7/30/2019 The Saint Croix Stock Farm at Todds Point, Charlotte County, NB

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The Saint Croix Stock Farm at Todds Point, Charlotte County, NB

John L. Frost and William F. Todd purchase this property from William Connor on February 27, 1885. Shortly after, Wm. Todd

bought land to the northeast containing 60 acres granted to the late John Smith on March 1. 1831, reserving, however, a smal

piece of said lot about one rod in length and one and one-half rods in width, wherein several bodies are interred. The exac

location of this grave site seems to have eluded everyone up to this time.

There is also a special lot granted to William F. Todd under the Great Seal of the Province of New Brunswick on the

2nd day of July A.D. 1891, known as the Shore Grant, an intertidal lot granted to the late William F. Todd under the Grea

Seal of the Province of New Brunswick on July 2, 1891. These three grants make up the farm and shore lands bought byWilliam F. Todd in the 1855-1891 period and held by Todds widow, Ethel G. Todd, until 1951.

W.F. Todd was born in St. Stephen N.B. on May 2, 1854 son of Freeman H. and Adeline (Boardman) Todd. Mr. and Mrs

Freeman Todd lived at the Top of Buchanan Hill. There were eight children in the family.

In 1879 he married Ethel Bolton. They had three daughters; Winifred, Adeline and Mildred.

As a young man he joined his fathers rm, F. H. Todd & Sons who were engaged in the lumber trade, manufacturing and

shipping. He later attended Harvard University to study law but did not nd it to his liking and left without completing his

course. He embarked upon a private venture, the breeding and racing of ne horses. This resulted in the establishment of

extensive and well equipped stables at Oak Point. He gathered the nest collection of racing horses ever assembled in the

Maritimes and Northern New England. He was an Agriculturist and enjoyed hunting and shing and found great pleasure inthe outdoors.

In the community he was an outstanding citizen, a prominent businessman and well versed in politics. He represented Charlotte

County in the House of Assembly, 1899-1903; the House of Commons, 1908-1911 and was Lieutenant Governor of the

Province of New Brunswick from 1923-1928.

The farm at Todds Point was called the St. Croix Stock Farm. He imported the very best horses, including Kentuckys pride

and joy, Lumps, a small stocky seal brown stallion who was brought from the United States. It was rumored that Todd

refused the sum of $38,000 for Lumps. Lumps_ died two weeks later. Another of his prized horses was Edgardo who

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was one of four ne trotting stallions also brought from Kentucky.

Mr. Todd poured an immense amount of money into the farm. He built a farmhouse, three barns, one of brick with 19 stalls

crafted from highly polished mahogany, insulated with peat moss and oiled hardwood walls and scrolled ironwork around the

roof. He kept 130 horses and colts, mostly imported from Kentucky.

He started a brick making factory and brought skilled men from England to supervise the operation. He imported special clay

from Scotland for the surface of a quarter mile racing track. He also built a land tile factory and used the earthen pipes to

drain the land. He built wharves and a pumice factory for eld fertilizer. His oats and timothy grew as tall as a man.

In 1874, John Laming and his wife Ann Strather Laming and one or two children arrived from Yorkshire, England to work for

Mr. Todd. Mr. Laming was a brick-maker by trade.

In 1877, Mr. Laming left the employ of Todd and purchased a lot of land off Queen Street, St. Stephen, N.B. in the vicinity o

Southwest Concrete. It was on this property he constructed a stone house and built a large barn and established a brick making

factory. This was the rst brick yard in St. Stephen and remained in operation for 40 years.

Eventually Todd lost his investment when a re destroyed two barns and 35 horses. The farm was abandoned in 1910. Mr.

G.W. Ganong of Ganong Bros. struck a bargain price on salvaging the bricks from the brick barn for a new wing that was beingbuilt on the candy factory.

(Author Unknown. Could be Doug Dougherty. Please advise)

G. Whidden Ganong