author
Peter Fisher
1782–1848
Among the earliest writers to record New Brunswick from inside the province, this merchant-historian helped preserve the story of Loyalist settlement and everyday colonial life. His work is still remembered as a starting point for New Brunswick's own historical writing.
1 Audiobook
History of New Brunswick
by Peter Fisher
About the author
Born on June 9, 1782, on Staten Island, Peter Fisher was brought to New Brunswick as an infant when his Loyalist family moved north after the American Revolution. He grew up at St. Anne's Point, later Fredericton, and worked as a blacksmith and merchant while becoming closely involved in the life of the colony.
Fisher is best known for Sketches of New Brunswick and History of New Brunswick. These books made him widely known as the first historian of New Brunswick, and they stand out for describing the province from the perspective of someone who lived there rather than from afar. His writing focuses on settlement, government, trade, and the practical realities of life in the region.
He died in Fredericton on August 15, 1848. Though not a literary celebrity in the modern sense, his work has had lasting value because it captured an early picture of New Brunswick and helped begin a local historical and literary tradition.