The Nova Scotia Cotton Manufacturing Company was a cotton mill located in Halifax, Nova Scotia which was founded in 1882 and destroyed with great loss of life by the Halifax Explosion in 1917.
121-534: The company was formed as part of an effort to industrialize the Maritime provinces of Canada and switch from merchant shipping to manufacturing under Canada's National Policy . Typical of the regional enthusiasm for industry in the 1880s, the company was quickly capitalized by 32 local investors within two weeks, drawn from a who's who of Halifax manufacturers, merchants and business leaders including railway engineer Sandford Fleming . Carefully studying other cotton mills,
242-605: A World Heritage Site by UNESCO, it is believed to be the Vinland settlement of explorer Leif Erikson . (The Icelandic Skálholt map of 1570 refers to the area as "Promontorium Winlandiæ" and correctly shows it on a 51°N parallel with Bristol , England). Before and after the departure of the Norse, the island was inhabited by indigenous populations. About 500 years later, in 1497, the Italian navigator John Cabot (Zuan/Giovanni Caboto) became
363-519: A "baby bonus" for each child in a family. The Confederates were led by the charismatic Joseph Smallwood , a former radio broadcaster, who had developed socialist political inclinations while working for a socialist newspaper in New York City. Following confederation, Smallwood led Newfoundland for decades as the elected premier . His policies as premier were closer to liberalism than socialism. The first flag to specifically represent Newfoundland
484-477: A Golden Age, but that was a myth created in the 1930s to lure tourists to a romantic era of tall ships and antiques. Recent historians using census data have shown that is a fallacy. In 1851–1871 there was an overall increase in per capita wealth holding. However most of the gains went to the urban elite class, especially businessmen and financiers living in Halifax. The wealth held by the top 10% rose considerably over
605-665: A booming agricultural and fishing export economy having led to that colony opting not to sign on. The major communities of the region include Halifax and Cape Breton in Nova Scotia, Moncton , Saint John , and Fredericton in New Brunswick, and Charlottetown in Prince Edward Island. In spite of its name, The Maritimes has a humid continental climate of the warm-summer subtype. Especially in coastal Nova Scotia, differences between summers and winters are narrow compared to
726-690: A colonial governor on the island. After 1713, with the Treaty of Utrecht , the French ceded control of south and north shores of the island to the British. They kept only the nearby islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon , located in the fish-rich Grand Banks off the south coast. Despite some early settlements by the English, the Crown discouraged permanent, year-round settlement of Newfoundland by migratory fishery workers. Thomas Nash
847-445: A forerunner to the much later British Empire. Newfoundland is considered Britain's oldest colony. Settlers developed a variety of dialects associated with settlement on the island: Newfoundland English , Newfoundland French . In the 19th century, it also had a dialect of Irish known as Newfoundland Irish . The closely related Scottish Gaelic was also spoken on the island during the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly in
968-643: A great many potential culprits. In 1867 Nova Scotia and New Brunswick merged with the Canadas in Confederation , with Prince Edward Island joining them six years later in 1873. Canada was formed only a year after free trade with the United States (in the form of the Reciprocity Treaty ) had ended. In the 1870s John A. Macdonald 's National Policy was implemented, creating a system of protective tariffs around
1089-620: A population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of Canada's population. Together with Canada's easternmost province, Newfoundland and Labrador , the Maritime provinces make up the region of Atlantic Canada . Located along the Atlantic coast, various aquatic sub-basins are located in the Maritimes, such as the Gulf of Maine and Gulf of St. Lawrence . The region is located northeast of New England in
1210-553: A portion of coastal Maine at one point. The most significant incident from this war which occurred in the Maritimes was the British capture and detention of USS Chesapeake , an American frigate in Halifax. In 1820, the Colony of Cape Breton Island was merged back into the Colony of Nova Scotia for the second time by the British government. British settlement of the Maritimes, as the colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island came to be known, accelerated throughout
1331-416: A similar view and provides considerable evidence that the early 1880s were in fact a booming period in Nova Scotia and this growth was only undermined towards the end of that decade. David Alexander argues that any earlier declines were simply part of the global Long Depression , and that the Maritimes first fell behind the rest of Canada when the great boom period of the early 20th century had little effect on
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#17328585527001452-592: A smaller population of the Maliseet in western New Brunswick. Given the small population of the region (compared with the Central Canadian provinces or the New England states), the regional economy is a net exporter of natural resources, manufactured goods, and services. The regional economy has long been tied to natural resources such as fishing, logging, farming, and mining activities. Significant industrialization in
1573-437: A total area of 111,390 square kilometres (43,008 sq mi). According to 2006 official Census Canada statistics, 57% of responding Newfoundland and Labradorians claim British or Irish ancestry, with 43.2% claiming at least one English parent, 21.5% at least one Irish parent, and 7% at least one parent of Scottish origin. Additionally, 6.1% claimed at least one parent of French ancestry. The island's total population as of
1694-588: Is Corner Brook , which is situated on the Bay of Islands on the west coast of the island. The bay was named by Captain James Cook who surveyed the coast in 1767. The island of Newfoundland has numerous provincial parks such as Barachois Pond Provincial Park , considered to be a model forest, as well as two national parks. The island has many tourism opportunities, ranging from sea kayaking, camping, fishing and hunting, to hiking. The International Appalachian Trail (IAT)
1815-523: Is a large island within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador . It is situated off the eastern coast of the North American mainland and the geographical region of Labrador . The island contains 29 percent of the province's land area, but is home to over 90% of the province's population, with about 60% of the province's population located on the small southeastern Avalon peninsula . The island
1936-562: Is a provincial Registered Heritage District, as well as a National Cultural Landscape District of Canada. This is one of only two national historic sites in Canada so recognized for their Irish heritage. Entertainment opportunities abound in the island's three cities and numerous towns, particularly during summer festivals. For nightlife, George Street , located in downtown St. John's, is closed to traffic 20 hours per day. The Mile One Stadium in St. John's
2057-667: Is being extended along the island's mountainous west coast. On the east coast, the East Coast Trail extends through the Avalon Peninsula for 220 km (140 mi), beginning near Fort Amherst in St. John's and ending in Cappahayden , with an additional 320 km (200 mi) of trail under construction. The Marble Mountain Ski Resort near Corner Brook is a major attraction in
2178-512: Is known about them beyond archeological evidence of early settlements. Evidence of successive cultures have been found. The Late Paleo-Eskimo, or Dorset culture , settled there about 4,000 years ago. They were descendants of migrations of ancient prehistoric peoples across the High Arctic thousands of years ago, after crossing from Siberia via the Bering land bridge . The Dorset died off or abandoned
2299-682: Is less prevalent today. During the American Civil War , a significant number of Maritimers volunteered to fight for the armies of the Union , while a small handful joined the Confederate Army . However, the majority of the conflict's impact was felt in the shipping industry. Maritime shipping boomed during the war due to large-scale Northern imports of war supplies which were often carried by Maritime ships as Union ships were vulnerable to Confederate naval raiders. Diplomatic tensions between Britain and
2420-466: Is low, though, less than 12% in the same 2003 study. The referendum campaign of 1948 was bitterly fought, and interests in both Canada and Britain favoured and supported confederation with Canada. Jack Pickersgill , a western Canadian native and politician, worked with the confederation camp during the campaign. The Catholic Church, whose members were a minority on the island, lobbied for continued independence. Canada offered financial incentives, including
2541-655: Is separated from the Labrador Peninsula by the Strait of Belle Isle and from Cape Breton Island by the Cabot Strait . It blocks the mouth of the Saint Lawrence River , creating the Gulf of Saint Lawrence , the world's largest estuary . Newfoundland's nearest neighbour is the French overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon . With an area of 108,860 square kilometres (42,031 sq mi), Newfoundland
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#17328585527002662-627: Is the world's 16th-largest island , Canada's fourth-largest island , and the largest Canadian island outside the North . The provincial capital, St. John's , is located on the southeastern coast of the island; Cape Spear , just south of the capital, is the easternmost point of North America , excluding Greenland. It is common to consider all directly neighbouring islands such as New World , Twillingate , Fogo and Bell Island to be 'part of Newfoundland' (i.e., distinct from Labrador). By that classification, Newfoundland and its associated small islands have
2783-530: Is the venue for large sporting and concert events in the province. In March, the annual seal hunt (of the harp seal ) takes place. Largest municipalities (2016 population) Newfoundland is roughly triangular, with each side being approximately 500 kilometres (310 mi), and having an area of 108,860 square kilometres (42,030 sq mi). Newfoundland and its associated small islands have a total area of 111,390 square kilometres (43,010 sq mi). Newfoundland extends between latitudes 46°36'N and 51°38'N. Newfoundland
2904-436: Is the youngest province in Canada. Newfoundland was organised as a colony in 1825, was self-governing from 1855 to 1934, but after a financial crisis the legislature was suspended and it was ruled through a Commission of Government (see Dominion of Newfoundland ). On June 22 and July 3, 1948, the population of the colony voted in referendums 52.3% to 47.7% in favour of joining Canada as a province. Opposition to confederation
3025-633: Is thought to have been an image of a green fir tree on a pink background that was in use in the early 19th century. The first official flag identifying Newfoundland, flown by vessels in service of the colonial government, was the Newfoundland Blue Ensign, adopted in 1870 and used until 1904, when it was modified slightly. In 1904, the crown of the Blue Ensign was replaced with the Great Seal of Newfoundland (having been given royal approval in 1827) and
3146-479: The Annapolis Basin . Acadians lived with uncertainty throughout the English constitutional crises under Oliver Cromwell , and it was not until the Treaty of Breda in 1667 that France's claim to the region was reaffirmed. Colonial administration by France throughout the history of Acadia was of low priority. France's priorities were in settling and strengthening its claim on the larger territory of New France and
3267-657: The Atlantic Ocean . The pre-history of the Canadian Maritimes begins after the northerly retreat of glaciers at the end of the Wisconsin glaciation over 10,000 years ago; human settlement by First Nations began in the Maritimes with Paleo-Indians during the Early Period , ending around 6,000 years ago. The Middle Period , starting 6,000 years ago, and ending 3,000 years ago, was dominated by rising sea levels from
3388-582: The Bay of Fundy being populated by French immigrants who called themselves Acadien . The Acadians eventually built small settlements throughout what is today mainland Nova Scotia and New Brunswick , as well as Île-Saint-Jean ( Prince Edward Island ), Île-Royale ( Cape Breton Island ), and other shorelines of the Gulf of St. Lawrence in present-day Newfoundland and Labrador , and Quebec . Acadian settlements had primarily agrarian economies. Early examples of Acadian fishing settlements developed in southwestern Nova Scotia and in Île-Royale, as well as along
3509-511: The Beothuk language , which is often considered to be a member of the Algonquian language family although the lack of sufficient records means that it is not possible to demonstrate such a connection confidently. The tribe is now typically considered extinct, but evidence of its culture is preserved in museums and historical and archaeological records. Shanawdithit , a woman who is often regarded as
3630-610: The Bishop of Newfoundland until a separate Bishop of Bermuda was created in 1919, though Newfoundland would become a Dominion in its own right from 1907 (the Dominion of Newfoundland ), before reverting to colonial status in 1934, and finally joining the Dominion of Canada in 1949 as the Province of Newfoundland . The European immigrants, mostly English, Scots, Irish and French, built a society in
3751-612: The Brittany , Normandie , and Vienne regions of France, continued to populate the colony of Acadia during the latter part of the 17th and early part of the 18th centuries. Important settlements also began in the Beaubassin region of the present-day Isthmus of Chignecto , and in the Saint John River valley, as well as smaller communities on Île-Saint-Jean and Île-Royale. In 1654, raiders from New England attacked Acadian settlements on
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3872-505: The Caribbean , to being focused on commerce with the Canadian interior, enforced by the federal government's tariff policies. Coincident with the construction of railways in the region, the age of the wooden sailing ship began to come to an end, being replaced by larger and faster steel steamships . The Maritimes had long been a centre for shipbuilding , and this industry was hurt by the change. The larger ships were also less likely to call on
3993-804: The Codroy Valley area, chiefly by settlers from Cape Breton Island , Nova Scotia. The Gaelic names reflected the association with fishing: in Scottish Gaelic , it was called Eilean a' Trosg , literally 'Island of the Cod '. Similarly, the Irish name Talamh an Éisc means 'Land of the Fish'. The first inhabitants of Newfoundland were the Paleo-Eskimo , who have no known link to other groups in Newfoundland history. Little
4114-576: The Confederation Bridge . There have been airport improvements at various centres providing improved connections to markets and destinations in the rest of North America and overseas. Improvements in infrastructure and the regional economy notwithstanding, the three provinces remain one of the poorer regions of Canada. While urban areas are growing and thriving, economic adjustments have been harsh in rural and resource-dependent communities, and emigration has been an ongoing phenomenon for some parts of
4235-753: The Raid on Chignecto , were conducted by Benjamin Church . In the second war, Queen Anne's War (the North American theatre of the War of the Spanish Succession ), the British conducted the Conquest of Acadia , while the region remained primarily in control of Maliseet militia , Acadia militia and Mi'kmaw militia . In 1719, to further protect strategic interests in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and St. Lawrence River , France began
4356-529: The Siege of Louisbourg . The British returned control of Île-Royale to France with the fortress virtually intact three years later under the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle and the French reestablished their forces there. In 1749, to counter the rising threat of Louisbourg, Halifax was founded and the Royal Navy established a major naval base and citadel . The founding of Halifax sparked Father Le Loutre's War . During
4477-574: The Unionist North had deteriorated after some interests in Britain expressed support for the secessionist Confederate South . The Union Navy , although much smaller than the British Royal Navy and no threat to the Maritimes, did posture off Maritime coasts at times chasing Confederate naval ships which sought repairs and reprovisioning in Maritime ports, especially Halifax. The immense size of
4598-779: The United States of America , the remaining continental colonies and the North Atlantic Ocean colony of Bermuda were organised and administered as British North America . All except the Newfoundland Colony and Bermuda confederated in 1867 to form the Dominion of Canada . Newfoundland and Bermuda would retain links (possibly explaining similarities between the Newfoundland English and Bermudian English ), including settlement in Newfoundland of Bermudians such as Joseph Outerbridge , especially their being grouped under
4719-567: The Vinland region around 1000 AD, which is when the L'Anse aux Meadows settlement in Newfoundland and Labrador has been dated. They may have made further exploration into the present-day Maritimes and northeastern United States. Both Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot) and Giovanni da Verrazzano are reported to have sailed in or near Maritime waters during their voyages of discovery for England and France, respectively. Several Portuguese explorers / cartographers have also documented various parts of
4840-460: The continental margin . Regional transportation networks have also changed significantly in recent decades with port modernizations, with new freeway and ongoing arterial highway construction, the abandonment of various low-capacity railway branch lines (including the entire railway system of Prince Edward Island and southwestern Nova Scotia), and the construction of the Canso Causeway and
4961-489: The sea ice and weather of this isolated location and the native wildlife its residents relied upon for food and income . The First World War had a powerful and lasting effect on the society. From a population of about a quarter of a million, 5,482 men went overseas. Nearly 1,500 were killed and 2,300 wounded. On July 1, 1916, at Beaumont-Hamel, France, 753 men of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment went over
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5082-527: The 17th and 18th centuries brought Acadia to the centre of world-scale geopolitical forces. In 1613, Virginian raiders captured Port-Royal, and in 1621 France ceded Acadia to Scotland's Sir William Alexander , who renamed it Nova Scotia . By 1632, Acadia was returned from Scotland to France under the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye . The Port Royale settlement was moved to the site of nearby present-day Annapolis Royal . More French immigrant settlers, primarily from
5203-404: The 17th century came Irish fishermen, who found so many fisheries that they named the island Talamh an Éisc , meaning 'Land of the Fish', more loosely 'the fishing grounds' in Irish. In 1583, when Sir Humphrey Gilbert formally claimed Newfoundland as a colony of England, he found numerous English, French and Portuguese vessels at St. John's. There was no permanent European population. Gilbert
5324-473: The 1950s, resulting in the need to draw upon equalization payments to provide nationally mandated social services. Since the 1990s the region has experienced an exceptionally tumultuous period in its regional economy with the collapse of large portions of the ground fishery throughout Atlantic Canada, the closing of coal mines and a steel mill on Cape Breton Island , and the closure of military bases in all three provinces. That being said, New Brunswick has one of
5445-524: The 1960s and 1970s. This research estimated that the settlement dates to about the year 1000, and the site contains the earliest-known European structures in North America. In 2021, an interdisciplinary team used the Miyake event of 993-994 as a benchmark in dendrochronology (tree-ring studies) to precisely determine that Vikings were present in L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland in year 1021. Designated as
5566-525: The 20-year construction of a large fortress at Louisbourg on Île-Royale. Massachusetts was increasingly concerned over reports of the capabilities of this fortress, and of privateers staging out of its harbour to raid New England fishermen on the Grand Banks. In the fourth war, King George's War (the North American theatre of the War of the Austrian Succession ), the British engaged successfully in
5687-538: The 2006 census was 479,105. Newfoundland was long inhabited by indigenous peoples of the Dorset culture and the Beothuk , who spoke the now-extinct Beothuk language . The island was possibly visited by the Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson in the 11th century as a rest settlement when heading farther south to the land believed to be closer to the mouth of the St. Lawrence River called " Vinland ". The first confirmed visit
5808-516: The Beothuk and Mi'kmaq, though this is refuted by indigenous oral history. The Mi'kmaq, Innu and Inuit all hunted and fished around Newfoundland but no evidence indicates that they lived on the island for long periods of time and would only travel to Newfoundland temporarily. Inuit have been documented on the Great Northern Peninsula as late as the 18th-Century. Newfoundland was historically
5929-509: The British Parliament designated Newfoundland Red and Blue ensigns as official flags specifically for Newfoundland. The Red and Blue ensigns with the Great Seal of Newfoundland in the fly were used officially from 1904 until 1965, with the Red Ensign being flown as civil ensign by merchant shipping, and the Blue being flown by governmental ships (after the British tradition of having different flags for merchant/naval and government vessel identification). On September 26, 1907, King Edward VII of
6050-473: The British and maintained vital supply lines to the French Fortress of Louisbourg and Fort Beausejour. The British sought to neutralize any military threat Acadians posed and to interrupt the vital supply lines Acadians provided to Louisbourg by deporting Acadians from Acadia. The British began the Expulsion of the Acadians with the Bay of Fundy campaign in 1775. Over the next nine years over 12,000 Acadians of 15,000 were removed from Nova Scotia. In 1758,
6171-476: The Colony of Nova Scotia to create the new colony of New Brunswick in 1784. At the same time, another part of the Colony of Nova Scotia, Cape Breton Island, was split off to become the Colony of Cape Breton Island. The Colony of St. John's Island was renamed Prince Edward Island on November 29, 1798. The War of 1812 had some effect on the shipping industry in the Maritime colonies of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Breton Island; however,
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#17328585527006292-408: The Maritime regional economy has begun increased contributions from manufacturing again and the steady transition to a service economy. Important manufacturing centres in the region include Pictou County , Truro , the Annapolis Valley and the South Shore , and the Strait of Canso area in Nova Scotia, as well as Summerside in Prince Edward Island, and the Miramichi area, the North Shore and
6413-409: The Maritimes, namely Diogo Homem . However, it was French explorer Jacques Cartier who made the first detailed reconnaissance of the region for a European power and, in so doing, claimed the region for the King of France. Cartier was followed by nobleman Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons , who was accompanied by explorer / cartographer Samuel de Champlain in a 1604 expedition. During this they established
6534-426: The Maritimes, while Acadian and British settlements date to the 17th century. The word maritime is an adjective that means of the sea ; from Latin maritimus "of the sea, near the sea", from mare "sea". Thus any land adjacent to the sea can be considered maritime. But the term Maritimes has historically been collectively applied to New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, all of which border
6655-411: The Maritimes. Growth was strong, and the region had one of British North America 's most extensive manufacturing sectors as well as a large international shipping industry. The question of why the Maritimes fell from being a centre of Canadian manufacturing to being an economic hinterland is thus a central one to the study of the region's pecuniary difficulties. The period in which the decline occurred had
6776-422: The Mi'kmaq. The latter readily traded with Europeans and became established in settlements in Newfoundland. Newfoundland is the site of the only authenticated Norse settlement in North America. An archaeological site was discovered in 1960 at L'Anse aux Meadows by Norwegian explorer Helge Ingstad and his wife, archaeologist Anne Stine Ingstad . This site was the subject of archaeological studies throughout
6897-419: The New World unlike the ones they had left. It was also different from those that other immigrants would build on the North American mainland. As a fish-exporting society, Newfoundland was in contact with many ports and societies around the Atlantic rim. But its geographic location and political distinctiveness isolated it from its closest neighbours, Canada and the United States. Internally, most of its population
7018-519: The Red and Blue Ensigns retained as ensigns for shipping identification. On March 31, 1949, Newfoundland became a province of Canada but retained the Union Jack in legislature, still designating it as the "national" flag. This was later reaffirmed by the Revised Statutes Act of 1952, and the Union Jack remained the official flag of Newfoundland until 1980, when it was replaced by the current provincial flag. (See Province of Newfoundland and Labrador for continued discussion of provincial flags.) As one of
7139-467: The Silliker Car Works, the Henderson & Potts Paint factory and later the railway shops of the Canadian Government Railways . The mill began production in 1883. It produced plain cotton with a workforce of 600, half of them women including a dozen girls under 16. By the end of the 1880s, it was the second largest employer in Halifax, after the Acadia Sugar Refinery, and the seventh largest producer of cotton in Canada. The company paid small dividends in
7260-432: The Union Army (the largest on the planet toward the end of the Civil War), however, was viewed with increasing concern by Maritimers throughout the early 1860s. Another concern was the rising threat of Fenian raids on border communities in New Brunswick by the Fenian Brotherhood seeking to end British rule in Ireland . This combination of events, coupled with an ongoing decline in British military and economic support to
7381-419: The United Kingdom declared the Colony of Newfoundland, as an independent Dominion within the British Empire , and from that point until 1965, the Newfoundland Red Ensign was used as the civil ensign of the Dominion of Newfoundland with the Blue Ensign, again, reserved for government shipping identification. In 1931 the Newfoundland National Assembly adopted the Union Jack as the official national flag, with
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#17328585527007502-437: The United States, south and southeast of Quebec 's Gaspé Peninsula , and southwest of the island of Newfoundland . The notion of a Maritime Union has been proposed at various times in Canada's history; the first discussions in 1864 at the Charlottetown Conference contributed to Canadian Confederation . This movement formed the larger Dominion of Canada . The Mi'kmaq , Maliseet and Passamaquoddy people are indigenous to
7623-497: The building until Rona built a new store on the adjacent lot on Almon Street about 2014. The building was demolished in 2016 and is now a vacant lot. 44°39′28.2″N 63°36′02.4″W / 44.657833°N 63.600667°W / 44.657833; -63.600667 Maritimes The Maritimes , also called the Maritime provinces , is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces : New Brunswick , Nova Scotia , and Prince Edward Island . The Maritimes had
7744-424: The coast, the area available to the Beothuk to harvest the marine resources they relied upon was diminished. By the beginning of the 19th century, few Beothuk remained. Most died due to infectious diseases carried by Europeans, to which they had no immunity , and starvation. Government attempts to engage with the Beothuk and aid them came too late. The Beothuk did not have friendly relations with foreigners, unlike
7865-484: The coming months, with Île-Saint-Jean falling in 1759 to British forces on their way to Quebec City for the first siege of Quebec and the ensuing Battle of the Plains of Abraham . The war ended and Britain had gained control over the entire Maritime region and the Indigenous people signed the Halifax Treaties . Following the Seven Years' War , empty Acadian lands were settled first by 8,000 New England Planters and then by immigrants brought from Yorkshire . Île-Royale
7986-454: The company built a state-of-the-art mill on Robie Street in North End, Halifax , bringing in textile workers from Lancashire , England. Halifax City Council paid for water mains and subsidized the construction of a five-mile railway spurline from the Intercolonial Railway's yards on the waterfront. The "cotton factory spur", as it came to be known, created Halifax's first industrial park along Robie Street, attracting other factories such as
8107-432: The concrete floors of the building and started a fire which consumed the building and killed many of the workers. After the explosion, Dominion Textile shifted production to other mills. The walls and first floor of the mill remained and were roofed over to store supplies for the city's reconstruction. The Halifax lumber and building supply firm Piercey's opened in the former factory in the 1920s and continued to operate from
8228-434: The decline. The exact date that the Maritimes began to fall behind the rest of Canada is difficult to determine. Historian Kris Inwood places the date very early, at least in Nova Scotia, finding clear signs that the Maritimes "Golden Age" of the mid-19th century was over by 1870, before Confederation or the National Policy could have had any significant impact. Richard Caves places the date closer to 1885. T.W. Acheson takes
8349-439: The early years of the 19th century. The French name for the island is Terre-Neuve . The name Newfoundland is one of the oldest European place names in Canada in continuous geographical and cartographical use, dating from a 1502 letter. It was stated in the following 1628 poem: A Skeltonicall continued ryme, in praise of my New-found-Land After the 1783 independence of the thirteen continental colonies that became
8470-460: The entire territory of British North America into a united colony. The Charlottetown Conference ended with an agreement to meet the following month in Quebec City , where more formal discussions ensued, culminating with meetings in London and the signing of the British North America Act , 1867 (BNA Act). Of the Maritime provinces, only Nova Scotia and New Brunswick were initially party to the BNA Act: Prince Edward Island's reluctance, combined with
8591-450: The era was indeed a golden age but only for a small but powerful and highly visible elite. The cause of economic malaise in the Maritimes is an issue of great debate and controversy among historians, economists, and geographers. The differing opinions can approximately be divided into the "structuralists", who argue that poor policy decisions are to blame, and the others, who argue that unavoidable technological and geographical factors caused
8712-569: The exploration and settlement of interior North America and the Mississippi River valley. Over 74 years (1689–1763) there were six colonial wars, which involved continuous warfare between New England and Acadia (see the French and Indian Wars reflecting English and French tensions in Europe, as well as Father Rale's War (Dummer's War) and Father Le Loutre's War ). Throughout these wars, New England
8833-708: The first European since the Norse settlers to set foot on Newfoundland, working under commission of King Henry VII of England . His landing site is unknown but popularly believed to be Cape Bonavista , along the island's East coast. Another site claimed is Cape Bauld , at the tip of the Great Northern Peninsula . A document found in the Spanish National Archives, written by a Bristol merchant, reports that Cabot's crew landed 1,800 miles or 2,900 kilometres west of Dursey Head , Ireland (latitude 51°35′N), which would put Cabot within sight of Cape Bauld. This document mentions an island that Cabot sailed past to go ashore on
8954-431: The first commercial production field for oil beginning in the 1980s. Natural gas was also discovered in the 1980s during exploration work, and this is being commercially recovered, beginning in the late 1990s. Initial optimism in Nova Scotia about the potential of off-shore resources appears to have diminished with the lack of new discoveries, although exploration work continues and is moving farther off-shore into waters on
9075-583: The first few years but soon feel into debt and had to cut production, dropping to 317 workers by 1891. The mill found it difficult to compete with much larger textile mills in Montreal and Toronto and provided historians with a classic example of the difficulty of Maritime firms to compete with larger Canadian competitors. It was purchased in January 1891 by the Dominion Cotton Mills Company of Montreal,
9196-583: The first places in the New World where Europeans settled, Newfoundland also has a history of European colonization. St. John's is the oldest city in Canada and the oldest continuously settled location in English-speaking North America. The St. John's census metropolitan area includes 12 suburban communities, the largest of which are the city of Mount Pearl and the towns of Conception Bay South and Paradise . The province's third-largest city
9317-523: The first purchase in a string of acquisitions by the Montreal firm which became Dominion Textile . The mill was destroyed on December 6, 1917 by an accidental explosion of a munitions ship in Halifax Harbour known as the Halifax Explosion . Although almost a mile from the explosion and out-of-sight of the harbour, the mill was devastated by the explosion. The shock wave caused a partial collapse of
9438-430: The fortress of Louisbourg was laid siege for a second time within 15 years, this time by more than 27,000 British soldiers and sailors with over 150 warships. After the French surrender, Louisbourg was thoroughly destroyed by British engineers to ensure it would never be reclaimed. With the fall of Louisbourg, French and Mi'kmaw resistance in the region crumbled. British forces seized remaining French control over Acadia in
9559-757: The industry in Central Canada. The policies in the early years of Confederation were designed by Central Canadian interests, and they reflected the needs of that region. The unified Canadian market and the introduction of railroads created a relative weakness in the Maritime economies. Central to this concept, according to Acheson, was the lack of metropolises in the Maritimes. Newfoundland (island) Newfoundland ( / ˈ nj uː f ən ( d ) l ə n d , - l æ n d / NEW -fən(d)-lənd, -land , locally / ˌ n uː f ən ˈ l æ n d / NEW -fən- LAND ; French: Terre-Neuve , locally [taɛ̯ʁˈnœːv] ; Mi'kmaq : Ktaqmkuk )
9680-553: The island prior to the arrival of the Norse . After this period, the Beothuk settled in Newfoundland, migrating from Labrador on the mainland. There is no evidence that the Beothuk inhabited the island before Norse settlement. Scholars believe that the Beothuk are related closely to the Innu of Labrador. The tribe later was declared "extinct" although people of partial Beothuk descent have been documented. The name Beothuk meant 'people' in
9801-455: The largest military bases in the Commonwealth of Nations ( CFB Gagetown ), which plays a significant role in the cultural and economic spheres of Fredericton, the province's capital city. While the economic underperformance of the Maritime economy has been long lasting, it has not always been present. The mid-19th century, especially the 1850s and 1860s, has long been seen as a "Golden Age" in
9922-559: The last full-blood Beothuk, died in St. John's in 1829 of tuberculosis . However, Santu Toney, born around 1835 and died in 1910, was a woman of mixed Mi'kmaq and Beothuk descent, meaning some Beothuk must have lived on beyond 1829. She described her father as Beothuk and mother as Mi'kmaq, both from Newfoundland. The Beothuk may have intermingled and assimilated with Innu in Labrador and Mi'kmaq in Newfoundland. European histories also suggest potential historical competition and hostility between
10043-623: The late 18th century and into the 19th century with significant immigration to the region as a result of Scottish migrants displaced by the Highland Clearances and Irish escaping the Great Irish Famine (1845–1849). As a result, significant portions of the three provinces are influenced by Celtic heritages, with Scottish Gaelic (and to a lesser degree, Irish Gaelic ) having been widely spoken, particularly in Cape Breton, although it
10164-535: The mainland. This description fits with the Cape Bauld theory, as Belle Isle is not far offshore. After Cabot, the first European visitors to Newfoundland were Portuguese, Spanish, Basque, French and English migratory fishermen. In 1501, Portuguese explorers Gaspar Corte-Real and his brother Miguel Corte-Real charted part of the coast of Newfoundland in a failed attempt to find the Northwest Passage . Late in
10285-469: The melting glaciers in polar regions. This is when what is called the Laurentian tradition started among Archaic Indians , the term used for First Nations peoples of the time. Evidence of Archaic Indian burial mounds and other ceremonial sites existing in the Saint John River valley has been uncovered. The Late Period extended from 3,000 years ago until first contact with European settlers. This period
10406-437: The more successful English settlement at Jamestown in present-day Virginia by three years. Champlain was considered the founder of New France 's province of Canada, which comprises much of the present-day lower St. Lawrence River valley in the province of Quebec . Champlain's success in the region, which came to be called Acadie , led to the fertile tidal marshes surrounding the southeastern and northeastern reaches of
10527-544: The most important changes, and one that almost certainly had an effect, was the revolution in transportation that occurred at this time. The Maritimes were connected to central Canada by the Intercolonial Railway in the 1870s, removing a longstanding barrier to trade. For the first time this placed the Maritime manufacturers in direct competition with those of Central Canada. Maritime trading patterns shifted considerably from mainly trading with New England , Britain, and
10648-425: The new nation. Throughout the period there was also significant technological change both in the production and transportation of goods. Several scholars have explored the so-called "Golden Age" of the Maritimes in the years just before Confederation. In Nova Scotia , the population grew steadily from 277,000 in 1851 to 388,000 in 1871, mostly from natural increase since immigration was slight. The era has been called
10769-496: The northwestern coastal regions of the present-day Bay of Fundy . The Mi'kmaq Nation is also believed to have crossed the present-day Cabot Strait at around this time to settle on the south coast of Newfoundland , but they were a minority compared to the Beothuk Nation. After Newfoundland, the Maritimes were the second area in Canada to be settled by Europeans. There is evidence that Viking explorers discovered and settled in
10890-526: The other two Maritime provinces in that it has a much higher Francophone population . There was once a significant Canadian Gaelic speaking population. Helen Creighton recorded Celtic traditions of rural Nova Scotia in the mid-1900s. There are Black Canadians who are mostly descendants of Black Loyalists or black refugees from the War of 1812 . This Maritime population is mainly among Black Nova Scotians . There are Mi'kmaq reserves in all three provinces, and
11011-605: The region as the Home Office favoured newer colonial endeavours in Africa and elsewhere, led to a call among Maritime politicians for a conference on Maritime Union , to be held in early September 1864 in Charlottetown – chosen in part because of Prince Edward Island's reluctance to give up its jurisdictional sovereignty in favour of uniting with New Brunswick and Nova Scotia into a single colony. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia felt that if
11132-517: The region's finances. T.W. Acheson is one of the main proponents of this theory. He notes the growth that was occurring during the early years of the National Policy in Nova Scotia demonstrates how the effects of railway fares and the tariff structure helped undermine this growth. Capitalists from Central Canada purchased the factories and industries of the Maritimes from their bankrupt local owners and proceeded to close down many of them, consolidating
11253-424: The region's numerous universities and colleges—are significant economic contributors. Another important contribution to Nova Scotia's provincial economy is through spin-offs and royalties relating to off-shore petroleum exploration and development. Mostly concentrated on the continental shelf of the province's Atlantic coast in the vicinity of Sable Island , exploration activities began in the 1960s and resulted in
11374-405: The region. Another problem is seen in the lower average wages and family incomes within the region. Property values are depressed, resulting in a smaller tax base for these three provinces, particularly when compared with the national average which benefits from central and western Canadian economic growth. This has been particularly problematic with the growth of the welfare state in Canada since
11495-727: The region. E.R. Forbes, however, emphasizes that the precipitous decline did not occur until after the First World War during the 1920s when new railway policies were implemented. Forbes also contends that significant Canadian defence spending during the Second World War favoured powerful political interests in Central Canada such as C. D. Howe , when major Maritime shipyards and factories, as well as Canada's largest steel mill, located in Cape Breton Island, fared poorly. One of
11616-897: The rest of Canada. The inland climate of New Brunswick is in stark contrast during winter, resembling more continental areas. Summers are somewhat tempered by the marine influence throughout the provinces, but due to the southerly parallels still remain similar to more continental areas further west. Yarmouth in Nova Scotia has significant marine influence to have a borderline oceanic microclimate , but winter nights are still cold even in all coastal areas. The northernmost areas of New Brunswick are only just above subarctic with very cold continental winters. The Maritimes were predominantly rural until recent decades, having resource-based economies of fishing, agriculture, forestry, and coal mining. Maritimers are predominantly of west European origin: Scottish Canadians , Irish Canadians , English Canadians , and Acadians . New Brunswick, in general, differs from
11737-410: The second half of the 19th century brought steel to Trenton, Nova Scotia , and subsequent creation of a widespread industrial base to take advantage of the region's large underground coal deposits. After Confederation, however, this industrial base withered with technological change, and trading links to Europe and the U.S. were reduced in favour of those with Ontario and Quebec. In recent years, however,
11858-482: The second permanent European settlement in what is now the United States and Canada, following Spain's settlement at St. Augustine in present-day Florida in the American South. Champlain's settlement at Saint Croix Island , later moved to Port Royal ( Annapolis Royal ), survived. By contrast, the ill-fated English settlement at Roanoke Colony off the southern American coast did not. The French settlement pre-dated
11979-464: The significant Royal Navy presence in Halifax and other ports in the region prevented any serious attempts by American raiders. Maritime and American privateers targeted unprotected shipping of both the United States and Britain respectively, further reducing trade. New Brunswick's section of the Canada–US border did not have any significant action during this conflict, although British forces did occupy
12100-514: The sixth and final colonial war, the French and Indian War (the North American theatre of the Seven Years' War ), the military conflicts in Nova Scotia continued. The British Conquest of Acadia happened in 1710. Over the next forty-five years, the Acadians refused to sign an unconditional oath of allegiance to Britain. During this time period Acadians participated in various militia operations against
12221-467: The smaller population centres such as Saint John and Halifax, preferring to travel to cities like New York and Montreal . Even the Cunard Line , founded by Maritime-born Samuel Cunard , stopped making more than a single ceremonial voyage to Halifax each year. More controversial than the role of technology is the argument over the role of politics in the origins of the region's decline. Confederation and
12342-600: The south and west coasts of Newfoundland, the Gaspé Peninsula , and the present-day Côte-Nord region of Quebec. Most Acadian fishing activities were overshadowed by the much larger seasonal European fishing fleets that were based out of Newfoundland and took advantage of proximity to the Grand Banks . The growing English colonies along the American seaboard to the south and various European wars between England and France during
12463-625: The southernmost part of the Inuit's territorial range. When Europeans arrived from 1497 and later, starting with John Cabot , they established contact with the Beothuk. Estimates of the number of Beothuk on the island at this time vary, typically around 700. Later both the English and French settled the island. They were followed by the Mi'kmaq , an Algonquian -speaking indigenous people from eastern Canada and present-day Nova Scotia. As European and Mi'kmaq settlement became year-round and expanded to new areas of
12584-407: The targets of American raiders. Charlottetown, the capital of the new colony of St. John's Island, was ransacked in 1775 with the provincial secretary kidnapped and the Great Seal stolen. The largest military action in the Maritimes during the revolutionary war was the attack on Fort Cumberland (the renamed Fort Beauséjour ) in 1776 by a force of American sympathizers led by Jonathan Eddy . The fort
12705-482: The tariff and railway freight policies that followed have often been blamed for having a deleterious effect on the Maritime economies. Arguments have been made that the Maritimes' poverty was caused by control over policy by Central Canada which used the national structures for its own enrichment. This was the central view of the Maritime Rights Movement of the 1920s, which advocated greater local control over
12826-457: The top of a trench. The next morning, only 68 men answered the roll-call. Even now, when the rest of Canada celebrates the founding of the country on July 1, many Newfoundlanders take part in solemn ceremonies of remembrance. The Second World War also had a lasting effect on Newfoundland. In particular, the United States assigned forces to the military bases at Argentia, Gander, Stephenville, Goose Bay, and St. John's. Newfoundland and Labrador
12947-489: The two decades, but there was little improvement in the wealth levels in rural areas, which comprised the great majority of the population. Likewise Gwyn reports that gentlemen, merchants, bankers, colliery owners, shipowners, shipbuilders, and master mariners flourished. However the great majority of families were headed by farmers, fishermen, craftsmen and labourer. Most of them—and many widows as well—lived in poverty. Out migration became an increasingly necessary option. Thus
13068-459: The union conference were held in Charlottetown, they might be able to convince Island politicians to support the proposal. The Charlottetown Conference , as it came to be called, was also attended by a slew of visiting delegates from the neighbouring Crown colony , the Province of Canada , who had largely arrived at their own invitation with their own agenda. This agenda saw the conference dominated by discussions of creating an even larger union of
13189-501: The upper Saint John River valley of New Brunswick. Some predominantly coastal areas have become major tourist centres, such as parts of Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Island, the South Shore of Nova Scotia and the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Bay of Fundy coasts of New Brunswick. Additional service-related industries in information technology , pharmaceuticals, insurance and financial sectors—as well as research-related spin-offs from
13310-462: The very earliest modern European population on the island. By 1620, the fishermen of England's West Country dominated the east coast of Newfoundland. French fishermen dominated the island's south coast and Northern Peninsula. The decline of the fisheries, the wasting of the shoreline forests, and an overstocking of liquor by local merchants influenced the Whitehall government in 1675 to decline to set up
13431-826: The winter for skiers in eastern Canada. Other major communities include the following towns: Educational institutions include the provincial university, Memorial University of Newfoundland whose main campus is situated in St. John's, along with the Grenfell Campus in Corner Brook, in addition to the College of the North Atlantic based in Stephenville and other communities. Bonavista , Placentia and Ferryland are all historic locations for various early European settlement or discovery activities. Tilting Harbour on Fogo Island
13552-765: Was allied with the Iroquois Confederacy based around the southern Great Lakes and west of the Hudson River . Acadian settlers were allied with the Wabanaki Confederacy . In the first war, King William's War (the North American theatre of the Nine Years' War ), natives from the Maritime region participated in numerous attacks with the French on the Acadia / New England border in southern Maine (e.g., Raid on Salmon Falls ). New England retaliatory raids on Acadia, such as
13673-482: Was an Irish Catholic fisherman who permanently settled in Newfoundland. He established the fishing town of Branch . He and his cousin Father Patrick Power of Callan , County Kilkenny, spread Catholicism in Newfoundland. This settlement attracted a major migration of Irish Catholic immigrants to Newfoundland in the early eighteenth century. By the late 18th century, permanent settlement increased, peaking in
13794-565: Was by the Norse who built a temporary base at L'Anse aux Meadows , a Norse settlement near the northernmost tip of Newfoundland (Cape Norman), which has been dated to be approximately 1000 years old. The site is considered the only undisputed evidence of Pre-Columbian contact between the Old and New Worlds if the Norse– Inuit contact on Greenland is not counted. The next European visitors to Newfoundland were Portuguese and French fishermen. The island
13915-469: Was concentrated among residents of the capital St. John's and its surrounding hinterland on the Avalon Peninsula. Newfoundland joined Canada at one minute before midnight on March 31, 1949. Union with Canada has done little to reduce Newfoundlanders' self-image as a distinctive group. In 2003, 72% of residents responding identified first as Newfoundlanders, secondarily as Canadians. Separatist sentiment
14036-626: Was dominated by the organization of First Nations peoples into the Algonquian -speaking Abenaki Nation, which occupied territory largely in present-day interior Vermont , New Hampshire , and Maine , and the Mi'kmaq Nation, which inhabited all of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, eastern New Brunswick and the southern Gaspé . The primarily agrarian Maliseet Nation settled throughout the Saint John River and Allagash River valleys of present-day New Brunswick and Maine. The Passamaquoddy Nation inhabited
14157-502: Was lost at sea during his return voyage, and plans of settlement were postponed. In July 1596 the Scottish vessel the "William" left Aberdeen for "new fund land" (Newfoundland) and returned in 1600. On 5 July 1610, John Guy set sail from Bristol , England, with 39 other colonists for Cuper's Cove . This, and other early attempts at permanent settlement failed to make a profit for the English investors, but some settlers remained, forming
14278-550: Was partially overrun after a month-long siege, but the attackers were ultimately repelled after the arrival of British reinforcements from Halifax. The most significant impact from this war was the settling of large numbers of Loyalist refugees in the region (34,000 to the 17,000 settlers already there), especially in Shelburne and Parrtown (Saint John). Following the Treaty of Paris in 1783, Loyalist settlers in what would become New Brunswick persuaded British administrators to split
14399-552: Was possibly visited by the Venetian navigator John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), working under contract to Henry VII of England on his expedition from Bristol in 1497. In 1501 Portuguese brothers Gaspar Corte-Real and Miguel Corte-Real charted part of the coast of Newfoundland in an attempt to find the Northwest Passage . On 5 August 1583, Humphrey Gilbert claimed Newfoundland as England's first overseas colony under Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I , thus officially establishing
14520-517: Was renamed Cape Breton Island and incorporated into the Colony of Nova Scotia. Some of the Acadians who had been deported came back but went to the eastern coasts of New Brunswick. Both the colonies of Nova Scotia (present-day Nova Scotia and New Brunswick) and St. John's Island (Prince Edward Island) were affected by the American Revolutionary War , largely by privateering against American shipping, but several coastal communities were also
14641-453: Was spread widely around a rugged coastline in small outport settlements. Many were distant from larger centres of population and isolated for long periods by winter ice or bad weather. These conditions had an effect on the cultures of the immigrants. They generated new ways of thinking and acting. Newfoundland and Labrador developed a wide variety of distinctive customs, beliefs, stories, songs and dialects. A unique vocabulary arose focused on
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