Prepared by E.L. Eaton in
January 1961
Personal Papers, shared, but not published
Personal Papers, shared, but not published
| Economic conditions in
Cornwallis, and in fact throughout the
province, are reflected in the prices paid in the sales of
property. Lot Number Eight, in the Twelfth Division, draughted by
Joel Parish, with fifteen owners in one hundred and fifty years is an
excellent illustration. That a house existed on this farm earlier than on the lots on either side, is shown in Book 1, page 133, 1772, when lot Nine was described in part, "Is bounded by Joel Parish Farm Lot where he now dwells." The dwelling seems to have been a modest one, or it may have been destroyed by fire, for next year Book 1, page 160, 1773, the property was bought by Peter Pineo for £54. This Peter Pineo, a man of wide business interests, appears to have been an original grantee, the one whose name occurs about that time as Deputy Provost General on documents relating to the sale of dyke land for which the dyke tax was not paid. In 1779, Book 1, page 326, Pineo sold to Captain John Huston for £305. This increase in price is assumed to have due, in part at least, to the erection of a new or better bulding and Huston remained the owner for thirteen years, selling to Brook Watson "of London, England" for £300, Book 2, page 673, 1792, a Lord Mayor Mayor of London. Whether Watson himself ever resided in Canard is not known, but he retained ownership for twelve years. In 1804, Book 5, page 282, we find Watson selling to John Huston Chipman for £150 and "the love I bear him". When Chipman sold to Jonathan Morse, Book 7, page 54, 1804, the farm had been increased by the addition of the north half of Lot Nine, and the price went up to £500. Jonathan Morse, and after his death his wife Margaret, apparently had money troubles as borrowing from John Beckwith Jr. is recorded and the widowns dower was set off. Later the heirs of Beckwith took a kindly view of the widows difficulties and signed a complete release. The Morse heirs sold the property, now described as sixty acres, Book 10, page 4, 1834, to Isaac Dickey for £335. Thirteen years after Book 114, page 172, 1847, the property passed to Christian Thompson, a widow, and James Thompson for £550. The latter transferred it to George Thompson Book 18, page 243, in 1853, for the same amount, £550. Now we enter the Golden age in provincial history. Wooden ship building furnished a market for timber, provided employment for labor, and afforded cheap transportation to world markets. The United States mid-west had not been opened, and the expanding population of New England demanded more food than their stony hillsides could easily provide. The American Civil War added to the needs south of the border. The Crimean War stimulated shipments to Europe. Only a small part of New Brunswick had been cleared from the forest. Prince Edward Island had not yet settled the dispute between the English settlers and their absentee landlords. Ontario was largely in wood and, then as now, the frozen St. Lawrence River was an effective barrier to winter shipping. Of all the farm lands around the head of the Bay of Fundy, the light soils of Cornwallis, with their long growing season and high summer temperatures, had a distinct advantage. Under these circumstances farms within a day's hauling distance of Minas Basin, particularly those which could supplement their fertility with manure for the hay cut on the dyke land, became the most desirable real estate in the New World. It was during this period of prosperity that the large two story houses appeared in which parlors were furnished with the hair cloth mahogany and walnut chairs, now such valuable antiques. The public school system was introduced and colleges were built, this laying the foundation for what was later to be referred to as our "export of brains". With popatoes at one dollar a bushel, the best labor receiving twelve to fifteen dollars a month, few pests on any crops, and no whistle to interrupt the busy daylight hours, farm values inevitably went up. George Thompson sold the land south of the highway, about 20 acres, to Peter Carruthers, Book 20, page 554, in 1856 for £305. William Murray and Charles Dickie accepted a mortgage of twelve acres where the buildings stood for £550 in 1863, Book 25, page 341. Dickie seems to have taken over the property as he sold it to George C. Rockwell, Book 33, page 104, in 1872 for $2000 who passed it on to the First Cornwallis Baptist Church Trustees in 1886, Book 52, page 6 for $2500. Toward the end of the century the economic situation changed drastically. Transcontinental railways spanned both Canada and United States, opening up vast new areas of fertile land, soon filling the eastern markets with wheat, corn and meat at prices far below the prevailing level. Steel and steam were replacing the wooden hulls. The Colorado Potate Beetle followed the rail lines east, destroying potato crops for many years, until Paris Green was introduced as a control, The "Needy Nineties" hit all businesses. Many farms in Cornwallis as elsewhere, became vacant. At the low point in all this, the Baptist Trustees with the same house, the twelve acres of land, but a new barn, sold the property to M. G. Henry, Book 87, page 335, 1906 for $800. Still another change was at hand, the great European invasion of Western Canada took place. To supply the many needs of an exploding population, great industrial expansion took place in all Eastern Canada. Apple orchards were planted in the Valley to supply the fruit hungry English market. Old Country persons not interested in the rigors of pioneer life were attracted to the Valley, where farm prices looked so low in comparison with those in Brittain that an era of land speculation was opened, only to be terminated by the outbreak of World War I. Accordingly when the owner of a large farm negotiated a sale at these enhanced prices he did not hesitate to pay in proportion for a small home on which retire. It was under these circumstances the Rev. M. G. Henry sold his little place after only seven years, Book 110, page 449, 1913, to H. Hill for $4000. Clifford Beeler is the present owner. The inflation following World War II has affected farm values very little, although paved roads and motor cars have encouraged the migration of many urban workers to homes built on spacious lots carved from the better farms.
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