Page 14 - ACM175_Souvenir Book Demo

THE SEA
The ebb and flow of the tides is felt here like no other place on the earth. The bounty of the sea brought prosperity to the people of Albert County, from past days of shipbuilding and merchant vessels, to today’s lobster and scallop fishery, all timed around the rise and fall of the world’s highest tides. Shipbuilding was one of the most important industries in Albert County during the nineteenth century.
One of the largest ships built in New Brunswick, the Annie E. Wright, was launched in 1885 from the Turner Shipyard. The Annie E. was 238 feet long, 43 feet wide and 24 feet deep, with a registered weight of 1863 tons.The movement towards building more iron ships and less wooden ships in the early twentieth century brought to an end the "Golden Age of Sail".
Vessels returned with consumer goods for sale in the county including furniture, tropical fruit, clothing and kerosene used in lamps and stoves. Merchant marine activities meant goods and people travelling throughout the Maritimes, along the Eastern Seaboard and indeed around the world. Many family connections were formed with Boston, and when people wanted to visit “the city” it was there that they were referring to. These visits introduced locals to new cultural activities, entertainment, food, music and job opportunities. Many fineries were brought back with them to the county, including linens, dishware and personal items – many are on display in an exhibit at the Albert County Museum!
Following the Napoleonic Wars of the early 1800's, England was cut off from its supply of timber. Britain looked to its colony in North America to secure a steady supply of wood. Albert County, with its hills full of virgin timber surrounded by rivers which flow out into the Bay of Fundy, was an ideal location to fill this demand. As the timber was being cut down and turned into lumber, demand for vessels to transport the lumber increased. 331 wooden vessels are known to have been built in Albert County. The first recorded ship built in the area was the "Good Brig" built in 1793 by John Polley of Hopewell Hill. Twenty-two ships were built at the Turner Shipyard at Harvey Bank, owned and operated by Gaius Turner.
Meredith White Launch
Investment in railways and other ventures had become more profitable than investing in building ships. The last of the Tall Ships built in Albert County were the Meredith A. White and the Vincent A. White, built in Alma in 1918 for C. T. White and Son Ltd.
Proximity to the sea accounts for much of the prosperity in the region, and at the time of Confederation in 1867, Albert County was one of the wealthiest communities in Canada. “Captains of Industry” were shipping minerals such as gypsum and Albertite (refined to make kerosene), forestry products including logs and lumber, and agricultural products including marshland hay and apple tree scions for grafting.
Three Masted Schooner
41 EGAP AC.571CA.WWW TISIV - 571 YTNUOC TREBLA