Initially settled as Parrtown in 1783 by several thousand Loyalists who emigrated from British-controlled New York City, Saint John was incorporated as a city in 1785. Another result of the arrival of pro-British American refugees north of the Bay of Fundy was the partition of Nova Scotia and the creation of the new British colony of New Brunswick in 1784. In our opening podcast episode, we examine the dramatic 1785 provincial election in Saint John, the colony’s largest settlement, which was punctuated by a riot. This contested election, the first in the colony, revealed simmering tensions among the Loyalist migrants that had been imported from New York. Demands by elite Loyalists for special treatment in terms of land grants sparked a backlash among the rank and file, many of whom were tradesmen, labourers, and ex-soldiers.
Saint John city and county was represented by six seats, almost a third of the total in the colonial assembly. In November 1785 the six elite government candidates, informally known as Upper Covers based on the geographic location of their residences and places of business, faced a slate of popular candidates who were identified with the less desirable Lower Cove area of the city. During the polling, rowdy Lower Cove supporters attacked the headquarters of their opponents, the Mallard House tavern on King Street. The riot was broken up by troops from the British garrison and the governor suspended the election for a few days. The end result of the election was a clear victory in Saint John for the candidates who spoke for the average Loyalist settler. The Upper Covers, who saw themselves as the natural governing elite in colonial society, based on their family background and connections, their education or wealth, called for a scrutiny or recount of the votes. The outcome was that enough pro-Lower Cove voters were disqualified to ensure a victory by the elite, many of whom would become well known in early New Brunswick public affairs. In early 1786, the first colonial assembly met and passed laws in the Mallard House, the scene of the 1785 riot.
This episode explores what the 1785 election and riot tell us about early Loyalist Saint John, which was very much a divided city. The electoral victory of the Upper Covers, together with the conservative leanings of Governor Thomas Carleton, set the stage for a repressive era in the colony, with restrictions on freedom of the press and petitioning. While the unrest was not the main reason why the capital of the new colony was moved to the small interior community of Fredericton, it helped justify that decision and contributed to tensions between the capital and Saint John that exist to this day.
Sources:
Bell, D.G., Early Loyalist Saint John : the origin of New Brunswick politics, 1783-1786 (Fredericton: New Ireland Press, 1983)
Bell. D.G., Loyalist Rebellion in New Brunswick: A Defining Conflict for Canada’s Political Culture (Halifax: Formac, 2013).
Condon, Ann Gorman, The Envy of the American States: The Loyalist Dream for New Brunswick (Fredericton: New Ireland Press, 1984).
MacNutt. W.S., New Brunswick, a history: 1784-1867 (Toronto: MacMillan, 1984).
Schuyler, George W., Saint John: Scenes from a Popular History (Halifax: Petheric Press, 1984).
Schuyler, George W., Saint John, two hundred years proud (1st ed). (Windsor Publications (Canada) : Produced in cooperation with the Saint John Bicentennial, 1984).
Additional Resources:
Jasanoff M., Liberty's Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World. (Knopf/Harper Press, 2011).
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