Indian Island (Bay of Fundy)
Native name: Misigne'goos | |
|---|---|
 An 1830 map showing Indian Island just east of what it dubbed the "Quoddy Hell Gate" in reference to the Old Sow whirlpool. | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Bay of Fundy |
| Highest elevation | 30 m (100 ft)[1] |
| Administration | |
Canada | |
| Province | New Brunswick |
| County | Charlotte County |
Indian Island is one of the Fundy Isles, sparsely populated in the West Isles Parish of the Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick, Canada.[2] Approximately a mile long and comprising 150 acres, it is located between Moose Island, Deer Island and Campobello Island.[3] Immediately to its south, there are three small rocky islets, Cherry Island, Jouett's Island and Marvel Island.[4][1]
Name and Geography
[edit]It was historically called Fish Island, Perkins Island, Le Arterail Island, and finally Indian Island.[3] In the Passamaquoddy-Maliseet language it has been called Jeganagoose,[3] and Misik-Negus[4] or Misigne'goos and believed to have only been used as a burial site for neighbour native tribes.[2][5]
It is principally altered slate.[6]
Jouett's Island is four acres comprised of soil over conglomerate, with a former mansion belonging to Captain Moses.[6]
History
[edit]The island was first known to be settled by the British goldsmith James Chaffey Sr. in 1760, who began trading for native furs.[5] Chaffey himself suggested there may have been earlier French settlers on the island as he had seen the ruins of a stone chimney, and clearings in the woods for a European-style garden and linear planting of currants and berries.[3] In 1765, the island, under the name "Perkins Island", was granted to a New England company.[7]
By 17678, a man named John Fontaine, also known as John Fountain, moved to the island with his children; his daughter marrying Chaffey Sr.[5] The third to settle on the island was Goldsmith, who together with Chaffey Sr. started a salt plant, boiling down ocean water.[5] The Chaffey family remained closely associated with the island's development, James Chaffey Jr. having two wives and 19 children while carrying on his shipping business.[8]
Following Chaffey Sr.'s death in 1796, new settlers came to the island including Col. Thomas Wyer and Daniel McMasters from St.Andrews who established fish stores, John Wilson of Chamcook who traded in fish and lumber, as well as Mr. Freeman.[3] Around 1811, Mr. Henderson who had previously been customs collector at Campobello was re-assigned to start a Customs House at Indian Island in light of the flour and other goods being smuggled from the United States as they could earn $10-50 in a night of smuggling.[3] On the second day of the War of 1812, three schooners were moored at Indian Island and a privateer ship approached sending out two smaller boats of armed men with the intent of capturing them. A delay by the armed men of the island allowed two schooners to slip their cables and beachthemselves,but Merritt's schooner tried to sail for St Andrews and was captured by the privateer.
Following the war, Thomas Wyer was appointed Deputy Treasurer for West Isles & Campobello, with his office to be situated on Indian Island, succeeded by Richard Armstrong who built the large Customs House on Little Thrum Cap Islet.[3] C.H. Jouett, for whom an islet is now named, later came to occupy the same position overseeing cargoes of fish and lumber en route to the West Indies and returning with sugar, molasses and rum.[3]
The island hit its peak population of approximately 100 residents in the 1820s,[5] as a trading centre that rivaled St. Andrews.[5] The island was aided by an unmanned lighthouse on Cherry Island and a Customs Office on Thrum Cap.[5] At that time, there were 13 large West Indies trading vessels owned at Indian Island included J&J Chaffey's Queen of the Isles and Cavalier Jovett, "Indian Queen" and "Elizabeth Mary", J. Patterson's "Mary Stubbs" and "Eliza Ann", John McKenney's ""Lady Douglas" and "Lord of the Isles", W. Hatheway's "Indian Chief", Ebenezer Scott's "Aeolus", Charles Guay's "Papoose", "Le'Aterail" and "Eugenia"[5][3] However the opening of ports in the West Indies was disastrous to the island community and by 1849 it had no mercantile ships.[5] Following the 1835 death of Chaffey Jr, the trading business declined sharply as 12 of 13 trading vessels left Indian Island, and the only remaining merchant vessel the Chaffey was wrecked in 1849.[3] Focus turned to fishing.[3]
In July 1861, J. E. Dixon of Indian Island was appointed as Collector and Treasurer for customs revenue for the West Isles and Campobello although the Thrum Cap customs house had collapsed and been replaced with one on the main island.[3]
During the 1866 Fenian Raids, a group of Irish-American militants led by Bernard Doran Killian, a colleague of D'arcy McGee, crossed to Indian Island to demand Dixon surrender the British flag that flew over the Customs House.[5] The militants returned on April 21 and set fire to four large storehouses at Guay's Wharf that contained liquor, tobacco, tea and salt.[5] Some time thereafter, a third attempt was made by Fenians filling two large rowboats to infiltrate and attack inside the Fundy Isles but was spotted and repelled.[3]
Following Confederation, Indian Island remained a central hub serving as the sole polling station for the region including Grand Manan for at least four elections.[3] It was also the muster site of the Charlotte County Militia.[3]
The island was logged of its spruce and fir trees in 1957.[5] On May 2, 1995 a 55' fishing boat from Deer Island sank off the coast of Indian Island, with all three crew rescued.[9]
In 1998, the southeast corner of Indian Island was the site of only the second-ever find of a fossil from the rodentia Giant Beaver, a damaged upper-right incisor tooth.[10]
References
[edit]
- ^ a b https://nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/publications/coast-pilot/files/cp1/CPB1_C04_WEB.pdf
- ^ a b "Carleton County". archives.gnb.ca.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Lorimer, J[ohn] G. [from old catalog (1876). History of islands & islets in the Bay of Fundy, Charlotte County, New Brunswick;. The Library of Congress. St. Stephen, N.B., Printed at the office of the Saint Croix courier.
- ^ a b "THE BAY OF PASSAMAQUODDY" (PDF). dn790004.ca.archive.org.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "The Story of Indian Island" (PDF). www.heritagecharlotte.com.
- ^ a b Gesner, Abraham. "First Geological Survey of the Province of New Brunswick", 1839 - https://ia801307.us.archive.org/1/items/cihm_44810/
- ^ https://carensecord.ca/locations/NewBrunswick/Glimpses/XXXVI.html
- ^ "Ruby M Cusack - Chaffey Dynasty of Indian Island, New Brunswick". www.rubycusack.com. Retrieved 2025-02-12.
- ^ http://www.deerislandpointpark.com/Oldsow.html
- ^ "A giant beaver (Castoroides ohioensis Foster) fossil from New Brunswick, Canada" (PDF). www.erudit.org.