Carriage makers, Daniel and Elisha Wheaton, the sons of Mary Kennedy and David Wheaton (1765-1851), were born about 1825 and 1822 respectively, in the parish of Sackville, Westmorland County, New Brunswick. By the early 1850s, both Elisha and Daniel were working in the carriage-making trade at Upper Sackville, Daniel as a carriage maker and Elisha as a blacksmith. Elisha and his wife, Rebecca Kinnear, had no fewer than 8 children: Lucetty, Calvin, Anne, Herbert, Frank (1855-1927), Sarah, Frederick, and Carrie. These records suggest that Frank Wheaton had joined his father in the business by the 1880s. Other members of the Wheaton family were probably employed by the firm.

In addition to the manufacture and repair of wagons, carriages and carts, Wheaton Brothers made woodwork for carriages, racks, flooring, coffins, and iron work. The business also sold other goods: clapboards, shingles, lumber, cloth, clothing, boots, shoes, oats, hay, maple sugar, and flour. Customers paid their accounts in cash, kind, or labour. The business was still functioning in 1904.

The 391-ton "Waterloo", the first square-rigged ship built at St. Martins (also known as Quaco), New Brunswick., was launched in 1815. Constructed by James Moran, the vessel was owned by timber merchants and shipowners John Ward & Sons, of Saint John. Loyalist John Ward (ca. 1753-1846), who was born in Westchester County, New York, immigrated to New Brunswick with his regiment, the "Loyal Americans," at the end of the Revolutionary War. He became engaged in commercial pursuits there, along with his sons, John (d. 1875), Charles (d. 1882), and Caleb (d. 1821). The family firm was located at the corner of South Wharf and Ward streets for many years. John Ward was also involved in municipal and provincial politics, sitting as an alderman for the city of Saint John, from 1799 to 1809, and later as a member of the House of Assembly for Saint John County and city.

Beginning in 1815, the "Waterloo" was engaged in the timber trade. The ship was captained, on separate occasions, by either Charles Hare (d. 1859) or William Dudne (d. 1865), both master mariners from Saint John, on its voyages to Liverpool, England. John Ward & Sons shipped cargo -- white pine, red pine, birch, deals, staves, deal ends, lathwood, and timber -- that was consigned to either Addison & Bagott or George B. Brown, both of Liverpool. In July 1812, when the disbursment book begins, the ship was on her 8th timber voyage. The 17th and last trip was made in 1826. In that year, the "Waterloo" was sold in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The ship continued in use until 1852 when it was lost at sea.

Sources: "John Ward," "Dictionary of Canadian Biography" on-line; Esther Clark Wright, "The Ships of St. Martins," and Daniel Johnson, "Vital Statistics from New Brunswick Newspapers".

In March 1968 the three premiers of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island announced that they were sponsoring a special study of Maritime union, including the possibilities of economic and other forms of regional co-ordination and co-operation. Dr. J.J. Deutsch, principal of Queen's University, formerly chair of the Economic Council of Canada agreed to act as special advisor. He was an economist who had worked with the federal departments of Finance and External Affairs and had been involved with numerous royal commissions and international organizations including GATT and the IMF.

F.R. Drummie, economic advisor to the New Brunswick government was appointed Executive Director of the study. He was also an economist, a graduate of the University of New Brunswick and a Rhodes scholar who had worked for the Ganong Company in St. Stephen before beginning to work for the newly elected Liberal government of New Brunswick in 1961. The purpose of the study was to provide a basis for serious political discussion of the possibilities of union. It was not intended to recommend or reject union, but to identify those areas where improvements could be achieved through integration, specialization, co-ordination and co-operation.

The study examined written submissions and held public hearings. It also conducted specialized research in specific areas. These areas included general government, development policy, social policy, intergovernmental relations, and a survey of professional associations and societies. The final report of the study was published in October 1970.

The first predecessor organization of the Defence Medical Association of Canada was the Association of Military Surgeons of Canada, founded in 1892. Its early history is obscure but, in 1907, it became the Association of Medical Officers of the Militia of Canada and then in 1936, the Defence Medical Association of Canada. The purpose of the Association was to keep the members of the medical branches of the Armed Services in close contact with the rest of the medical profession in Canada. The membership included active, reserve and retired members of the Medical Services.

The Association encouraged the formation of provincial branches, which were subordinate to the national body and interested in local questions. There was a branch in New Brunswick from 1949 to 1957 and probably both before and after these dates. The branch was closely associated with the New Brunswick Medical Society and on occasion met at their annual conventions.

The New Brunswick Optometrical Society was created in 1921 by act of the provincial Legislature. It was loosely based on the Royal Optometrical Society of Britain and intended as a self-governing body to oversee the practice of optometrical sciences in the province. This included eye-glass grinding and lensing, the prescription of eye-glasses, corrective surgery, eye-care advice and diagnosis and treatment of ailments and infections. The society was to establish and enforce standards for certifying ophthalmologists and optometrists.

Initially, the society was closely tied to the British Royal Society, both in standards of conduct and in actual medical practice. However, after the 1940s, the influx of American technology and practice led to emulation of American optometry. In the 1950s, the society was renamed the New Brunswick Association of Optometrists. By 1978, the Optometry Act was revised to cover new techniques and practices, such as contact lenses and more sophisticated surgical procedures. During its existence, the association has had close ties to other provincial and national associations, and has been especially active in public education campaigns on eye care and health, free eye testing for the young and the elderly, public clinics, and eye wear for the poor.

The Maritime Electric Company was incorporated in 1917 and supplied electrical energy to clients in Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. Offices were situated in Charlottetown, Fredericton and St. Andrews with the main office in St. Stephen, N.B. The company was one of several competing electrical and power companies in the province. In 1920 the government appointed a commission to manage the new industry. The New Brunswick Electric Power Commission was responsible for producing power itself, as well as contracting with other producers. The Maritime Electric Company was contracted to supply power at the Devon sub-station on Hughes Lane in Fredericton. The Maritime Electric Company was still in operation in the mid-1940s when the government began to centralize electrical production under the New Brunswick Power Commission.

The French speaking proportion of the New Brunswick electorate more than doubled in the first half of the twentieth century. As a result, there was increasing demand in the 1960s and 1970s for a larger voice for Acadians in provincial politics. The Parti Acadien was a separatist party, formed in 1972 by a group of intellectuals in north-east New Brunswick. In the 1974 and 1978 provincial elections, the Parti Acadien failed to win any seats. Their best showing was in Restigouche West in 1978, when Armand Plourde came within 172 votes of defeating the Liberal candidate. However, changes such as the equalization program and the policy of bilingualism, begun by the Liberals in the 1960s and continued by the Conservatives in the 1970s, had already begun to undermine support for more extreme measures and the Parti Acadien was disbanded in 1982.

The Sussex Cheese and Butter Company, of Sussex, Kings County, New Brunswick, was started in 1898 to market cheese and other dairy products from local farms. As the company grew, they expanded into ice cream and other dairy products. In 1949, this success led to the formation of a new venture, owned by the Sussex Cheese and Butter Co., called the Millstream Dairy Creamery Co. 9. Both companies were bought out in 1974 by the Barbours Dairy Ltd. Co.

American promoter and venture capitalist Malcolm Bricklin, seeking a factory site and financial backing for manufacture of a North American sports car, was approached in the mid-1970s by the New Brunswick government with loan guarantees of over $2,880,000 plus $500,000 for the purchase of a 51% interest in the company. Bricklin accepted the arrangement and the Bricklin Vehicle Corporation established manufacturing facilities in Saint John and Minto, New Brunswick.

Bricklin dealerships were established throughout the United States and Canada, but the venture failed. The cars had technical and design problems, especially their distinctive "gull-wing" door. The company was unable to join the Canada-US Automotive Agreement, which meant prohibitive duties would be charged. The company went into massive debt to the province, and in the end, only 2857 cars were made, most of which went to the United States. By 1978, the company had gone into receivership and all of its assets were frozen, then sold.

Born at Galway, Albert County on 26 August 1880, Arthur Jerome O'Connor was a lumber merchant in Saint John, New Brunswick during the second decade of the twentieth century. In the 1920s he served as vice-president of Bonny River Lumber Co. Ltd., located near Saint George, New Brunswick. In 1924, most of the assets of Albert Lumber Company were sold to Bonny River Lumber Company, although Albert Lumber Company continued to exist for several years.

Source: Prominent People of the Maritimes Provinces, 1922.