Moncton

Moncton

Moncton, city and port, Westmorland county, southeastern New Brunswick, Canada. It lies 25 miles (40 km) from the mouth of the Petitcodiac River. Moncton is the largest city in the province.

The site, which was originally occupied by a Mi’kmaq First Nation (Native American) village, was settled by French Acadians after 1698. Subsequently, Pennsylvania Germans (1763) and loyalists (1784) arrived, and the place became known as The Bend. It was renamed (1855) for Lieut. Col. Robert Monckton, leader of a British military expedition against the French at Fort Beauséjour (26 miles [42 km] southeast). The University of Moncton, founded in 1864 as St. Joseph’s College and renamed in 1963, made Moncton the cultural centre of New Brunswick’s Acadian population. During the 19th century, Moncton, favoured by its location at the head of a deepwater inlet, became a busy shipbuilding centre, but, with the advent of steam vessels in the 1870s, this industry faded. The city’s subsequent growth was linked with its position as a rail junction, port, highway hub, and air terminus.

Unusual local features are Magnetic Hill (with its illusion of uphill gravitation) and a tidal bore, or wave, that rises 3–6 feet (1–2 metres) twice daily and surges up the Petitcodiac River. The city’s diversified industries include food processing, woodworking, lobster fisheries, and the manufacture of paperboard, farm implements, and auto parts. Inc. town, 1855; city, 1890. Pop. (2011) 69,074; metro. area, 139,287; (2016) 71,889; metro. area, 144,810.