York Sunbury Historical Society November Program

The Program Committee is pleased to announce the following presentation for the York Sunbury Historical Society. Presentations take place at 7:30pm in the basement of Old Government House (51 Woodstock Road). A reception follows the presentation and are free and open to the public.

Speaker: Greg Fekner
Topic: Equipment that Canadians, specifically New Brunswickers, used during the First World War.
Date: 19 November 2015

Greg Fekner is originally from Ontario and obtained his Honours B.A. in history from Wilfred Laurier University.  His focus was   on Military History but found that he excelled especially in the area of Canadian Military History.  While in Ontario, Greg became an avid recreational historian and took part in several recreations ranging from the American Civil War to the Second World War. He worked with a prominent high school teacher from Tillsonburg to deliver educational programs to students of all ages. Greg is presently the Executive Director at the New Brunswick Military History Museum in Oromocto and remains heavily involved with the educational side of the museum industry.

York Sunbury Historical Society April Program

Government House on Woodstock Road

The Program Committee is pleased to announce the following presentation for the York-Sunbury Historical Society. Join us in the basement of Government House (51 Woodstock Road) starting at 7:30pm. All presentations are free and open to the public, with a reception following each one.

Speaker: Brent Wilson, Gregg Centre
Date: April 16th, 2015
Topic: Into Battle: New Brunswickers and the Second Battle of Ypres

In April 1915, about 500 New Brunswickers entered into large-scale battle for the first time when the Germans attacked the 1st Canadian Division at Ypres. By the time the Canadians were withdrawn a week later, they had suffered almost 6,000 casualties. This talk will look at how these New Brunswickers experienced the battle and examine the effects the fighting had back home. Among these local soldiers was Driver Abner Belyea, who was an early member of the York-Sunbury Historical Society.

Big day for the Canadian Flag!

“How often I have felt my spirits rise when I have seen Canadian students travelling abroad, identifying themselves by wearing the Canadian Flag on their cars, bicycles, and packsacks.  It showed their confidence in themselves and in their country.  The maple leaf forever!”
Dr. George F. G. Stanley, 24 December 1994

This week, my middle school child reminded me that the Canadian flag is celebrating a milestone this year.  It was at noon on 15 February 1965 that the red ensign was lowered on Parliament Hill in Ottawa and the new Canadian flag hoisted.  Our fabulous flag turns 50 today!

Designed by Dr. George F. G. Stanley, Canada’s House of Commons approved the maple leaf flag on the 15 December 1964 and it was quickly followed by Queen Elizabeth’s approval on Christmas Eve.  Dr. Stanley was born in 1907 in Calgary and after a distinguished academic career, retired in Sackville, New Brunswick where he had been working at Mount Allison University.  Stanley served as New Brunswick’s Lieutenant Governor from 1982 until 1987.  He and his wife were Life Members of the York Sunbury Historical Society and regularly attended society lectures and events at the museum.

To learn more about our flag, check out this YouTube video by Canada’s History.

York Sunbury Historical Society February Program

Government House on Woodstock Road

The Program Committee is pleased to announce the following presentation for the York-Sunbury Historical Society.  Join us in the basement of Government House (51 Woodstock Road) starting at 7:30pm.  All presentations are free and open to the public, with a reception following each one.

Speaker:  Dr. Brad Cross
Date:  February 19^th, 2015
Topic:   The Daily Lives of Black New Brunswickers as seen through Objects

Household furnishings, kitchenware, tools and decorative objects can shed light on the daily experiences of ordinary people in the way that official documents can’t.  Brad Cross will speak about research he and his students undertook to explore the daily lives of Black New Brunswickers over the last 200 years.

York Sunbury Historical Society January Program

Government House on Woodstock Road

The Program Committee is pleased to announce the following presentation for the York-Sunbury Historical Society.  Presentations take place at 7:30pm in the basement of Government House (51 Woodstock Road).  A reception follows each presentation and are free and open to the public.

Speaker:  Brent Suttie BA, MA
Topic:  BENEATH THE BLACKTOP: “Sub”-Urban Archaeology of the West End of Fredericton, New Brunswick
Date:  January 15, 2015

Abstract:
In the Fall of 2013, a large construction project in the West End of Fredericton revealed a 5m deep profile that tells a compelling story about the last 12,000 years of the history of what is now Fredericton, NB.  From a flooded forest which may be related to global flooding events around 8500 years ago – to evidence of early French, and Euro-Canadian occupations.

York Sunbury Historical Society May Program

The Program Committee is pleased to announce the following presentation for the York-Sunbury Historical Society.  Presentations take place at 7:30pm in the basement of Government House (51 Woodstock Road). A reception follows each presentation and are free and open to the public.

Speaker: Carl Vaughan.
Topic: Titanic Canadian Heroes
Date:  May 15, 2014

Mr. Vaughan will be speaking about the Titanic disaster and offering recognition of the gallant effort of recovering, identifying and burying the bodies of those lost in this tragic event.  Mostly Nova Scotians did this work; however, many other Maritimers, such as New Brunswickers, assisted them.

York Sunbury Historical Society Annual General Meeting

Please join us for the Annual General Meeting of the York-Sunbury Historical Society at 7:30pm on Thursday, April 17, 2014 at Government House. The meeting will begin with guest speaker Alex Cummings who will give a brief history of City Hall, the story of the Tower Clock and why one was suggested in the first place. He will describe how the clock maker was selected, the original location of the clock, the 2008-09 refurbishment and the relocation to the 2nd floor for public view.

The Annual General Meeting and a reception will follow.

Learning About the Past from our Future!

Coming soon! The student edition of the Officers’ Quarters!

The YSHS Publishes Another Issue of the Officers’ Quarter!

Fredericton, New Brunswick (March 25, 2013) – The York Sunbury Historical Society Publication Committee is releasing their latest Officers’ Quarters at the beginning of April.

Edited by Alexandra Fox, with Fin Mackay-Boyce as her co-editor, this issue of the local history publication features articles written by students who have either worked, interned or volunteered at the Fredericton Region Museum during the past couple of years.  Ms. Fox is a St. Thomas University student and has worked at the Fredericton Region Museum for two summers.  She has previously edited the St. Thomas history student journal and has volunteered at the museum periodically during the off-season.

Each year, the museum is fortunate to receive several summer- student employment grants and internships as well as chosen by several students looking for volunteer opportunities. Without the hard work and dedication of students, many of our projects would not get completed. This edition of the Officers’ Quarters is intended to be a thank you to those students and the granting agencies that make it possible to hire them as well as provide an opportunity for contributors to have their work published.

The contributors are past summer students, former volunteers and interns. They attend either St. Thomas University or the University of New Brunswick and represent several departments from undergraduate, graduate and education. The articles explore personal experiences from working at the museum as well as research papers that examine artefacts and topics from New Brunswick’s past.

Copies of the Officers’ Quarters are available for purchase at the Fredericton Region Museum for $10 each.  Funds raised from the sale of the publication support the York Sunbury Historical Society research and publishing program.

About the Fredericton Region Museum: The York Sunbury Historical Society founded the Fredericton Region Museum in 1934.  In 1959, the museum found permanent headquarters in the Officers’ Quarters (571 Queen Street) in the heart of downtown Fredericton.  The society and museum remain a non-profit enterprise with a small paid staff and numerous volunteers.  Spring hours (April – June) are Tuesday to Saturday 1pm-4pm.

York Sunbury Historical Society March Program

Join us at Government House, Thursday March 20 @ 7:30pm for our monthly program.  Our speaker is Koral LaVorgna, who will be reading love letters of New Brunswick from times past and telling their stories.  These have been gleaned from the New Brunswick Provincial Archives and the York Sunbury Historical Society’s collection, and their stories reflect a completely different and interesting attitude than presently seems to exist.

This is from the week-long series she did for CBC radio in Saint John and Fredericton; and for a Daily Gleaner feature during the Valentine celebration period this year.

Ms. LaVorgna is a PHD candidate in history, lecturer at St. Thomas University, Executive Director of the Scottish Portal Project, past Fredericton Region Museum Manager, Curator, Researcher and Writer for the City of Fredericton Built Heritage History Projects, a Step-On Tour Bus History Travel Guide, with a broad and thorough knowledge of New Brunswick and Fredericton’s history.

A reception will follow the presentation.  Non-members are cordially invited.

Please note, there is a snow storm forecast with freezing rain for March 20th.  If Fredericton schools are closed on this date, then the program will be cancelled.

York Sunbury Historical Society January Program

Aroostook War of 1839 by Gary Campbell

A little-known episode in North America’s history, the Aroostook War of 1839 was an undeclared war with no actual fighting.  It had its roots in the 1793 Treaty of Paris, which ended the American Revolutionary War but left the border of Maine (then part of Massachusetts) and British North America unsettled.  Efforts to locate the border based on the treaty failed.  The area between the competing British and American claims became known as the Disputed Territory.  Fearing a negotiated border would negatively affect its claim for the disputed territory, Maine occupied the Aroostook River valley in early 1839.  British regulars, New Brunswick militia, and Maine militia were then deployed in the dead of winter, as the kindling was laid for a third major Anglo-American conflagration.  Eventually, cooler heads prevailed, although they did not deter a number of skirmishes between the Maine Land Agent posses and a loosely organized group of New Brunswick lumbermen.  A complex story of friction, greed, land grabs, and the Ashburton-Webster Treaty of 1842 eventually settled rivalry, this border dispute that nearly resulted in war.  If you want to learn more about this fascinating period in New Brunswick history, join us at Government House, Thursday January 16 @ 7:30 PM when author Gary Campbell will tell us more about this story.

A reception will follow the presentation.  Non-members are cordially invited.