Early Pioneer Settlers

 22.9 x 4 mtr (75 x 13 ft) First design as submitted by artist. British Loyalists, who came here during the American Revolution, first settled the Sussex area. Branded as traitors by the American Patriots, they were forced to leave their homes and possessions and were exiled to a wild and unsettled land with very little but the clothes on their back. The arrival of the Loyalists changed the course of Canadian History by promoting the Canadian government for the provinces of New Brunswick and Ontario. The first settlers suffered the hardships and loneliness common to pioneers in every age and place. The Loyalists had to adapt themselves to a way of life below the social and economic level they previously had enjoyed. Their struggle with nature in transforming a wilderness into productive land demanded the qualities of resourcefulness, determination and endurance with which they were well endowed. In his design, Don aimed for expressing the vastness of the region and the profound sense of isolation of those earliest settlers. The artist: Don Gray has been a professional artist and muralist for many years. His fine art paintings have been exhibited trough the US in galleries and museums and he has completed numerous murals and public art projects in communities and locales across the US. His work also includes book illustrations. http://www.dongraystudio.com/