number of
persons from the County of Essex, province of Massachusetts, presented
a petition through their agent (Francis Peabody), to the Government of
Nova Scotia, for the grant of a township twelve miles square at the
River Saint John; they received a favorable answer and obtained full
authority to survey a tract of that dimension, wherever it might be
found fit for improvement. In consequence many of the applicants
proceeded in the course of the winter and spring following to prepare
for exploring the country and to survey their township; they provided
a vessel for that purpose and on the 16th May, 1762, embarked at
Newburyport and arrived in three days at the harbor of Saint John. * *
* *

"The exploring and surveying party proceeded to view the lands, round
the harbor and bay of Saint John in a whale boat they brought with
them, for they could not travel on the land on account of the
multitude of fallen trees that had been torn up by the roots in a
violent gale of wind nearly four years previous.[56] The same gale
extended as far up the river as the Oromocto, and most of the country
below that place was equally incumbered with the fallen trees.

[56] The exact date of this gale was Nov. 3, 1759.

"After making all the discoveries that could be made near the harbor,
it was the unanimous opinion that all the lands near that part of the
country were unfit for their purpose and in about ten days from their
first arrival they set out to view the country as far as Saint Anne,
ninety miles up the river, where they expected to find an extensive
body of cleared land that had been formerly improved by the French
inhabitants. On their way they landed wherever they saw any appearance
of improvement. All such spots as far up as Mill Creek[57] were
supposed not to exceed one hundred acres, most of which had been very
roughly cleared.

[57] Just below the town plot of Fredericton.

"On the arrival of the exploring party at St. Anns, they lost no time
in making a shelter for themselves nearly opposite the river Nashwaak
... and they commenced their survey at the small gravelly point near
Government House, with the intention of surveying a township to
terminate twelve miles below that place, but after surveying the
courses of the river about four miles downward, a large company of
Indians, came down about nine miles, from their Priest's residence
with his Interpreter, all having painted faces of divers colours and
figu