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47-522: Chignecto bay was also the site of an unsuccessful railway and canal project of the 1880s and 1890s that would have intersected the landmass, thereby providing a transit passage between New England and Prince Edward Island . After several investigations into the feasibility of a new canal project, including most importantly by the Chignecto Canal Commission, the proposed Chignecto Canal was deemed commercially and economically unjustifiable and

94-454: A drydock into which ships would float in and out. Each terminal had a lifting dock containing a steel grid measuring 235 ft (72 m) by 60 ft (18 m) connected to 20 hydraulic jacks . The grids supported the cradle which carried the vessel. The cradle was pulled from the lifting dock by hydraulic power and was then pulled along the length of the ship railway by 2 steam-powered locomotives. The terminal at Tidnish Cross Roads

141-572: A humid continental climate ( Dfa/Dfb/Dc ), with warm-to-hot summers, cold and snowy winters with at least one month averaging below freezing, and four to seven months with mean temperatures warmer than 50 °F. The area from Martha's Vineyard and extreme SW Rhode Island to southern Delaware and western North Carolina has a warm temperate climate ( Cfa Köppen/ Do Trewartha) with long and hot summers with at least one month over 22°C (71.6°F), cool winters with all months over freezing, and six to seven months above 50°F. Although winter precipitation

188-508: A National Historic Civil Engineering Site by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering in 1989. With the area having been an important site for trade and military activity in the 1600s and 1700s, proposals to intersect the isthmus with a canal have emerged with various degrees of seriousness since the arrival of Europeans in Canada . The earliest proposals came from traders who frequented

235-527: A center for resort and travel destinations in the United States. New York City is the most populous city in the country and a major world financial center. Seventy-one of the world's Fortune 500 companies have their corporate headquarters in New York City, while Midtown Manhattan , with 400 million square feet of office space in 2018, is the largest central business district in the world. Washington, D.C.

282-571: A steamship company in Charlottetown suggested the routes to those ports from Prince Edward Island would save another 100 nmi (190 km; 120 mi) by crossing the isthmus rather than sailing around Nova Scotia. The ship railway was designed to carry vessels weighing up to 2000 tons with a proposed transit time of 2.5 hours. Ships would be carried on a cradle forming an extremely wide rail car that straddled parallel twin standard gauge railway tracks, separated by 18 ft (5.5 m) to

329-496: Is a northern extension of a rift valley that forms much of the Bay of Fundy. Chignecto is derived from the Mi'kmaq language , but its exact etymology is unclear. It may be from Sigunikt 'foot cloth', possibly alluding to a Mi'kmaq legend. Or it may be from Siknikt , 'drainage place'; the latter (as Siknikt or Signigt , in longer form Sikniktewa'kik or Signigtewa'gi )

376-516: Is more likely to fall as rain than as snow, occasional heavy snow is possible. The East Coast, with the exception of eastern Maine, is a low-relief, passive margin coast. It has been shaped by the Pleistocene glaciation in the far northern areas in New England, with offshore islands such as Nantucket , Martha's Vineyard , Block Island , and Fishers Island . From northern New Jersey southward,

423-519: Is more likely to fall as rain than as snow, occasional heavy snow is possible. The area from the southern Delmarva Peninsula , southeast Virginia, and central North Carolina south to central Florida is humid subtropical ( Cfa/Cf ), with hot and rainy summers, mild and drier winters, and eight to twelve months above 50°F. Urban heat island exclaves of this zone are found north of this area in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. The region of Florida from

470-429: Is the federal capital and political nerve center of the United States. Many organizations such as defense contractors, civilian contractors, nonprofit organizations, lobbying firms, trade unions, industry trade groups and professional associations have their headquarters in or near Washington, D.C., in order to be close to the federal government . Miami is one of the top domestic and international travel destinations in

517-701: Is today the name of the Mi'kma'ki district in which the bay is located. The head of Cumberland Basin is an important migrating area for many shorebirds . A large portion of it is protected as a wildlife sanctuary known as the Chignecto National Wildlife Area . It includes the 10.2 km John Lusby National Wildlife Area , which is recognized as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance since October 1985. 45°40′N 64°40′W  /  45.667°N 64.667°W  / 45.667; -64.667 Chignecto Ship Railway The Chignecto Marine Transport Railway (sometimes referred to as

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564-539: The Chignecto Ship Railway or Baie Verte Ship Railway ) is a historic Canadian portage railway located in Cumberland County , Nova Scotia . With Canadian Confederation in 1867, a variety of canal-building projects were undertaken throughout the new country by the new federal government, including renewed interest in a canal that could transit the isthmus at Chignecto. The Chignecto Ship Railway project

611-740: The Delaware River and the Potomac River , respectively, both of which are tidal arms of the Atlantic Ocean. The original Thirteen Colonies of Great Britain in North America all lay along the East Coast. Two additional U.S. states on the East Coast were not among the original Thirteen Colonies: Maine became part of the English Colony of Massachusetts in 1677 and Florida was held by

658-691: The Easter season. Delaware Colony and the provinces of New Jersey , New York , and Pennsylvania had been colonized by the Dutch as New Netherland until they were ceded to the British in the mid- to late-17th century. Until 1791, Vermont was an independent nation as the Vermont Republic . Three basic climate regions occur on the East Coast according to the Köppen climate classification and four occur according to

705-661: The Northumberland Strait by approximately 21 km (13 mi) at its narrowest point. The isthmus presents a barrier to marine traffic from ports on the Bay of Fundy and along the East Coast of the United States , which must instead sail a long route around the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia to reach the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the St. Lawrence Seaway . In 1685, during an inspection of

752-575: The Tidnish River . The site of the Tidnish dock was made Tidnish Dock Provincial Park in 1982. A heritage plaque identifies the site where rock remnants and wood pilings can be seen at low tide. The remains of the dock at Fort Lawrence consist of stone work and left-over masonry. The bridge and both docks were listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places in 1985. The railway was designated

799-471: The Trewartha climate classification from north to south based on the monthly mean temperature of the coldest month (January) and the number of months averaging above 50 °F (10 °C), respectively. The region from northern Maine and Upstate New York south to almost all of Connecticut, most of northern New Jersey (except for areas close enough to New York City ), most of Pennsylvania, and western Maryland has

846-454: The 1880s. In the 50-year interim, the newly formed Government of Canada had constructed a network of railways throughout the Maritimes, meaning that any new canal would cannibalise traffic from existing public infrastructure. The commission also found that trade between the Maritimes and New England through any Chignecto Canal would have been insignificant; since both regions competitively produced

893-413: The 1890s, there was a decline in enthusiasm for canal-building projects across Canada more generally since many of the canals built in the late 1800s concluded well over-budget and did not deliver promised increases in commerce. This ended any prospects of building a canal at Chignecto until the 1930s when the idea of building a canal was investigated as part of Ottawa's fiscal stimulus program in response to

940-497: The British from the end of the French and Indian War until 1781 and was part of New Spain until 1821. In present-day Florida, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León made the first textual records of the state during his 1513 voyage. The state was initially named for Ponce de Ponce de León, who called the peninsula La Pascua Florida in recognition of the verdant landscape and because it was

987-739: The East Coast is connected from the Annisquam River in Gloucester, Massachusetts to Miami, Florida , by the Intracoastal Waterway , also known as the East Coast Canal, which was completed in 1912. Amtrak's Downeaster and Northeast Regional offer the main passenger rail service on the Seaboard. The Acela Express offers the only high-speed rail passenger service in the Americas, by

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1034-562: The Economic Research Corporation argued that a canal at Chignecto would help to reinvigorate a struggling Maritime Economy. More recently, celebrated Maritime scholar of public administration Donald Savoie argued for infrastructure spending on projects like Chignecto, which he argued to be key for Maritime economic development and is an undertaking that the federal government should have completed long before as part of its promises at Confederation in 1867. East Coast of

1081-593: The Government of Canada in 1881. In 1882 the Chignecto Marine Transport Railway Company was incorporated as a federally chartered railway. It was financed by Baring Brothers and Company , London . The Isthmus of Chignecto is a land bridge connecting the mainland province of New Brunswick with the province of Nova Scotia , which would otherwise be an island. It separates the Bay of Fundy from

1128-507: The Great Depression . The thought was that the construction would stimulate the depressed region and the canal would increase the Maritimes' economic vitality over the long-term. A substantial investigation was undertaken by the newly formed Chignecto Canal Commission which concluded that such a canal was economically unviable due to changes in the political and economic landscape which had occurred since Henry Ketchum 's project had begun in

1175-768: The United States The East Coast of the United States , also known as the Eastern Seaboard , the Atlantic Coast , and the Atlantic Seaboard , is the region encompassing the coastline where the Eastern United States meets the Atlantic Ocean . The Thirteen Colonies , which formed the United States in 1776 were located on this coast, and it has played an important role in the development of

1222-556: The United States. The region is generally understood to include the U.S. states that border the Atlantic Ocean: Connecticut , Delaware , Florida , Georgia , Maine , Maryland , Massachusetts , New Hampshire , New Jersey , New York , North Carolina , Rhode Island , South Carolina , and Virginia , as well as the federal capital of Washington, D.C. , and non-coastline states: Pennsylvania , Vermont , and West Virginia . The place name East Coast derives from

1269-415: The United States. Miami is the warmest major city in the continental United States in winter, which contributes to it being a major tourism hub for international visitors. Miami has one of the largest concentrations of international banks in the United States, and the third-largest skyline in the U.S. with over 439 high-rises, 68 of which exceed 490 ft (149 m). Port of Miami is the busiest cruise port in

1316-545: The area in the 1600s and 1700s. These early proposals occurred well prior to the creation of any strong central government in Canada which would have been able to undertake a project of this magnitude, making the Chignecto Ship Railway project (which occurred after the creation of a Canadian central government ) the first serious attempt to intersect the Chignecto isthmus. When the Chignecto Ship Railway went defunct in

1363-480: The centre of each track. The tracks were built on a route that was almost perfectly straight for a distance of 17 mi (27 km) between the southwestern terminal on the Bay of Fundy, located at Fort Lawrence and the northeastern terminal on the Northumberland Strait, located at Tidnish Cross Roads . At each terminal the twin railway tracks descended on an incline into a stone-lined basin similar to

1410-455: The coastal plain broadens southwards, separated from the Piedmont region by the Atlantic Seaboard fall line of the East Coast rivers, often marking the head of navigation and prominent sites of cities. The coastal areas from Long Island south to Florida are often made up of barrier islands that front the coastal areas, with the long stretches of sandy beaches. Many of the larger capes along

1457-572: The financing of debts in Uruguay and Argentina. This created the Panic of 1890 . By August 1891 work on the ship railway ground to a halt and would never restart. Ketchum appealed to the federal government for help in finishing the project but in 1892 the Parliament of Canada refused to extend the time period for the contract with the Chignecto Marine Transport Railway Company. Ketchum never ceased lobbying for

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1504-512: The first spot in the United States that immigrants arrived and the close proximity of Europe , the Caribbean , and Latin America , the East Coast is home to a diverse population and home to multi-cultures when compared to the rest of the U.S. From the strong Latin culture in southern Florida , to the 200-year-old Gullah culture of the low country coastal islands of Georgia and South Carolina , to

1551-722: The idea that the contiguous 48 states are defined by two major coastlines, one at the western edge and one on the eastern edge. Other terms for referring to this area include the Eastern Seaboard , which is another term for coastline, Atlantic Coast, and Atlantic Seaboard because the coastline lies along the Atlantic Ocean . The 14 states that have a shoreline on the Atlantic Ocean are (from north to south): Maine , New Hampshire , Massachusetts , Rhode Island , Connecticut , New York , New Jersey , Delaware , Maryland , Virginia , North Carolina , South Carolina , Georgia , and Florida . Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. border

1598-417: The largest city and the largest metropolitan area on the East Coast. The East Coast is the most populated coastal area in the United States. Hartford The primary Interstate Highway along the East Coast is Interstate 95 , completed in 2018, which replaced the historic U.S. Route 1 ( Atlantic Highway ), the original federal highway that traversed all East Coast states, except Delaware . By water,

1645-1393: The lenient US definition of high speed rail. Between New York and Boston the Acela Express has up to a 54% share of the combined train and air passenger market. Some of the largest airports in the United States are located along the East Coast of the United States, such as John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens , New York City , Logan International Airport in Boston , Newark Liberty Airport in Newark, New Jersey , Philadelphia International Airport in Philadelphia , Baltimore–Washington International Airport near Baltimore , Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. , Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport in Atlanta , Miami International Airport in Miami , Charlotte Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina , Tampa International Airport in Tampa , and Orlando International Airport in Orlando, Florida . As

1692-457: The lower East Coast are in fact barrier islands, like the Outer Banks of North Carolina and Cape Canaveral , Florida. The Florida Keys are made up of limestone coral and provide the only coral reefs on the U.S. mainland. In 2010, the population of the states that have shoreline on the East Coast was estimated at 112,642,503 (about 36% of the country's total population). New York City is both

1739-525: The many historic cities in the Mid-Atlantic , where a strong English, German, Italian, Irish, and French culture are present, the East Coast is significantly more diverse than the rest of the United States. Numerous Chinatowns in New York City , and Little Havana in Miami , are examples of such cultural centers in the bigger cities. The East Coast is home to much of the political and financial power and

1786-459: The more significant storms to have affected the region. The least common climate on the East Coast is the oceanic ( Cfb/Do ), which is only found on Block Island , Nantucket , and the Outer Cape and Chatham on Cape Cod , and in areas of the southern Appalachian Mountains . This zone has all monthly averages between 0 and 22 °C and six to seven months above 50 °F. Although winter precipitation

1833-648: The now defunct Acadian settlement of Beaubassin , intendant Jacques de Meulles reported that a portage of one league could be made by cutting a ditch, since the elevation is low. Various proposals for a canal crossing the isthmus were made as early as 1822. Writing in the Daily Telegraph in 1894, one shipping agent suggested that a route crossing the isthmus would reduce the sailing distance from Pictou, Nova Scotia to Boston by 200 nmi (370 km; 230 mi), and to Saint John, New Brunswick by 400 nmi (740 km; 460 mi). An agent of

1880-563: The project but died unexpectedly on September 8, 1896, in Amherst . He was buried in Tidnish Bridge at a cemetery that overlooked the unfinished ship railway. The tracks were eventually pulled up and recycled while nature slowly claimed the rail bed. Some of the stones used for the breakwaters at Tidnish were moved in 1917 to Cape Tormentine and used in the construction of the docks used for ferry service to Prince Edward Island . The land for

1927-527: The project was abandoned. Some of the physical remnants of the 1880s project still continue to dot the landscape of Chignecto Bay today. At its head, Chignecto Bay itself subdivides into two basins, separated by Cape Maringouin: Many small named bays line the Bay's coast including Salisbury Bay at the mouths of the Upper Salmon River and Cleveland Brook , site of the Village of Alma, NB . Chignecto Bay

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1974-466: The project was three-quarters complete with 16 mi (26 km) of the rail bed finished, and 13 mi (21 km) of the track laid. A bridge and large stone arch culvert were built at Tidnish Bridge - a community which received its name due to this infrastructure. And the terminals were built including the docks, breakwaters, and lock. In fall 1890 the primary financiers of the project, Baring Brothers & Co., faced potential insolvency due to

2021-519: The railway's right-of-way was purchased by the Government of Nova Scotia in 2012. Most of the rail bed is still visible in aerial and satellite photos in the 21st century and supports several recreation trails. The keystone bridge constructed near Tidnish Cross Roads remains, and now carries the Henry Ketchum Trail, a 4 km (2.5 mi) walking trail following the former rail bed, over

2068-568: The same types of goods, neither would have much advantage in trading with the other. The Chignecto Canal Commission concluded by stating "this Commission is strongly of opinion that the proposal to construct a canal at Chignecto offers no national or local advantages at all commensurate with the estimated outlay." Following the Second World War there have been several proposals to build a canal at Chignecto although none of them have advanced far enough to materialise into any construction. In 1960,

2115-775: The south-central region of the state south to the Florida Keys has a tropical climate ( Af/Aw/Ar ) that is usually frost-free and warm to hot all year, and all of the 12 months of the year average above 18 °C (64.4 °F). This region of Florida is the only tropical climate in the continental U.S. Although landfalls are rare, the Eastern Seaboard is susceptible to hurricanes in the Atlantic hurricane season, officially running from June 1 to November 30, although hurricanes can occur before or after these dates. Hurricanes Hazel , Hugo , Bob , Isabel , Irene , and Sandy , and most recently Florence , Isaias , Henri , and Ida are some of

2162-483: Was first proposed in 1875 by notable civil engineer Henry Ketchum as a means to transport ships across the Isthmus of Chignecto , shortening the sailing distance between the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of St. Lawrence by avoiding the necessity of sailing 500 nmi (930 km) around Nova Scotia. A canal had been proposed for the isthmus but financing was proving difficult to secure. Ketchum submitted his proposal to

2209-540: Was located on Baie Verte and had a moderate tidal range and was protected by two breakwaters. However, the terminal at Fort Lawrence was located on Cumberland Basin at the discharge point of the Missaguash River on the inter-provincial boundary with New Brunswick and had a high tidal range, necessitating the construction of a lock to accommodate different water levels. Construction began in October 1888 and by 1890

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