St. John River

When Europeans first set foot in Canada, they were faced with a wilderness barrier of trackless forests. Fortunately, this new land was also crisscrossed by many grand rivers, and these became the early routes of discovery, settlement and growth. The third set of Canada's River Heritage stamps, released August 10 in commemorative booklet form, features five of Canada's important heritage rivers: the St. John; the St. Lawrence; the Red; the Fraser; and the Yukon. This important waterway, discovered by Samuel de Champlain in 1604, originates in the state of Maine and travels a circuitous 663 kilometre route before emptying into the Bay of Fundy at the famous Reversing Falls - the phenomenon that takes place twice daily when the Fundy tides force the river water to back upstream. In its upper reaches the St. John forms the Main-New Brunswick border, then swings almost due south to Woodstock, east to Fredericton and Oromocto, and then southward to the city of St. John, before completing its seaward course. Champlain's discovery of the river coincided with the Feast Day of St. John the Baptist, hence the river's name. Historically, the river has been important, first as home to the Acadians and later to British settlers from New England, as well as United Empire Loyalists. Canada Post Corporation's commemorative stamp portrays a pastoral scene on the lower river, and in the foreground, white lillies, an endangered species.