Elm Hill, New Brunswick Explained

Official Name:Elm Hill
Settlement Type:Unincorporated community
Pushpin Map:New Brunswick
Pushpin Label Position:Elm Hill
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of Elm Hill in New Brunswick
Pushpin Mapsize:225
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Type3:Parish
Subdivision Name3:Hampstead
Seat Type:Electoral Districts   
Federal
Parts Type:Provincial
Population As Of:2016
Population Total:25
Timezone:AST
Utc Offset:-4
Timezone Dst:ADT
Utc Offset Dst:-3
Coordinates:45.62°N -66.08°W
Area Code:506

Elm Hill is a community in Hampstead Parish, New Brunswick, Canada. It is significant as the last surviving Black Canadian community in New Brunswick.[1]

History

Elm Hill was established by black Loyalists from Virginia in 1806, as one of Canada's earliest black communities. Throughout the 1800s, the community enjoyed a period of relative prosperity, as its remoteness allowed the residents to develop their economy free from outside interference.[2] Located on the St. John River between Saint John and Fredericton, Elm Hill functioned well while the steamers plied the river, stopping there to transport people and products. Once the railroad replaced the river as the highway, however, the community's isolation worked against it.[3] Elm Hill had been a self-sufficient farming community until the 1960s, when many area residents moved to urban areas for better opportunities. Those remaining were not able to keep up the farms, and decline set in. Elm Hill once supported a post office, a store, two churches (Pentecostal and Baptist), and a school although those are all now closed.[4]

As of the 2016 census, the area is still home to 25 residents, many involved in small-scale farming operations or employed in government jobs.[5]

The community was previously known as Otnabog (1854–1893), Upper Otnabog (1876–1911), and Pleasant Villa (1911–1933), before the name was changed back to Elm Hill.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Hodges, Graham Russell (1996). The Black Loyalist Directory. New York: Garland Publishing Inc.
  2. Rickards . Sue . Social Economy Stories . February 2010 . 25 February 2019.
  3. Web site: Practicing Social Activism Women Social Activists of Atlantic Canada . womenactivists.lib.unb.ca . 25 February 2019.
  4. Book: Spray. William . The Blacks in New Brunswick. 1972. Brunswick Press. 7 February 2018.
  5. Web site: Statistics Canada Community Profiles . statscan.gc.ca . Statistics Canada . 7 February 2018.
  6. Web site: Provincial Archives of New Brunswick . archives.gnb.ca.