Ring the bell for Christmas
from Ring the Bell by Dr. Beverley J. Schneider
There are several churches in Nashwaaksis (now part of Fredericton), but only one, St. John’s Anglican on Main Street, with a belfry and a
bell. This treasure has an interesting history.
In the 1800s, there was no bridge across the St. John River. Three ferries carried people and goods back and forth. The uppermost ferry ran from the end of Ferry Avenue, down the Nashwaaksis River, across the St. John River to the bottom of Smythe Street.
At first there was a treadle ferry, with a horse faithfully running the works. Sometime before 1860 a side-wheel steam ferry replaced the treadle ferry. This ferry had a bell, which was used to signal the engine man that people and carriages were loaded and ready. This ferry sometimes ran at night. A lantern marked the sandbar at the mouth of the Nashwaaksis. The family of the late Harold Staples kept a lamp lit in front of a red windowpane upstairs, as a landmark. For this Mr. Staples got free ferry service. Others paid: 4˘ for an individual, 8˘ for a one-horse hitch, 16˘ for a two-horse hitch.
In the 1880s or 1890s, a bridge was built and shortly after that the ferry ceased operations. It is not known where the bell spent the next 20 or 30 years.
Some time between 1915 and 1918, a man engaged the MacFarlane Wagon Factory, Nashwaaksis, to do some work on the wheels of his wagon. As he could not pay cash for the work, he bartered a bell. Mr. W.L. MacFarlane hung this bell in his factory and used it to ring the engineer (who was is the engine room) to shut the engine off when the belt or some of the machinery needed to be repaired.
In 1932, the MacFarlane Company surrendered its charter. The family wanted to preserve the bell and just up the road was a belfry with nothing in it. So they donated this much-traveled bell to St. John’s Church, where it is still appreciated and used by the parish. It will certainly chime this Christmas to announce the birth of Jesus. Whether you hear it with your ears or in your heart, we hope you get the message, and that your Christmas is full of peace and joy.
Source: Dr. Beverley J. Schneider wrote “Ring the Bell” for St. John’s Church in 1976. It is used here with the author’s permission.
Prepared by archivists Twila Buttimer (twila.buttimer at gnb.ca) and Frank Morehouse (frankm at nbnet.nb..ca) Feel free to contact them with your questions, comments and/or suggestions.
