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Article Published June 25, 1999 
EAST COAST KIN (Canada)
By: Sandra Devlin, Biography & Archived Articles Churches Played Vital Roles In Maritimes - Part 2 of 3 Last time "To view Part 1 Click Here" this series closed off with reference to the rampant wave of Gospel proselytizing in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia at the close of the 18th Century and in the early 19th. The scattered, lonely settlements were prime fodder for the intinerant preachers. A fever of "New Light" evangelism spread like an epidemic. At Shediac Bridge, N.B. in 1805, the evangelical fervour took a turn beyond fanatical to criminal, when Amasa Babcock, convinced that the end of the world was at hand, stabbed his sister to death in a frenzied preparation ritual. In Albert County, N.B. today, the predominance of Baptist churches - an offshot of New Light theology - continue to attest to the command claimed by the frequent revival meetings featuring hell fire and brimstone, Elder Joseph Crandall style, upwards of 200 years before. So sparse were Anglicans (Church of England) in Albert County earlier this century that a comical story is told of a bishop visiting the farms around Hillsborough. "Are there any Episcopalians here?" he purportedly inquired of a busy farm wife. Her innocent reply: "Well, I am not sure. Our farm hand shot something strange out behind the barn last week." As pervasive as Albert County is Baptist; the Acadian Peninsula in northern New Brunswick is as predominately Roman Catholic and pockets of early Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia were heavily influenced by Scots Presbyterianism. Religion coloured every aspect of Maritime life from the blessing of the fishing fleet to political patronage; from opinions against tavern keeping and rum running to support of Temperance societies. One branch of my family invented a ginger beer as a wholesome alternative beverage to beers with alcoholic content and "demon rum." There are unlimited examples of how the church superimposed itself on Maritime politics, heritage and acceptable or unacceptable social norms. One Sunday morning at the Union Protestant Church in Harrisville, N.B (now a part of the city of Moncton, but then a rural community on the outskirts), the minister stopped preaching until after "the devil goes by" when the sounds of the first automobile on the road was heard approaching. In Northumberland County, N.B., a village named Burnt Church attests to the 1755 deportation of the French Acadians by the ruthless, ruling British who burned homes and churches in relentless pursuits of fleeing families. In Maritime regions where Protestant and Catholic families lived in close proximity (Williamstown, N.B. Irish Protestant and Roman Catholics settling, for example, on separate sides of a small brook), mixed marriages could often cause the defector to be disowned and disinherited by their all or part of their relatives, including and more often than not, even their mother and father. So complete was the abandonment of children who married outside their family's religion, that subsequent generations were often shocked to learn of the death of an "uncle" or "aunt" they never knew existed or were told were long since dead. Even mixed marriages between Protestant faiths could cause a furore, a Methodist mother claiming all daughters for her side -- while Baptist father and sons setting off to "their" church every Sunday. Church picnics, socials and conventions were also an ideal "first meeting" place for rural young people who would otherwise know very few other young people their own age who were not their near cousins. With this in mind, making a new Sunday-go-to-meeting outfit for the summer picnic could be just as important as deciding what delicious pastry made from a carefully guarded secret family recipe to take along to the basket social, where young men would bid on the basket and the successful bidder would share the lunch with the young woman who brought it. Next time: The conclusion of church influence in the Maritimes, and some helpful references. Book Review: Poor Ignorant Children- Irish Famine Orphans in Saint John, New Brunswick, by: Peter Murphy. The history and genealogy of Famine Irish orphans of 19th Century Saint John, New Brunswick, get a huge boost with the release of Peter Murphy's extraordinary and exciting new book. Important data from previously unexplored primary records, constructs family groups, gauges dimensions of overwhelming privations and identifies more than 100 destitute Irish children farmed out to homes, primarily in New Brunswick, with a few to Nova Scotia. Of the more than 300 children who passed through the Emigrant Orphan Asylum between 1847-1849, nearly half were placed in stranger's homes. Of these nearly one-third ended up in farming communities along the lower reaches of the St. John and Kennebecasis rivers. Another 30 per cent were placed in Saint John. No evidence surfaces of any effort by asylum administrators to keep siblings together, much less place them in homes to nurture their predominantly Roman Catholic heritage. The fate of five Coyne children from Sligo (the origin of nearly half of the asylum's population) "with barely sufficient rags upon their persons to cover their nakedness" is one example of the hundreds of heart-wrenching stories which unfold in Murphy's scholarly study. Bryan Coyne, 16, was apprenticed to Christopher Harper in Shediac on Nov. 20, 1847, three weeks after he disembarked with his family at the port city. His mother was dead and his father was in hospital. Four younger Coyne children, likely siblings of Bryan's, were scattered. Andrew, 14, went with Jas Fowler to Hampton; Michael, 12, with William Balcam to Annapolis and Lawrence, 10, with A. L. Palmer to Dorchester. That left Bessie, who was four when admitted to the asylum, and six when it closed, one of the seven left-over girls sent to the Alms House, Nov. 8, 1849. The following spring, Bessie, then about age seven, went to Annapolis with Dr. Leslie. (How fervently one wants to imagine that little Bessie somehow became reunited with older brother Michael. This book has the power to evoke such emotions.) Murphy's research, annotations, bibliography and analytic text are exacting and concise. This book is top shelf. Poor Ignorant Children is available from Global Genealogy & History Shoppe. Click Here For More Information
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