A Short History of Moncton is the story of the city's remarkable past from early times to the end of the 20th century. As a historic aboriginal campsite, Moncton began its European settlement period as a small Acadian agricultural village until the expulsion of the Acadians banished the French-speaking settlers. New settlers arrived and the little village eventually grew into a sizeable town with a bustling shipyard and a thriving waterfront. Despite an economic recession in the mid1800s, Moncton's impressive growth in the late 19th century was mainly due the Intercolonial Railway that transformed the small village into a large city with the motto Resurgo: I rise again. Moncton's continued expansion throughout the twentieth century was not without controversy as war, depression, and social upheaval all challenged the stability of the community. And the growth of the Acadian presence placed demands for bilingual services that were not initially adopted by the city fathers. But with the closure of the city's major industries in the late 1900s, Moncton was again threatened with economic decline but managed to embrace the economics of bilingualism and diversify its economy. This book includes over 50 historic images that reveal scenes of a vanished era, a once small town with a thriving waterfront, bustling railway, and fascinating streetscapes.

Dan Soucoup lives in Halifax and has been active in bookselling and publishing ventures for over 25 years. The author of numerous books including Historic New Brunswick, Glimpses of Old Moncton, and the bestselling Maritime Firsts, Soucoup writes a popular local history column, "Looking Back," for the Moncton Times & Transcript.

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