mining, oil and gas extraction 5%; transportation and warehousing 5%.[3]

Tourism accounts for about 9% of the labour force directly or indirectly. Popular destinations include Fundy National Park and the Hopewell Rocks, Kouchibouguac National Park, and Roosevelt Campobello International Park. In 2013, 64 cruise ships called at Port of Saint John, carrying, on average, 2,600 passengers each.[4]

History

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Early history

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Indigenous peoples have been in the area since about 7000 BC. At the time of European contact, inhabitants were the Mi'kmaq, the Maliseet, and the Passamaquoddy. Although these tribes did not leave a written record, their language is present in many placenames, such as Aroostook, Bouctouche, Memramcook, Petitcodiac, Quispamsis, Richibucto and Shediac.

New Brunswick may have been part of Vinland during the Norse exploration of North America, and Basque, Breton, and Norman fishermen may have visited the Bay of Fundy in the early 1500s.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "TERRITORIAL DEVELOPMENT: Founding of the Province of New Brunswick". Provincial Archives of New Brunswick. Government of New Brunswick. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  2. ^ "Saint John, NB". Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  3. ^ "Provincial Gross Domestic Product by Industry" (PDF). Statistics Canada. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  4. ^ "New Brunswick Tourism Indicators Summary Report" (PDF). Government of New Brunswick. September 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 29, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  5. ^ "Local history". Archived from the original on June 18, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2017.