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Canada's only official bilingual province. New Brunswick is one of the best whale watching sites in the world; the Bay of Fundy hosts fifteen different whale species that can be observed from land.
New Brunswick was originally home to the Mi'kmaq and the Maliseet peoples. The French were the first Europeans to settle in the province in 1604, later forming the Acadian colony. After the British victory in the Seven Years War, exiled Acadians settled in northern New Brunswick in the area now known as the Acadian Peninsula.
New Brunswick entered confederation as one of Canada's four original provinces. After the anti-confederation movement died down, the province became a Liberal stronghold. The Conservatives did not make a comeback until 1952, when Hugh John Flemming was elected premier. Louis J. Robichaud's Liberals took back power in 1960. As an Acadian, Robichaud was responsible for making the province bilingual and extending government services to isolated Acadians in the north. In 1970 Richard Hatfield led the PCs back to power for a seventeen year term, ending in 1987 when Frank McKenna's Liberals took all 58 House seats. The PCs returned in 1999 with premier Bernard Lord. In 2006, Lord's government was defeated by current Liberal premier Shawn Graham. |
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