The earliest settlers in Florenceville were British Loyalists who originally emigrated to New - England in the 1630s and 1640s, resettled on the east coast of Canada in the 1780s as political refugees, following the American Revolution. The village of Florenceville was originally called Buttermilk Creek in 1832, but named in 1853 by then NB Leutenant Governor Lemuel A Wilmot after Florence Nightingale, the nursing heroine of the Crimean War.
Like so much of early New Brunswick, farming and lumbering were the mainstays of Florenceville, which had a shingle mill, grist mill and a general store. Shingles were carted to the Saint John River by wagon to be loaded onto rafts for transport up and down the river. Later, steam-powered river boats were used above Grand Falls and with one of those stem wheelers was called the "Florenceville." In those years, the east side of the community was called Buckwheat Flat, and was less preferred to the west side at Buttermilk Creek.
Overlooking the St. John River at Florenceville is the world headquarters for the vast McCain Foods empire which started from the humble potato. The McCain Group of Companies today employs more than 16,000 full-time people, in 55 food production facilities, in 11 countries, on 4 continents and in transportation, equipment manufacturing and other areas, achieving over 4 billion dollars (Canadian) in sales worldwide in 1997. The latest potato processing facilities are being built in Wroclaw, Poland and Matougues, France
Florenceville Covered Bridge
This bridge is located in the village of Florenceville off Route 2
Over the Saint John River
This bridge was built in 1186, rebuilt in 1907, using the Howe Truss. It has a span of 154' and a length of 950'
Andrew & Laura McCain Gallery
8 McCain Street
506 392-6769
High quality gallery showcases best of local and New Brunswick artists
History of Florenceville Mural
Village Place Mall, IGA Building
Main & McCain Streets
Community Map
Use mouse to drag/move map. Click on "+" or "-" to zoom in or out. "Satellite" shows photo, "Hybrid" combines map & photo.
