Fredericton (/ˈfrɛ.drɪk.tən/;[8]French pronunciation:[fʁedeʁiktœn]) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, also known by its Indigenous name of Wolastoq, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the dominant natural feature of the area. One of the main urban centres in New Brunswick, the city had a population of 63,116 and a metropolitan population of 108,610 in the 2021 Canadian census.[5] It is the third-largest city in the province after Moncton and Saint John.
On 1 January 2023, Fredericton annexed parts of five local service districts;[9][10] revised census figures have not been released.
As a provincial capital, its economy is tied to the public sector; however, the city also contains a growing IT and commercial sector. The city has the highest percentage of residents with post-secondary education in the province and the highest per capita income of any city in New Brunswick.
There is archaeological evidence of a camp in the area 12,000 years ago,[11] and the Wolastoqiyik farmed several kilometres upriver.[12]
Colonists from the Kingdom of France in the late 1600s built Fort Nashwaak on the north side of the Saint John River, as the capital of Acadia. It withstood a British attack in 1696, but the capital was later moved to Port Royal (Annapolis Royal).[13] In 1713, Acadians escaping the British takeover of Nova Scotia settled the site, naming it Pointe Ste-Anne. It was destroyed in 1758 when the population of about 83 were exiled during the expulsion of the Acadians.
It was in 1783, when United Empire Loyalists arrived from New England, that the history of modern Fredericton began. The following year, New Brunswick was partitioned from Nova Scotia and became its own colony. Pointe-Ste-Anne was renamed "Fredericstown", after Frederick, second son of King George III. It became the capital of the new colony, being considered to have a better defensive position than larger Saint John.[13]
The streets were laid out in the typical grid pattern of the time, with the names reflecting loyalist tendencies: Charlotte, Brunswick, George, King, and Queen.
It was a British garrison town from 1784 to 1869, and the military compound is preserved as a National Historic Site of Canada.[15]
With the New Brunswick Equal Opportunity program in the 1960s, county councils were abolished, and government services were centralized provincially in Fredericton, increasing jobs and population.
Geography
The Saint John River runs through Fredericton. The city's downtown core lies on the flat low-lying ground on either side of the river, with most of the city's post-war suburban development occurring on the gently sloping hills of the river valley.
At an altitude of about 17 m (56 ft) above sea level, Fredericton is nestled in the Pennsylvanian Basin. It differs markedly from the geologically older parts of the province. There are prominently two distinct areas in the region that are divided around the area of Wilsey Road, in the east end of the city. In the west side, the bedrock underneath the earth is topographically dominant, whereas the other is controlled by Pleistocene and recent deposits leading to the rivers (resulting in the area being shallow and wide). Fredericton and its surroundings are rich in water resources, which, coupled with highly arable soil, make the Fredericton region ideal for agriculture. The Saint John River and one of its major tributaries, the Nashwaak River, come together in Fredericton. The uninhabited parts of the city are heavily forested.
In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistics Canada, Fredericton had a population of 63,116 living in 28,478 of its 29,892 total private dwellings, a change of 7.5% from its 2016 population of 58,721. With a land area of 133.93 km2 (51.71 sq mi), it had a population density of 471.3/km2 (1,220.6/sq mi) in 2021.[24]
At the census metropolitan area (CMA) level in the 2021 census, the Fredericton CMA had a population of 108,610 living in 46,357 of its 48,761 total private dwellings, a change of 5.8% from its 2016 population of 102,690. With a land area of 6,014.66 km2 (2,322.27 sq mi), it had a population density of 18.1/km2 (46.8/sq mi) in 2021.[25]
The 2021 census reported that immigrants (individuals born outside Canada) comprise 7,790 persons or 12.6% of the total population of Fredericton. Of the total immigrant population, the top countries of origin were United Kingdom (765 persons or 9.8%), China (645 persons or 8.3%), United States of America (570 persons or 7.3%), Syria (505 persons or 6.5%), Philippines (500 persons or 6.4%), India (460 persons or 5.9%), Egypt (300 persons or 3.9%), Iran (245 persons or 3.1%), Lebanon (205 persons or 2.6%), and Democratic Republic of the Congo (180 persons or 2.3%).[26]
Ethnicity
In 2021, Fredericton was 82.5% white/European, 3.5% Indigenous and 14.0% visible minorities.[26] The largest visible minority groups were Black (2.9%), South Asian (2.9%), Arab (2.5%), Chinese (1.8%) and Filipino (1.0%).
Fredericton accepted the highest number of refugees from the Syrian Civil War per capita of any Canadian city.[27]
Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses
Language
English is spoken as a mother tongue by 80.2% of residents. Other mother tongues spoken are French (6.1%), Arabic (2.1%), Chinese languages (1.4%), Spanish (0.7%), Russian (0.6%), and Persian languages (0.5%). 1.4% of the population listed both English and French as mother tongues.
Religion
According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Fredericton included:[26]
The Government of New Brunswick and the universities are the primary employers. The policies of centralizing provincial government functions during the 1960s led to an expansion of the population.
The city has been investing actively in IT infrastructure. The City of Fredericton won the "Judges Innovation Award" at the 2004 Canadian Information Productivity Awards due to their "Fred-eZone" free municipality wide Wi-Fi initiative. This and other innovations by the city's utelco, e-Novations, led Intel to do a case study on their successes. Fred-eZone spans much of the city's downtown and parts of surrounding residential areas, as well as peripheral commercial areas such as Fredericton's Regent Mall. In 2008 and 2009 the Intelligent Community Forum selected Fredericton as a Top 7 Intelligent Community, based partly on the city's work in the IT sector.[38]
Arts and culture
The Playhouse is the main venue for Theatre New Brunswick, the province's largest professional theatre company.
Fredericton's beloved fountain "Freddy the Nude Dude",[40] officially known as "Putto with Fish" sits outside City Hall at 397 Queen St. "Freddy the Nude Dude" was donated to the city by Mayor George Edward Fentey, in 1885.[41] The statue depicts a nude Cherub and is a beloved fixture of downtown Fredericton. The famed statue has had some trouble since its historic arrival in 1885. In January 2013, "Freddy the Nude Dude" was taken south to Alabama for a replication of the original statue after 128 winters worth of damage.[42] The original Freddy is kept safely inside City Hall where it is protected from further weather damage.[41]
Carleton Park, part of the Northside Riverfront Trail, includes a boat launching area. The park was once the site of Alexander "Boss" Gibson's rail yard.
The Green, along the north and south banks of the Saint John River, a walking and biking trail.
Killarney Lake Park, a lakeside park with a beach and picnic spots as well as an extensive network of nature trails.
Odell Park features preserved forested areas, trails, spaces for picnics and gatherings, and the Fredericton Botanic Garden .st
Officers' Square is a venue for outdoor concerts and has an outdoor skating rink in the winter.
Queen Square Park, in the heart of Downtown Fredericton.
Reading Park (/ˈrɛdɪŋ/ⓘRED-ing) is a 130,000 m2 (33 acres) passive use park incorporating an open meadow, and a 1.1 km (0.68 mi) walking trail through an old-growth forest. The park's old-growth forest is one of the city's last remaining habitats for the pileated woodpecker.
Wilmot Park - a recreational park downtown.
Trail system
Fredericton has a network of 25 trails totaling more than 85 km (53 mi) on both sides of the Saint John and Nashwaak Rivers. Many of the city trails are rail trails that follow old railway lines. These include the Fredericton Railway Bridge that spans 0.6 km (0.37 mi) across the Saint John River. The rail trail system in Fredericton is part of the Sentier NB Trail system and some of these trails are also part of the larger Trans-Canada Trail network.
Fredericton has a non-partisan and Mayor–council government. The mayor and council serve four-year terms with elections in May. The city is divided into 12 wards, six on each side of the river, with one councillor per ward.
The Hugh John Flemming Forestry Centre researches in forestry management. Fredericton's Provincial Research Organization specializes in aquaculture, mining, manufacturing, energy and the environment.[49]
Fredericton started installing bicycle lanes in July 2008.[51]
Passenger rail service ended in the 1960s,[52] and freight in 1996. All railway tracks have been abandoned and removed.
Fredericton is served by the Maritime Bus fleet which provides connections to points throughout the Maritimes.[53][54]
The Trans-Canada Highway passes along the southern municipal boundary. Routes 7 and 8 (the latter being a former alignment of the Trans-Canada) also pass through the city. Two highway bridges, the Westmorland Street Bridge and the Princess Margaret Bridge, cross the Saint John River. Those bridges feed into controlled-access roads (Routes 8 and 105 serving the city's north side).
^Legal name is The City of Fredericton.[1] Even in French, the legal name is The City of Fredericton.[2]
^Extreme high and low temperatures in the table below are from Fredericton UNB (December 1871 to July 1913) and Fredericton CDA (August 1913 to present).
^Statistic includes all persons that did not make up part of a visible minority or an indigenous identity.
^Statistic includes total responses of "West Asian" and "Arab" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Chinese", "Korean", and "Japanese" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Filipino" and "Southeast Asian" under visible minority section on census.
^Statistic includes total responses of "Visible minority, n.i.e." and "Multiple visible minorities" under visible minority section on census.
Dallison, Robert L. "A Tour of Boss Gibson's Marysville: A Nineteenth Century Mill Town." Fredericton Heritage Trust, 1991.
Hachey, Philip Osmond "The geology and ground water of the Fredericton district." UNB Thesis, 1955.
McIntyre, Glen, Bruce Oliver and Bob Watson, "A Valuable and Important Place - Fredericton's Loyalist Origins 1783." A Fredericton Historical Research Project, 1983.
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