Maps and Context

Kingsclear Parish is a community located in York County, New Brunswick. in 1963, R.O. Semper found a gun barrel being used in place of a survey marker between Kingsclear First Nations and St. Ann's Catholic Church. Before exploring the implications of that barrel, one must look into the history of the Parish/Reserve itself.

Established c. 1800, Kingsclear seems small but it has a large history. For the purpose of this exhibit, we will be exploring the history between 1944-1963. According to Kingsclear First Nations, Kingsclear was the subject of a centralization plan in 1944 to move all Maliseets to one reserve despite heavy opposition from other reserves such as St. Mary's. This was done to keep the small school operational. Despite promises of farms, livestock and gardens, the most anyone recieved for relocating was a small goat. This account has been corroborated through examining the St. Mary's local history as well as an interesting excerpt from the Department of Mines and Resources which mentioned the transportating of a group of goats from St. John's River Valley to Kingsclear in 1947-8 and their intended distribution. This negative attitude and oppression towards First Nations people in the area sets a possible stage for the placement of the gun barrel.