Partridge Island, New Brunswick

Partridge Island is a Canadian island located in the Bay of Fundy off the coast of New Brunswick.

The island is designated as both a national and provincial historic site. It lies within the city of Saint John's Inner Harbour.

Quarantine station

Partridge Island is the site of the first quarantine station in Canada, being used for this purpose as early as 1785. It received its largest influx of immigrants in the 1840s during the Great Famine, known as the "Irish Potato Famine", when a shortage of potatoes occurred because of potato blight striking Ireland's staple crop, causing millions to starve to death or otherwise emigrate, mainly to North America.

History

The island traces its human history to the Passamaquoddy Nation and particularly the Mi'kmaq Nation, who reportedly referred to the island as "Quak'm'kagan'ik" meaning "a piece cut out". This name is in reference to the belief that the island was created when Glooscap smashed the dam that "Big Beaver" had built (at the Reversing Falls) and a piece of the dam was swept in the rush of water to the mouth of the harbour where it came to rest to form the island.

Following the arrival of United Empire Loyalist refugees from the American Revolutionary War in 1783, and the formation of the city of Saint John, the need for a lighthouse to aid shipping was realized. A light station was erected on Partridge Island and began operating in 1791, being only the third light station to have been built in British North America. A signal station was soon located on the island and it was used for many years to alert the harbour to vessels approaching from the Bay of Fundy.

External links

* [http://www.saintjohn.nbcc.nb.ca/heritage/partridgeisland/index.htm Gateway to Canada] - Heritage Resources Saint John

* [http://www.partridgeisland.com Partridge Island Project] - Site dedicated to the history of Partridge Island