The Plane That Crashed Into a Kitchen
Early in the night of June 23rd, 1941, the Seeley family in Havelock, New Brunswick, were awoken by a bang. Charles Seeley leapt out…
September 10, 2026
1900s Moncton Strange Tales
Articles
Categories (7)
Showing stories in 7 categories – clear categories
24 stories are shown.
The Mystery of the Ship that Flipped
Jack Dyre was jolted awake by an unknown voice he described as “harsh and eerie” hissing at him: “Dyre, leave this ship!” Considering he…
September 1, 2026
1800s Bay of Fundy Strange Tales
The Murder of Timothy McCarthy
For decades, Acadian singers would open a long, mournful ballad with those words in the song called “Le Meurtre de Timothy McCarthy,” which means…
August 11, 2026
1800s Moncton Women Long Read
When Oscar Wilde Was Heckled In Fredericton
On October 5th, 1882, Oscar Wilde arrived in Fredericton to kick off his tour of The Maritimes. To call the city’s reaction to him…
July 21, 2026
1800s Fredericton
A Brief History of Dulse
If reports of criminal activity are a good way to judge a thing’s popularity, by the turn of the century dulse was exceptionally popular.
July 14, 2026
Bay of Fundy
The Sunken Treasure Ship In The Bay of Fundy
There is more than lobster to be found in the waters beyond Dipper Harbour, where this curious 1960 tourism promo was shot. A century…
June 30, 2026
1800s Bay of Fundy War Long Read
Who Killed the Maritimes’ Greatest Flying Ace?
These articles on the website are (mostly) the articles from the Backyard History newspaper column, which have a strict 1,000 words/week limit. In the…
May 12, 2026
1900s War Long Read
Duffy’s Hotel: The Wildest Hotel in New Brunswick
“If you're longing for fun and enjoyment Or inclined to go out on a spree, Come along with me over to Boiestown On the…
April 21, 2026
1800s Fredericton Long Read
A Pompous Parisian’s Misadventures In The Maritimes
A 300-year-old travel diary reveals what life really looked like in our region's first capital. Map of Port Royal, now called Annapolis Royal, dating…
April 13, 2026
1600s and Before Bay of Fundy Nova Scotia Long Read
The Strange Journey of Louisa Journeaux
When 22-year-old Louisa Journeaux stepped into a rowboat one quiet Sunday evening, she couldn’t have imagined that the whole world would hear about it.…
March 24, 2026
1800s Newfoundland Long Read
The Night The Crocodiles Attacked
A Fredericton Commando’s Second World War Victory Had The Japanese On The Run. Then Came The Crocodiles. Frederictonian Bruce Wright’s (left) idle daydreaming during…
March 17, 2026
1900s Fredericton Strange Tales War Long Read
The Little Railway That Could
A photograph of the first train to arrive in St. Stephen, in 1867. Ten years earlier, the first train in New Brunswick had its…
March 10, 2026
1800s Moncton Saint John Long Read
Kethro The Barber’s Curious Singing Career
One of the oldest photos of Fredericton’s Christ Church Cathedral, taken in 1857. Ten years after this photo was taken, the letters of British…
February 16, 2026
1800s Fredericton Strange Tales Long Read
The Dorchester Penny Train Crash
One hundred and twenty nine years ago, New Brunswick suffered what was initially called a “terrible catastrophe” and its worst ever train wreck, leaving…
January 20, 2026
1800s Moncton Long Read Popular
The Curse of the Anna Currier
A ship drifted ashore near St. Martins in January 1884, her crew missing and her cargo untouched. The mystery of what happened aboard the…
January 6, 2026
1800s Bay of Fundy Strange Tales Long Read
New Years A Century Ago
One hundred years ago, Maritimers rang in the New Year with optimism, oddball traditions, and a world on the brink of change (Provincial Archives…
December 30, 2025
1900s Christmas Fredericton Saint John Long Read
The Shipwreck That Kicked Off The Biggest New Year’s Bash
Just as the people of Grand Manan were getting ready to celebrate New Years, a ship wrecked off the coast of their island. It…
December 26, 2025
Bay of Fundy Long Read
The Forgotten Christmas Traditions of Old New Brunswick
Many of our beloved holiday traditions are surprisingly young. For example the old Loyalists would have been baffled at what a tree was doing…
December 9, 2025
1700s Christmas Long Read
How Was Magnetic Hill Discovered?
Magnetic Hill has been a New Brunswick icon since the 1930s and grew into a full attraction with a gift shop, zoo, water park,…
November 18, 2025
1900s Moncton Long Read Popular
The Hero of Priestman Street
Fredericton’s Bryan Priestman survived two world wars — only to lose his life on Remembrance Day, trying to save an eight-year-old boy. (Provincial Archives…
November 7, 2025
1900s Fredericton War Long Read Popular
My Classmate Who Never Came Home
Colin Wilmot's photo in our high school yearbook. Back in high school, I sat next to a warm, funny, kind-hearted soul named Colin Wilmot.…
November 4, 2025
1900s Fredericton War Long Read
Blue Water: The Atlantic Canadian Film That Hollywood Sank
Most “lost films” from the early days of cinema vanished by accident as reels were destroyed, misplaced, or left to decay. But Blue Water’s…
October 14, 2025
1900s Bay of Fundy Saint John Long Read
The Cow, The Well & The Lost Treasure of Jolicure
A bizarre treasure hunt that was later nicknamed "New Brunswick's own Oak Island" kicked off when a cow fell down a mysterious structure on…
October 7, 2025
1800s Forgotten Ruins Moncton Long Read
The Great Fredericton Fire
This tapestry depicting the Great Fire of Fredericton today hangs in Fredericton's City Hall, in the council chambers. (Or, at least it did when…
September 23, 2025
1800s Fredericton Long Read