| Background: |
Enoch Poor (1736-1780) of Exeter, New Hampshire, was a soldier at Fort Frederick who kept a detailed account of his journey from Newbury to Saint John, his life at Fort Frederick, and his return voyage to Newbury. The exact dates of the journal are from 6 April 1759 - 12 May 1760. In 1759, Fort Frederick, located at the mouth of the St. John River, was part of Nova Scotia. After the arrival of the Loyalists in 1783, New Brunswick was set off as a separate jurisdiction from Nova Scotia in 1784, and Saint John, New Brunswick, where Fort Frederick was located, became one of the main seaports on Canada's Atlantic coast. |
| Contents: |
The journal contains a record of the daily routines of garrison life; mentions companies coming into and leaving Fort Frederick from other locations, e.g. Fort Cumberland; vessels entering and leaving the harbour and on the river; a faithful record of weather conditions; the work of soldiers on the fortifications; accounts describing exchanges of fire with the French and the Indians, including the names of those killed and wounded; lists of officers and soldiers stationed at Fort Frederick; and many other details. |
