The Hillsborough Pioneer Cemetery is a cemetery that was used from the early 1700’s all the way until the early 1900’s. It is located on Main Street on a hill at the center of the Village of Hillsborough. It is surrounded by an ornate wrought iron fence. The tombstones and grave markers are made out of local sandstone, marble, wrought iron and granite. Some of the names and dates have worn off.
The cemetery was founded by the Blanchard, Saulnier, Aucoin, and Thibodeau families. The Blanchard Family was from Port Royal, now Nova Scotia. And they were the first settlers in the Hillsborough area. Those families and other Acadian families farmed the area.
The next wave of settlers came after 1765 and were from all over Europe. They built a non-denominational church that later became the first Hillsborough Baptist Church. Acadian families were from Normandy, France. The Horsmans, Lutz, Steeves, Trites families were from Germany. The Gross family were Huguenots from France. The Duffys and Gallaghers came from Ireland. The Irving Lewis and Wallace families came from Scotland. The Blights and Taylors were from England. And the Jonahs and Pecks were from Switzerland.
The next wave of people to come in the area were United Empire Loyalists from the United States.
It’s really a special cemetery and the family names are still so prevelent in the area today especially the Steeves family. The Steeves had their 250th anniversary of their arrival in New Brunswick in 2016 and their family celebration went from the landing point in Moncton to Hillsborough and events lasted a week.
