Nauwigewauk, New Brunswick

Nauwigewauk is a Canadian rural community in Kings County, New Brunswick. It is located near the communities of Quispamsis and Lakeside. It is a small hamlet that borders the Town of Hampton. It has a rough population of 600 people. The people of Nauwigewauk are sometimes locally known as 'Nauwigewaukies'.

History

Rayburn[1] records that Nauwigewauk was named in 1858 by the Commissioners of the European & North American Railway based on Nahwijewauk, the supposed Maliseet name for the Hammond River. Maliseet toponyms are notoriously undefined, their transliteration promiscuous and their pronunciation variable. The same Maliseet name is cited by Rayburn as the native name for the Nashwaak River, with a suggested possible meaning of "slow current."[2] If correct, such a description would certainly be applicable to the meandering course of the Hammond River before it meets the Kennebecasis River at Nauwigewauk.

Nauwigewauk was a station on the European & North American Railway and, later, on the Canadian National Railway. As of 2015, the CNR's single-track Sussex Subdivision still runs through the community to provide rail service connecting the Port of Saint John to the CN main line at Moncton. However, the Nauwigewauk station, like local passenger rail service itself, is long gone. The community possessed a post office from ca.1885 until 1969, which is likewise gone.[3]

Notable people

See also

References

  1. Geographical Names of New Brunswick; Rayburn, Alan (Ottawa 1975)
  2. Ibid
  3. Ibid


Coordinates: 45°28′01″N 65°52′59″W / 45.467°N 65.883°W / 45.467; -65.883

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