Rexton is a former village in Kent County,

New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...

, Canada. It was a village in its own right until the end of 2022 and is now part of the village of Five Rivers.

History

Situated on the

Richibucto River The Richibucto River is a river in eastern New Brunswick, Canada which empties into the Northumberland Strait north of Richibucto. It is 80 kilometres long.Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

, many of whose descendants still reside in the nearby Elsipogtog First Nation, formerly referred to as the Big Cove Band.

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

settlers colonized the general area in the 18th century, in places such as Bouctouche, Miramichi and Richibucto Village. The first English-speaking settler was Thomas Powel who arrived in 1790. There was considerable colonization by English shipbuilders, Scottish merchants and Irish immigrants followed, including many Irish Protestants who arrived to work in the

Jardine Jardine is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Al Jardine (born 1942), member of the Beach Boys * Alexander Jardine (British Army officer) (died 1799), Scottish army officer and author * Alexander Jardine (Medal of Honor) (1874– ...

Shipbuilding Yards around the year 1819. They eventually cleared enough land to receive land grants following the 1820s survey by a Mr. Layton conducted around the Molus River area of nearby

Weldford Parish, New Brunswick Weldford is a geographic parish in Kent County, New Brunswick, Canada. For governance purposes it is divided between the villages of Five Rivers and Nouvelle-Arcadie, which are both members of the Kent Regional Service Commission, and the R ...

and the size of Elsipogtog First Nation was reduced to the current boundaries. Two ships brought the majority of the settlers here from Scotland, one being the ''Dickies'', captained by Simon Graham, and the other was the ''Isabella'', sailed by Captain Thomas Carruthers.

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

lumbering Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks

and

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

flourished throughout the 19th century. The first bridge over the Richibucto River was completed there in 1850, improving commerce and communications in the region. The settlement was known from about 1825 as Kingston, but in 1901, the name was changed to Rexton. This was probably to avoid confusion with other Kingstons, particularly

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

Kings County, New Brunswick Kings County is located in southern New Brunswick, Canada. Its historical shire town is Hampton and it was named as an expression of loyalty to the British Crown. Both the Saint John and Kennebecasis rivers pass through the county. Approxi ...

, which still carries the name. On 1 January 2023, Rexton annexed parts of five local service districts to form the new village of Five Rivers. The community's name remains in official use.

Notable people

Rexton (Kingston at the time) was the birthplace of

Bonar Law Andrew Bonar Law (; 16 September 1858 – 30 October 1923) was a British statesman and politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1922 to May 1923. Law was born in the British colony of New Brunswick (now a Canadi ...

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...

in 1922–1923. Until the election of

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...

in 2019, who was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, Bonar Law was the only British Prime Minister to be born outside the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

. His name is honoured at a recently upgraded community attraction, Bonar Law Common, and also at Bonar Law Memorial High School in Rexton. His father Rev. James Law was the Minister for St. Andrew's Church in Rexton for many years.

William John Bowser William John Bowser ( Rexton, New Brunswick December 3, 1867 – October 25, 1933 Vancouver) was a politician in British Columbia, Canada. He served as the 17th premier of British Columbia from 1915 to 1916. The son of William Bowser and Mar ...

Premier of British Columbia The premier of British Columbia is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s, the title ''prime minister of British Columbia'' was often used. The word ''premier'' is derived ...

(1915–1916), was born in Rexton. Former

Premier of New Brunswick The premier of New Brunswick ( (masculine) or (feminine)) is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The premier of a Canadian province is much like the prime minister of Canada. They are normally ...

Shawn Graham Shawn Michael Graham (born February 22, 1968) is a Canadian politician, who served as the 31st premier of New Brunswick from 2006 to 2010. He was elected leader of the New Brunswick Liberal Party in 2002 and became premier after his party captu ...

, was raised in Rexton.

Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by

Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...

, Rexton had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. Population trend Rexton ChurchREV

Religious make-up (2001) Income (2006) Mother tongue language (2011)Statistics Canada:

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

census

References

External links

Village of Rexton
{{Authority control Communities in Kent County, New Brunswick Former villages in New Brunswick 2023 disestablishments in New Brunswick

History

Notable people

Demographics

See also

References

Further reading

External links