Bathurst is a geographic parish in Gloucester County, New Brunswick, Canada. For governance purposes, the parish is divided between the city of Bathurst, the town of Belle-Baie, and the Chaleur rural district, as well as the Pabineau 11 Indian reserve; the city, town, and village are all part of the Chaleur Regional Service Commission. Prior to the 2023 governance reform, the parish was divided between Bathurst, the town of Beresford, the Indian reserve, and six local service districts: Allardville, Big River, Dunlop, New Bandon-Salmon Beach, North Tetagouche, and the parish of Bathurst; In the 2023 reform, Bathurst annexed most of North Tetagouche, the northern part of Big River, a part of New Bandon-Salmon Beach along Currie Street, and parts of the LSD of the parish of Bathurst including the communities of Chamberlain Settlement, Gloucester Junction, and Sainte-Anne; Beresford became part of Belle-Baie, annexing Dunlop and small parts of the parish LSD; Allardville and the remaining parts of Big River, New Bandon-Salmon Beach, and the parish LSD became part of the rural district.

Origin of name

The parish was named in honour of Earl Bathurst, British Secretary of State for War and the Colonies at the time of its erection.

History

Bathurst was erected in 1827 from the western part of Saumarez Parish. Its eastern boundary followed Teagues Brook to its head and ran south "to the county line", which it doesn't actually reach. In 1850 the eastern boundary was altered to match the northern end of the modern parish line then along its prolongation to the county line, trading areas with New Bandon Parish. In 1947 a large area in the southeastern part of the parish was included in the newly erected Allardville Parish.

Boundaries

Bathurst Parish is bounded:

Former governance

The LSDs all assessed for community & recreation services; all except New Bandon-Salmon Beach also had street lighting.

Communities

Communities at least partly within the parish; (brackets) indicate the LSD; italics indicate a name not used on modern provincial government maps

Bodies of water

Bodies of water at least partly within the parish.

Islands

Islands at least partly within the parish.

Other notable places

Parks, historic sites, and other noteworthy places at least partly within the parish.

Demographics

Population

Parish population total does not include former municipalities or Indian reserve. Revised census figures based on the 2023 local governance reforms have not been released.

Language