Burtts Corner is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 rural community in York County

York County, New Brunswick

York County is located in west-central New Brunswick, Canada. The county contains the provincial capital, Fredericton. Outside the city, farming and forestry are two major industries in the county, which is bisected by the Saint John River...

, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

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It is located on the Keswick River

Keswick River

The Keswick River is a tributary of the St. John River in York County, New Brunswick in Canada. Early documents referred to it as Madam Keswick River....

, a tributary of the St. John River, between the communities of Keswick and Zealand

Zealand, New Brunswick

Zealand is a Canadian rural community in York County, New Brunswick.It is located on the Keswick River, a tributary of the St. John River, between the communities of Burtts Corner and Millville.-History:...

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History

In 1819, Benjamin Burtt married Elizabeth Crouse, the daughter of Loyalist

Loyalist (American Revolution)

Loyalists were American colonists who remained loyal to the Kingdom of Great Britain during the American Revolutionary War. At the time they were often called Tories, Royalists, or King's Men. They were opposed by the Patriots, those who supported the revolution...

 Philip Crouse, and they settled six kilometers from the mouth of the Keswick River

Keswick River

The Keswick River is a tributary of the St. John River in York County, New Brunswick in Canada. Early documents referred to it as Madam Keswick River....

 in what is today Burtts Corner.

Their son, Benjamin R. Burtt, opened the first Burtt's Store in the community between 1861 and 1871. In the store's early days, customers would often trade eggs for groceries. Later, he expanded his store and included a post office.

By the 1890s, Elwood Burtt—Benjamin and Elizabeth (Crouse) Burtt’s grandson—had taken over the Burtt's Store and opened his own storefront in the village. He also owned what became the town’s biggest employer, Burtt's Sawmill, which employed up to sixty men.

By taking over the Burtt's Store business, Elwood naturally took over the responsibility of the local post office. Running the post office was a profitable endeavour because it brought people into his store. In 1893, when the Canadian government was formally organizing a nationwide postal system, Elwood Burtt arranged for his Burtt's Store to be selected as the official post office location for the community and, more importantly, for himself to be the official postmaster.

At this time, the rapidly growing community was commonly called Cardigan Station, but this resulted in confusion with the mail destined for the nearby community of Cardigan. The community needed a more distinctive name, and Elwood Burtt was in the perfect position to influence the choice. Burtt's Store (for over 30 years) and Burtt's Sawmill (for over 20 years) had been in the community. Although other names were proposed, Burtt's Corner was the name that Elwood, as postmaster, helped get officially recognized.

The last, and generally unpopular, name change took place around 1985 when the town’s name was modified by the government. The possessive was dropped, so that Burtt’s Corner became Burtts Corner.