Dorchester, New Brunswick
Encyclopedia
Dorchester is a Canadian
village and shire town in Westmorland County
, New Brunswick
.
It is located on the eastern side of the mouth of the lush Memramcook River valley near the river's discharge point into Shepody Bay
. Dorchester is an English-speaking community but it is adjacent to French-speaking Acadian
areas farther up the Memramcook River valley.
, which operates a prison complex now comprising the medium-security (once maximum-security) Dorchester Penitentiary
, and the minimum-security Westmorland Institution.
Many residents commute to work in the nearby towns of Sackville
and Amherst
or the cities of Moncton and Dieppe
.
Although situated on the CN Rail main line between Halifax and Montreal
, Dorchester no longer has a passenger station, with travellers having to entrain/detrain in Sackville or Moncton. The nearest airport is the Greater Moncton International Airport
, a 40 km drive in Dieppe
.
Tourism is centred on the historic and natural features of the area. One of Dorchester's most historic buildings houses the Keillor House Museum. The annual shorebird migration to the mud flats of nearby Johnson's Mills is celebrated by an oversize model of a semi-palmated sandpiper situated in the village square.
".
It was a centre for the stagecoach, as well as a busy ship port.
The community was transformed with the construction in 1872 of the Intercolonial Railway between Halifax and Rivière-du-Loup.
In 1911 the village founded the Dorchester Light and Fire Company which is currently known as the Dorchester Volunteer Fire Department.
In 1965, the village courthouse was destroyed by arson. The building was never rebuilt, and much of the economy behind it left the community. Many in the community came to the town square to watch the building burn. The only thing left of the courthouse was the safe. It is now being used in the village hall, located where the courthouse once stood.
Premier Louis Robichaud
's government during the 1960s created an industrial park and deepwater loading pier at nearby Dorchester Cape as part of a regional economic development program. Envisioned to be used by the petro-chemical industry, the government constructed a new road and railway spur along with an electrical substation and the pier as well as a building that was envisioned to be used as a fertilizer plant. The industrial park had no tenants and the pier sitting in the Memramcook River was quickly silted in by mud from the tides of the Bay of Fundy
. Today all that remains are the roads and the railbed as well as some broken street lights, a deteriorating sea wall and the empty shell of the abandoned fertilizer plant.
In 1993, the jailhouse was also closed. It is currently a gym and storage facility.
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...
village and shire town in Westmorland County
Westmorland County, New Brunswick
Westmorland County is located in southeastern New Brunswick, Canada. The county contains the fast-growing commercial centre of Moncton as well as its northern and eastern suburbs...
, 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...
.
It is located on the eastern side of the mouth of the lush Memramcook River valley near the river's discharge point into Shepody Bay
Shepody Bay
Shepody Bay is a 122 km² coastal wetland in New Brunswick, Canada. It was designated a Ramsar wetland of international importance on May 27, 1987, is a globally significant Important Bird Area, and is part of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network...
. Dorchester is an English-speaking community but it is adjacent to French-speaking Acadian
Acadian
The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...
areas farther up the Memramcook River valley.
Economy
The village's main employer today is the Correctional Service of CanadaCorrectional Service of Canada
The Correctional Service of Canada , or CSC, is the Canadian federal government agency responsible for the incarceration and rehabilitation of convicted criminal offenders sentenced to two years or more...
, which operates a prison complex now comprising the medium-security (once maximum-security) Dorchester Penitentiary
Dorchester Penitentiary
The Dorchester Penitentiary is a Canadian federal corrections facility located in the village of Dorchester, New Brunswick....
, and the minimum-security Westmorland Institution.
Many residents commute to work in the nearby towns of Sackville
Sackville, New Brunswick
Sackville is a Canadian town in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.Mount Allison University is located in the town...
and Amherst
Amherst, Nova Scotia
Amherst is a Canadian town in northwestern Cumberland County, Nova Scotia.Located at the northeast end of the Cumberland Basin, an arm of the Bay of Fundy, Amherst is strategically situated on the eastern boundary of the Tantramar Marshes 3 kilometres east of the interprovincial border with New...
or the cities of Moncton and Dieppe
Dieppe, New Brunswick
Dieppe is a Canadian city in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.-Geography:Dieppe is located on the Petitcodiac River east of the adjacent city of Moncton...
.
Although situated on the CN Rail main line between Halifax and Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Dorchester no longer has a passenger station, with travellers having to entrain/detrain in Sackville or Moncton. The nearest airport is the Greater Moncton International Airport
Greater Moncton International Airport
Greater Moncton International Airport or Moncton/Greater Moncton International Airport is located in the city of Dieppe east northeast of downtown Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada...
, a 40 km drive in Dieppe
Dieppe, New Brunswick
Dieppe is a Canadian city in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.-Geography:Dieppe is located on the Petitcodiac River east of the adjacent city of Moncton...
.
Tourism is centred on the historic and natural features of the area. One of Dorchester's most historic buildings houses the Keillor House Museum. The annual shorebird migration to the mud flats of nearby Johnson's Mills is celebrated by an oversize model of a semi-palmated sandpiper situated in the village square.
History
The shire town of the county, Dorchester has several fine historic homes and civic buildings. During the 19th century, Dorchester and neighbouring Dorchester Island were important shipbuilding centres. Numerous master mariners also lived in Dorchester and vicinity during the "Age of SailAge of Sail
The Age of Sail was the period in which international trade and naval warfare were dominated by sailing ships, lasting from the 16th to the mid 19th century...
".
It was a centre for the stagecoach, as well as a busy ship port.
The community was transformed with the construction in 1872 of the Intercolonial Railway between Halifax and Rivière-du-Loup.
In 1911 the village founded the Dorchester Light and Fire Company which is currently known as the Dorchester Volunteer Fire Department.
In 1965, the village courthouse was destroyed by arson. The building was never rebuilt, and much of the economy behind it left the community. Many in the community came to the town square to watch the building burn. The only thing left of the courthouse was the safe. It is now being used in the village hall, located where the courthouse once stood.
Premier Louis Robichaud
Louis Robichaud
Louis Joseph Robichaud, PC, CC, QC , popularly known as "Little Louis" or "P'tit-Louis" , was a Canadian lawyer and politician...
's government during the 1960s created an industrial park and deepwater loading pier at nearby Dorchester Cape as part of a regional economic development program. Envisioned to be used by the petro-chemical industry, the government constructed a new road and railway spur along with an electrical substation and the pier as well as a building that was envisioned to be used as a fertilizer plant. The industrial park had no tenants and the pier sitting in the Memramcook River was quickly silted in by mud from the tides of the Bay of Fundy
Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine...
. Today all that remains are the roads and the railbed as well as some broken street lights, a deteriorating sea wall and the empty shell of the abandoned fertilizer plant.
In 1993, the jailhouse was also closed. It is currently a gym and storage facility.
Trivia
- Dorchester appears fictionalized in Douglas HowDouglas HowDouglas George How was a Canadian journalist, magazine editor, and author. He was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba but after his father's death the family returned to Dorchester, New Brunswick where his mother was born and where Douglas grew up...
's humorous book Blow Up the Trumpet in the New Moon (1993). - The song Dorchester by Matt Minglewood is about the Dorchester Penitentiary.
- Dorchester is home to the world's largest sandpiper.
- The Bell Inn Restaurant is believed to be the oldest stone building in New Brunswick (1811). It is also in the book of Where To Eat In Canada.