Wakefield Parish, New Brunswick

Wakefield is a List of parishes in New Brunswick, civil parish in Carleton County, New Brunswick, Carleton County, New Brunswick, Canada, located north on the west bank of the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River north of Woodstock, New Brunswick, Woodstock.

Prior to the 2023 New Brunswick local governance reform, 2023 governance reform, for governance purposes it was comprised two Local service district (New Brunswick), local service districts and part of a third, all of which were members of the Regional Service Commission#Western Valley Regional Service Commission, Western Valley Regional Service Commission (WVRSC).

The Census geographic units of Canada#Census_subdivisions, Census subdivision of Wakefield Parish shares the civil parish's borders.

Origin of name

The parish may have been named for the city of Wakefield, England, Wakefield in Yorkshire, England.

Historian William Francis Ganong noted that the name predated the parish's erection, appearing in 1801 in the Land Memorials.

History

Wakefield was erected in 1803 within York County, New Brunswick, York County from unassigned lands north of Woodstock Parish, New Brunswick, Woodstock and Northampton Parish, New Brunswick, Northampton Parishes. It included Simonds Parish, Carleton County, New Brunswick, Simonds and Wilmot Parish, New Brunswick, Wilmot Parishes, along with parts of Bright Parish, New Brunswick, Bright, Brighton Parish, New Brunswick, Brighton, Northampton Parish, New Brunswick, Northampton, Peel Parish, New Brunswick, Peel, Richmond Parish, New Brunswick, Richmond, Southampton Parish, New Brunswick, Southampton, Wicklow Parish, New Brunswick, Wicklow, and Woodstock Parish, New Brunswick, Woodstock Parishes as well as part of Maine claimed by New Brunswick.

Boundaries

Wakefield Parish is bounded: Remainder of parish on mapbooks 304, 305, 323, and 324 at same site.

* on the north by the southern line of a land grant at the mouth of the Little Presque Isle Stream and its prolongation to the international border;
* on the east by the Saint John River;
* on the south by the southern line of a land grant on the Saint John River, opposite the junction of New Brunswick Route 105, Route 105 and Newburg Road, prolonged to the Meduxnekeag River, and then the river to the international border;
* and on the west by Maine.
* It also includes all islands in front of it in the Saint John River. Whether the southern boundary extends through Pine Island or around it is not made clear by either the Territorial Division Act or the New Brunswick cadastral grant map of the area.

Evolution of boundaries

Wakefield originally extended north from Woodstock and Northampton Parishes to the mouth of Whitemarsh Creek and a point on the opposite side of the Saint John River, with its northern boundaries paralleling the two parishes to its south. Neither eastern nor western boundary was explicitly mentioned, simply "all that tract of country in the County of York" between the southern and northern boundaries of Wakefield.

In 1830 all of Wakefield east of the channel of the Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River was erected as Brighton Parish. This put at least one island in each parish.

In 1838 all of Wakefield south of the Meduxnekeag River was transferred to Woodstock Parish.

In 1842 the northern part of Wakefield was erected as Simonds Parish. Simonds included Wilmot Parish and a small part of Wicklow Parish, New Brunswick, Wicklow Parish. Later the same year New Brunswick's land boundary with Maine was settled by the Webster–Ashburton Treaty, ending Wakefield's implicit claim to part of Maine.

In 1850 the boundary within the Saint John River was altered, making all islands in front of Wakefield part of the parish.

In 1854 the southern boundary of Wakefield was extended across the Meduxnekeag to include parts of two grants that straddled the river.

Local service districts

All local service districts assess for the basic LSD services of Firefighting, fire protection, Police, police services, Zoning, land use planning, Government of New Brunswick#Agencies/Boards, emergency measures, and Animal control service, dog control.

Wakefield Parish

The local service district of the parish of Wakefield originally comprised the entire parish. Today the LSD is divided into two taxing authorities, the larger Wakefield (Inside) including most of the LSD and Wakefield (Outside) in the northeastern part of the LSD, containing the communities of Victoria Corner and Waterville.

The parish LSD was established in 1966 to assess for fire protection. Community services were added in 1967. Recreational services were added in 1985 to the new taxing authority of Wakefield Inside.

Today both taxing authorities assess for community & recreational services. The taxing authorities are 215.00 Wakefield (Inside) and 215.01 Wakefield (Outside).

LSD advisory committee: Unknown.

Somerville

Somerville comprises a rough triangle around New Brunswick Route 103, Route 103, New Brunswick Route 130, Route 130, and the Somerville Road with an extension south along Route 103.

Somerville was established in 1971 to add street lighting and first aid & ambulance services; community services were removed, probably in error. Community services were restored and first aid & ambulance services removed in the rewrite of the LSD regulation in 1974.

Today Somerville assesses for street lighting. The taxing authority is 222.00 Somerville.

LSDAC: Unknown.

Lakeville

Wilmot Parish, New Brunswick#Lakeville, Lakeville includes a single land grant in Wakefield Parish, located on the western side New Brunswick Route 560, Route 560, north of the prolongation of the Estey Road.

Communities

Communities at least partly within the parish;

* Belleville
* Briggs Corner
* Hartford
* Jackson Falls
* Jacksontown
* Jacksonville
* Lindsay
* Lower Wakefield
* Lower Waterville
* McKenna
* Oakville
* Rosedale
* Somerville, New Brunswick, Somerville
* South Greenfield
* Upper Waterville
* Victoria Corner, New Brunswick, Victoria Corner
* Wakefield, New Brunswick, Wakefield
* Waterville, Carleton County, New Brunswick, Waterville

Bodies of water

Bodies of waterNot including brooks, ponds or coves. at least partly in the parish:

* Meduxnekeag River
* Saint John River (Bay of Fundy), Saint John River
* Little Presque Isle Stream
* Lanes Creek
* Bennetts Lake
* Cox Lake
* Mud Lake
* Payson Lake
* York Lake

Other notable places

Parks, historic sites, and other noteworthy places at least partly in the parish.
* Iron Ore Hill, New Brunswick, Iron Ore Hill
* Meduxnekeag Valley Protected Natural Area

Demographics

Population

Population trendStatistics Canada: Canada 1996 Census, 1996, Canada 2001 Census, 2001, Canada 2006 Census, 2006 census

Language

Mother tongue (2016)

See also

*List of parishes in New Brunswick

Notes

References

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Local service districts of Carleton County, New Brunswick
Parishes of Carleton County, New Brunswick