I am participating in the Canucks Content Carnival monthly writing prompts. The prompt for March is “My Hometown”.
We moved to “the valley” almost 35 years ago and have been loving it ever since! The valley, is on the outskirts of Saint John and consists of two towns, Rothesay and it’s sister, Quispamsis. I lived in what is now Rothesay for 10 years before buying a house and moving to the sister community of Quispamsis, where we have lived for the past 15 years.
Quispamsis: pronounced kwɪs-pam-sɪs, is a suburban community in Kings County, New Brunswick. It is located 20 kilometers northeast of Saint John, in the lower Kennebecasis River Valley.
A ferry system connecting Quispamsis to neighbouring communities on the Kingston Penninsula.
Population: 17,886 {2011 Census}
Some Notable Residents: (from Quispamsis and surrounding areas) –
- Laura Calder, chef, cookbook author and television personality is originally from the Kingston Penninsula
- Louis B. Mayer, Hollywood producer of MGM fame, was born in the Russian Empire but raised in Saint John.
- Stompin’ Tom Connors, musician was born in Saint John
- Donald Sutherland, actor was born in Saint John
- Randy Jones, NHL playerJ
- John Peters Humphrey, one of the drafters of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Hampton
On the Gondola Point beach in Quispamsis during a recent “beach clean-up”.
History: The original inhabitants of the area were the Maliseet First Nation, part of the Algonquin Federation. The name, “Quispamsis” was translated from the Maliseet language and means, “little lake in the woods”, the lake being present-day Ritchie Lake. Acadians, British pre-Loyalists and Loyalists settled in the area around 1783, with many receiving land grants along the Kennebecasis and Hammond Rivers.
Quispamsis amalgamated in 1998 with the nearby communities of Gondola Point and Wells to form the present town, covering an area of 60 km² and bordering the town of Rothesay to the southwest with the Hammond River along its northeastern boundary. Quispamsis is the fastest growing town in the province of New Brunswick.
An ice fishing village on the Kennebecasis River.
Parks: There are many ways to keep fit and busy in Quispamsis. There is a wide variety of recreational parks which offer beautiful scenery and unique amenities. We also have a state of the art recreation centre that includes a playground, seasonal swimming pool, ice rink and indoor walking track.
Sailboats on the Kennebecasis River at Quispamsis {Photo attribution: http://www.quispamsis.ca/photo_gallery.htm}
I think I live in one of the most beautiful places with some of the friendliest people in the entire country…but, of course, I am a bit biased!
Where do you live? Tell me about your city, town, village?
Have you ever been ice-fishing or on a ferry?
I invite you to check out the posts in today’s carnival and learn a bit about hometowns of some other Canadian bloggers.
What a great post, Monica! I just love the Maritimes. I have been to St. John once. I got to spend a little time there and then took a drive along the north-shore of the Bay of Fundy, which was absolutely beautiful. Lol…I’m so glad you told us how to pronounce your town. I wondered that as soon as I read your title. Love your pics, it looks like such a beautiful area. Since I’m from Kingston, ON, I love the name Kingston Peninsula :) Looks like we had a similar idea of notable residents. I had NO idea Donald Sutherland or Louis Mayer were born there! Cool!
Thanks so much for sharing your hometown with us.
Your photos are terrific – It looks so peaceful. The east coast is so beautiful. I love Canada and how awesome it is from one side to the other.
Beautiful!!! The Maritimes are on my bucket list.
I have been on ferries a few times, going from Washington State over to Vancouver Island. I took the passenger ferry, Victoria Clipper, from Seattle, and the auto ferries Coho from Port Angeles, WA to Vic, and Washington State Ferries from Sydney BC back to Anacortes, WA. I’ve also taken passenger ferries to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard a couple times when I was a kid.
I am from Sandwich, MA, the oldest town Cape Cod, established 1637. I now live in the town next door, Bourne, which was originally part of Sandwich & settled in 1640, but not incorporated till 1884.
Awesome post Monica, very cool! I have always wanted to try ice fishing, never realized they have villages with all those little ice fishing homes ready to catch some fish. Smaller in population, I think it’s neat to see a community that size. I’ve never been to St. John’s and have always wanted to visit. I grew up mostly in Vancouver but Abbotsford is my hometown and I love it. Still it would be cool to take the kids across Canada to see so much history and amazing places, to experience the beauty they all hold.
Gorgeous pictures!!! This sounds like a beautiful place to visit. I would love to explore eastern Canada… maybe someday! :) Thanks for sharing.
Wow!!! What a beautiful place!!! I think I will have to save more to be able to see NB! I really have a lot of places to visit and see here in Canada and the Maritimes is on my list… lovely place to live! Thanks for sharing your hometown!
OMG… what a lovely location. I have to admit, I think that living by the ocean is a dream location. I love the Maritimes and hope to be back one day. Thanks for sharing your beautiful home town…
What a beautiful place! I have never been to the Maratimes but it looks breath taking!! I loved the pic of the Ice fishing village!!
I have always wanted to visit New Brunswick. I have a few friends that live there so we will be making a trip sometime soon. I have been both icefishing and on a ferry since I grew up on the Lower North Shore of Quebec and was born in Newfoundland.
I have visited New Brunswick many times, but have never been to this area. Such a lovely part of the country ( isn’t all of the East Coast though <3) What a great place to raise a family with the wonderful waterways and outdoor opportunities awaiting. We did a lot of camping in NB as a child and I think I will have to revisit the idea of taking my own kiddos. Our country has so much to offer!
I had never heard of Quispamsis until reading your post. I am so glad that I took part in this content carnival. I have a lot more places to add to my travel list now! I have never been to the maritimes but would love to go there one day. The photos of your hometown are stunning! I love the ice fishing village. Ice fishing is very popular up here in Northern Manitoba as well but the ice shacks usually aren’t that closely packed together (at least not that I have seen, I am not a big fan of ice fishing LOL). Thank you for sharing!
I love the Maritimes. When I was growing up in Montreal, we used to spend every summer at Fundy National Park and I still think of it fondly and miss it. By the way, yes I have been on a ferry (many times) but no ice fishing for me. My brother goes every year though!
Fundy is also one of my favourite places Cyn…I could happily spend the entire summer in the park.