Making carriages, wagons and sleighs by hand, Campbell Carriage Factory in New Brunswick operated for about a century. What started as a business between father and son grew to a team of about a dozen craftsmen that made up to 80 vehicles annually. Although the popularity of modern automobiles led to the closure of Campbell Carriage Factory, the historic business remains memorialized by Tantramar Heritage Trust.

Getting in motion

Originally built as a tannery in 1838, Campbell Carriage Factory is located at 19 Church Street in Sackville, New Brunswick. Ronald Campbell and his son George purchased the building in the mid-19th century to convert it into a carriage factory. Records show carriages being built on the premises as early as 1848. However, the building officially became Campbell Carriage Factory in 1855 when initial renovations were completed and the Campbells received the deed in their name.

Ronald learned carriage making while working for the Morris brothers and always hoped to start his own business. With his skills in woodworking and George as a blacksmith, the two began making carriages, wagons and sleighs for the local community.  While business started slowly, the Campbells did other woodworking including caskets (which led to another successful family funeral business). However, carriage orders soon gained traction.

Steady moving

In the early decades of their carriage factory, the Campbell family chopped wood for all vehicles from their very own woodlands. As demand increased, they began using second-growth hickory wood imported from Kentucky and Tennessee. By the ‘80s and ‘90s, the Campbells had about a dozen craftsmen working in their factory (plus apprentices), making approximately 80 vehicles a year and repairing the same number.

Paul Bogaard, founding director of the Heritage Trust, says records show the Campbells made a handful of models of carriages, sleighs and wagons and all work was done by hand. “It was a pre-industrial era,” he explained, “which means you’re customising everything to an extent.”

Eventually, the popularity of modern vehicles grew and in the 1930s demand and workforce at the carriage factory declined. The Campbells switched focus to their funeral business and left their two remaining employees to work at the carriage factory as long as they still had work. The doors finally closed in the 1950s.

Still remembered

Today, it’s been about 75 years since Campbell Carriage Factory has been in operation, but the historic building still stands as a museum operated by Tantramar Heritage Trust. Bogaard says it’s the only remaining carriage factory in Canada.

Founded in 1996, the Heritage Trust received the deed to the carriage factory from the Campbells in 1998. The organization restored the building to what it once was and opened the museum in 2001. Instead of showcasing history through signage, Bogaard says they’ve created an immersive experience that takes visitors back over 100 years: “We want people to see for themselves the work that was done with the actual tools and equipment used in the past.”

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