Description of Historic Place

The Beaumont Quarry consists of the remains of one of several quarries that operated along the banks of the Petitcodiac River in southeastern New Brunswick. It is located south of Boudreau Village on the west side of the Fort Folly Peninsula in Memramcook.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Beaumont Quarry is linked to the stone industry in New Brunswick, and more specifically around the rocky point (Fort Folly Peninsula), located between the Memramcook and Petitcodiac rivers in Westmorland County.

During the last half of the 19th century, Westmorland County boasted about a dozen quarries, and for a time, their total production made this district one of the largest producers of sandstone in eastern Canada. In the Memramcook area, the Beaumont and Boudreau quarries were located on the east side of the Petitcodiac River while the Anse-des-Cormier and Rockland quarries were located on the west side of the Memramcook River. There was often confusion between the Boudreau Quarry (to the north) and the Beaumont Quarry (more to the south) since they were located fairly close to one another, and the name “Beaumont Quarry” was often used for all of the quarries on the west side of Fort Folly Peninsula.

Between 1855 and the turn of the 20th century, several companies and their workers quarried huge quantities of stone from these quarries, delivering it by sea to sites in New Brunswick and New England. The Beaumont Quarry specifically produced large millstones and grinding stones.

The heritage value of the Beaumont Quarry is enhanced by its association with certain buildings in Memramcook and the surrounding area. Some of the stone used in the construction of the stone church in the Saint-Thomas de Memramcook Parish (1840) came from this quarry. Also, when the west wing of the church was built in 1934, the stones were also taken from this quarry. In Moncton, the stone used for the new wing of the Intercolonial Railway Offices (1913) also came from the Beaumont Quarry.

The quarry’s workforce was drawn largely from the region's Acadian population who, over the years, developed expertise that was much sought after, even outside the province. The operation of the Beaumont Quarry and the other quarries in the area changed the region’s economic climate through population growth and job creation. Transportation of the stone also gave rise to the construction of wharves and increased navigation on the Petitcodiac River, led in particular by the captains of scows.

Source: Memramcook Municipal Office, Site File, "Carrière Beaumont"

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Beaumont Quarry include:
- its location on the east bank of the Petitcodiac River, in the southern part of the rocky point called “Fort Folly";
- a large excavation about 15 m deep, partially filled with water;
- stones scattered along the edge of the Petitcodiac River;
- a partially cut millstone, broken in the middle;
- remains of a former wharf used for shipping the stone.