In 1756, the first Acadian settlers arrived in New Richmond followed by Loyalists (people loyal to the British Crown) in 1784. They came here mainly for the forest although they did some fishing. They built lovely Anglo-Saxon homes which can still be seen today.
New Richmond is situated in a commercially strategic area. It has the chance of having the Little and Grand Cascapedia rivers where salmon fishing and canoeing are possible. At the mouth of Little Cascapedia River, the Pointe Taylor municipal park offers biking trails, an in-line skating ring, picnic tables and canoe rentals. From here you can observe birds in the estuary. It is also possible to visit the Smurfit-Stone International cardboard factory. West of New Richmond is the Centre de l'heritage britannique.
In winter, there is a downhill skiing centre and snowmobile trails.
The main celebrations in summer are the Fêtes culturelles at the end of June and the Rallye automobile Bay of Chaleur at the beginning of July.
