Forts & Fortifications of

Saint John, NB

Art MacKay, Editor

Saint John Harbour Defences

Saint John Harbour Defensive Network consists
of 17 military installations that collectively ring
Saint John Harbour. Spanning more than three
centuries, the components of the network consist
of Fort La Tour (1631), Fort DAulnay (1648, in
succession referred to as Fort Villebon 1698, Fort
Boishebert 1750 and Fort Frederick 1758), Fort
Howe (1778), Lower Cove Battery (1793), Prince
Edward Battery (1793), Grave Yard Battery
(1793), Mortar Battery (1793), Dorchester
Blockhouse (1793), Partridge Island Battery
(1800), Carleton Martello Tower (1812),
Drummond Blockhouse (1812), Johnson
Blockhouse (1813), Southeast Battery (1813),
Red Head Battery (1864), Negro Point / Fort
Dufferin (1864), Courtenay Bay Breakwater
Battery (1939) and Fort Mispec (1940). (Saint
John Harbour Defensive Network, Map: FortWiki)

Fort Latour
The earliest component of the Fort Latour site consists of a
mid-to-late Moorehead tradition cemetery, which is about
4000 years old. The people of the Susquehanna and Maritime
Woodland periods, ancestors to todays Wolastoqiyik, Mi
kmaq and Passamaquoddy peoples, made use of the
Menaqesk (Saint John) area from about 4000 to 400 years
ago and was a traditional portage route around the Reversing
Falls.
Portland Point was selected in 1631 by Charles de SainteEtienne de La Tour, Governor of Acadia, for his fortified
trading post, establishing one of the earliest centres of French
fur trade. Its remains ort are located under the "Green
Mound," a small grassy knoll at this site.

Carleton Martello Tower

Carleton Martello Tower is one of the nine surviving
Martello Towers in Canada. The tower dates from the War
of 1812 and played a significant role in conflicts up until the
Second World War. The now features a restored powder
magazine, a restored barracks room, and exhibits in the
tower and in the visitor centre. The tower's roof offers a
view of the city of Saint John and its harbour. Carleton
Martello Tower is the oldest building in the city and has
been designated as a National Historic Site of Canada
since 1930. It was opened to the public in 1963.