Travels
Fredericton Finds its Place
By The Gremotraveler
Canada's east coast is known as being one of the friendliest and most beautiful areas in the country with blue skies, rolling hills, and water vistas. While most people think of Atlantic Canada as a place to find fresh seafood from an old wharf on a foggy harbour, one inland city has started to shine as a cultural and foodie capital, sans the Maritime theme.
Fredericton, the "City of Stately Elms", owes its life to the mighty St. John River that flows through its heart. The river, with its wide, deep waters, was the transportation lifeline that brought people to its rich, fertile shares. For hundreds of years, it was a seasonal stop for Maliseet and Mi'kmaq who hunted, fished, grew corn and squash along the Woolastook - their name for the St. John River. Between 1672 and 1700 the French King assigned land grants, and in 1692, Joseph Robineau de Villebon established a fort where the Nashwaak River drains into the St. John. The handful of settlers who lived near the fort became prosperous fur traders. The Fredericton area was not settled again until 1732 when a group of French Acadians established Ste. Anne's Point. At the end of the American Revolution in 1783, about 34,000 Americans loyal to the British crown fled the Thirteen Colonies for Nova Scotia. More than 14,000 of them settled in present-day New Brunswick, and by October 8, 1783, some 2,000 Loyalists had ascended the St. John River Valley to Ste. Anne's Point and on February 22, 1785, renamed the settlement "Fredericstown", in honour of Prince Frederick, second son of King George III.
This was the humble beginnings of a great little city where the local bounty of the fertile St. John River Valley would meet to share their harvest with the masses. The tradition of being a center for local food from the valley still lives today, over 200 years later. Fredericton's original market since 1951, The Boyce Market, is open every Saturday, 6 am to 1 pm with over 200 vendors and is named in honor of its main benefactor, William Walter Boyce. The Farmers' Market in Fredericton actually pre-dates the city's founding. In 1785, area residents petitioned the governor of the day to create a townsite a prerequisite for holding a market. The Boyce Market building was constructed in 1951. In June 2006, it was named one of the top eight Farmers' Markets to visit in Canada by Harrowsmith Magazine.
Every Saturday, local farmers, artisans, craftspeople, and others offer a tempting variety of fresh meat, garden vegetables, home baked goods, maple syrup, and all sorts of other goodies from the farm. You can also find fresh local flowers, handcrafts, jewelry and more. A local tradition for many is to enjoy a home cooked breakfast in the small cafe area before heading to the various stalls.
The locals are passionate about their food and the traditions of the local market and in 2007, the famous samosas sold at Patel's and Samosa Delite caused an uproar on the local foodie scene almost as monumental as the day prohibition was lifted. Patel's has been in business for 30 years, and Samosa Delite for 17 years. Samosa Delite alone sells between 7,000 and 10,000 samosas every Saturday. The demand for these spicy treats caused extensive line-ups at both booths and raised security issues for the market management. It was decided to move them outside of the main building to ease congestion, causing a public outcry. The issue was that the two vendors relied on a steady flow of samosas through the morning, moving them outside would have disrupted the deliveries and made the venture unprofitable for the two businesses. The story made national headlines as the market officials, the samosa vendors, and the public weighed in on the debate. By February, the vendors took a vacation from the market and the people of Fredericton had no samosas. Under pressure from the panic struck public, the market eventually moved Samosa Delite to a new venue outside the main building with adequate infrastructure to support demand. Patels' remained inside the main market building. Finally, the foodie universe was aligned again.
Recently, another controversy has hit the Boyce Market. The current owners, York County Properties, announced in April of this year that they want to sell the property and the market to the city for $1.5 million. The issue, according to the city, is that the land is not theirs to sell. The debate continues and many Fredericton residents are upset by this latest development and the potential loss of their beloved market. No decision has been made but once again, the residents of Fredericton are up in arms over the future of their iconic meeting place.
Outside of the market, Fredericton offers a variety of restaurants, from English-style pubs to fusion cuisine. The city has drawn a variety of entrepreneurs from far away that have set up family businesses featuring food from their home including authentic Mexican, Greek, Caribbean, and Asian flavours. Chris and Debbie Black are two of these very entrepreneurs. They moved from Vancouver to Fredericton and have brought more than 30 years of experience in some of Vancouver and Whistler's top restaurants to create The Blue Door (100 Regent Street). Located in a historic brick building in the heart of downtown, the restaurant offers a variety of Asian and Moroccan inspired dishes. Their chefs have developed close relationships with local farmers from the St. John River Valley allowing them to offer the freshest food possible. They have also taken a leadership role in trying to source and utilize as much sustainable seafood as possible. One treat on a warm summer day is to relax on their rooftop patio with a mojito, made with fresh mint from their roof top summer herb garden.
Fredericton is a cultural capital of Canada, that's right, look out Toronto. The city has some of the most diverse galleries, museums, and artisans of any city its size in North America. A must see is the spectacular Beaverbrook Gallery of Art, internationally known for its outstanding collection of British paintings from the Elizabethan era to the modern period and for its Dali, Krieghoff and Gainsborough collections. Everywhere you look in this city, you will find creativity. In fact, the city was recently named the 2009 Cultural Capital of Canada. The city prides itself on cultural education and experience-based tourism. Their edVentures program offers a variety of hands-on learning workshops and events focused on the arts and history. However, if you are true foodie with a passion for food history, you will need to take a brief trip outside the city to King's Landing Historical Settlement. Kings Landing grew out of the massive Mactaquac Dam Project which began in the 1960s. The flooding of the Valley from the new dam disrupted long established communities and farms on the banks of the St. John River. The first settlers used the river as a highway and therefore built their homes along its banks. To preserve the historic buildings, a new "settlement" was created by moving historically and architecturally significant buildings out of the flood plain to what is now Kings Landing. Today, visitors are transported to a fully-functional village during the transition from the Loyalists to the late Victorians in the time period 1780s to 1910.
Visitors interact with the "locals" in a living museum with over 70 historic buildings, complete with artefacts, furniture, tools and equipment. You can see the traditional farming techniques of the loyalists, see meal being created at the working grist mill, and experience butter-churning and baking by the local wives of the community. Throughout the year, the park showcases various themed weekends and workshops. In August, the annual agricultural exhibition showcases hand-crafted, home-cooked or hand-picked work from the houses and trades display the talent and ingenuity of early settlers. If you are looking for something a bit-more hands on, their edVentures workshop on Herbs and Medicines teaches the medicinal needs of a 19th century community and how they were met with natural remedies. Participants stroll the lanes and gardens with a costumed herbalist learning about natural solutions to make salves, poultices, and teas sure to cure the ailments of any family.
If time allows, a trip to the King's Head Inn is an experience not to be missed. The Inn offers hearty 19th century fare, served by the park's costumed staff in a warm 1855 atmosphere. The food is prepared using locally grown park ingredients and prepared using traditional methods. Nestled in the heart of the village, the Inn used to be a stopping place for travelers to have a meal or spend the night. Today, you can enjoy a traditional meal, a pint in the pub, or perhaps a cup of old-fashioned tea and a scone.
By the time the sun sets, you will need a place to rest your head. The region does offer a wide range of hotel accommodations however the best way is by bed and breakfast. The historic city centre offers a wide variety of options, from restored salt boxes in the central town plat to massive mansions along historic Waterloo Row. The Carriage House Inn (230 University Ave) is a Victorian Queen Anne style mansion built in 1875 by lumber baron and former mayor, Harry Beckwith. Located adjacent to Christ Church Cathedral (a National Historic Site built in 1845) the inn offers a relaxing space in an ideal corner of the city to start your sightseeing. A 5-minute walk from downtown, guests have easy access to the city's trail system to explore the valley by bicycle or rollerblade.
Whether you are in town for a week or simply a weekend, Fredericton is full of great hands-on experiences for foodies and history buffs. It is clean, quiet, picturesque, and friendly. You can spend the entire time exploring the sights or spend a lazy afternoon lying on the "The Green", the city's extensive riverfront parkland, with a good book and a cappuccino. A hard choice to make.
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