New sports exhibition shines a light on New Brunswick’s history of rowing

The New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame is located in Fredericton. (Source: Facebook/NB Sports Hall of Fame)

Days after the Confederation of Canada, the newly-formed country had its first sports heroes and they hailed from New Brunswick.

The Paris Crew – comprised of Elijah Ross, Robert Fulton, Samuel Hutton and George Price – was a rowing team that squared off against world-class competition at the Paris Exposition in 1867. They placed first in the international regatta, winning scores of fans back home and inspiring the next generation of rowers in their home province.

The history of rowing runs deep and long in New Brunswick, and a new permanent exhibition in Fredericton aims to highlight and celebrate it.

The New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame is planning to launch the History of Rowing exhibition this summer, exploring the trailblazers of the sport.

“Brian Flood was the lead behind this,” said Stephen Andersen, outreach coordinator with the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame. “During COVID, the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame changed a lot. A new theatre was put in and there is a piece that is unfinished. What do we want to do with this space?”

Flood, who passed away last year, was a rowing icon in his own right, winning medals at several national competitions with his brother Henry in the 1980s. They were both inducted to the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.

Andersen said much of New Brunswick’s history of rowing can be traced back to its relationship with its waterways.

“From an economic standpoint, the Saint John River was a major trading hub and transportation hub,” he said. “Rowing on the water was a fact of life.”

The new exhibition will feature a timeline honouring major moments in rowing like the Paris Crew and Indigenous rowers. It will also explore the stories of major athletes like Hilton Belyea, Ed Winchester and Jillian Rose Blois.

“We want people to take away an experience,” Andersen said. “We want to hit on all the rowing motifs. We want to ensure we’re telling these stories. We want to hit the broad strokes.”

Andersen said they hope to open the exhibit by the end of summer. They have fundraised $20,000 for the project, which will be matched by the J.T. Clark Family Foundation.

“We don’t want to rush it,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re hitting the right notes in the exhibit creation.

“This is a nation-building thing. Canada has 40-plus medals in rowing, largely because of what happened in New Brunswick.”

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