Saint John knows how to hold a grudge — and that’s not a bad thing. On May 18, the city marks Loyalist Day, commemorating the arrival of thousands of United Empire Loyalists who fled the American Revolution in 1783 and helped shape what would become modern-day New Brunswick. Some cities name streets after historical figures. Saint John? It fires muskets, rings 19th-century bells, and stages a full-day citywide tribute that somehow makes colonial garb and flintlock rifles feel cool again.
History Hits Home
Whether you’re a history buff or just looking for something more original than another Sunday spent doom scrolling, here’s what’s happening this Sunday in Saint John:
10:00 AM | A Bang-Up Start Musketry Salute at Portland Point
Place Fort La Tour wakes up with a bang as soldiers from DeLancey’s Brigade fire a musketry salute to honour the 242nd anniversary of the Loyalists' arrival. The site is open free to the public until 11 am.
- Location: Place Fort La Tour, Harbour Passage
10:15 AM & 12:15 PM | Bells You Can Feel in Your Bones
Forget airpods — let Saint John’s newly restored 1882 bell tower shake you into reverence. A nod to the city's founders, this performance rings with history.
- Location: Trinity Anglican Church, Germain St.
10:30 AM | Step Inside the Past with Re-enactors
Visit the home (now the Loyalist House) built by David Daniel Merritt, who arrived in 1783, and meet re-enactors from DeLancey's Brigade bringing Loyalist daily life to... well, life.
- Location: 120 Union Street
10:30 AM | Find Your Roots Explore Your Loyalist Lineage
Genealogy nerds and curious newcomers alike can meet historians and dig into New Brunswick’s rich Loyalist archives.
- Location: Saint John Arts Centre, 20 Peel Plaza
10:30 AM | “The Revolution Comes to Saint John” Talk
Get the early scoop on how the American Revolution spilled across the Bay, with Steve Fowler animating tales from Fort Frederick to Fort Howe.
- Location: Place Fort La Tour
12:00 PM | Royal Salute by 3rd Field Artillery Regiment
Saint John is the only Canadian city with the National Orders to fire a royal salute in honour of Loyalist Day.
- Location: TBA — listen for the boom
12:15 PM | Church Tour with a Twist
Peek inside Saint John’s oldest Loyalist congregation and see Boston’s stolen Royal Coat of Arms — a treasure with teeth.
- Location: Trinity Anglican Church
12:30 PM | Wreath Laying at the Loyalist Burial Ground
Honour the city's earliest settlers with a brief but moving ceremony — and stay for a post-lunch stroll with Saint John’s beloved historian David Goss at 12:45.
- Location: Sydney Street at King Street East
1:30 PM | Lights, Camera, and the Loyalists According to Hollywood
Historian Dr. Greg Marquis takes a lighthearted look at how cinema’s treated Saint John’s colonial class. Spoiler: not always kindly.
- Location: Saint John Arts Centre
2:00 PM | 18th-Century Airs, No Autotune Required
Take in traditional sonatas, country dances, and Scotch airs from the days when powdered wigs were peak fashion.
- Location: Saint John Arts Centre
2:00 PM | Loyalist Day at the Library
Kid-friendly story time, colonial games, and books galore — all about early Saint John.
- Location: Market Square Library
7:15 PM | Walk ’n Talk with David Goss
Wrap your day with a sunset stroll and some local lore as David Goss leads you through Market Slip and the exact spot where Loyalists first set foot on NB soil.
- Location: Meet at Loyalist Rock, Fundy Quay
In a city where the past is part of the present’s pulse, Loyalist Day isn’t just about history — it’s a cultural time warp that’s worth diving into. Wear something comfortable, charge your phone for photos, and if you happen to discover a Loyalist ancestor or two? Well, welcome home.
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