Springhill Junction is a rural community in central Cumberland County , Nova Scotia , Canada. It is approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) northwest of Springhill, Nova Scotia .
116-514: In 1872 the Intercolonial Railway of Canada constructed its Truro, NS - Moncton, NB mainline through the area at the persuasion of the Spring Hill & Parrsborough Coal & Railway Company Ltd. , creating a diversion several miles to the south of the preferred route running between Oxford Junction, NS and Amherst, NS . The community received its name in 1877 following completion of
232-534: A flag stop for Via Rail 's Ocean passenger train. The official name still contains the word "junction", despite the fact that the CR&;C was abandoned in 1962, making the community a run-through location on CN's mainline. 45°41′36.9″N 64°6′46.9″W / 45.693583°N 64.113028°W / 45.693583; -64.113028 Intercolonial Railway of Canada The Intercolonial Railway of Canada ( reporting mark IRC ), also referred to as
348-477: 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
464-665: 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
580-707: A grand station, built to rival the Canadian Pacific Railway station in McAdam . Following a February 24, 1906 fire, the Moncton shops were rebuilt at a new location at the insistence of the local Member of Parliament, Henry Emmerson , who was the Minister of Railways and Canals in Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier 's cabinet. The replacement shops were built northwest of downtown while the former shops location
696-643: 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
812-981: 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 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
928-603: 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
1044-465: A result of post- Second World War highway construction and airline usage. During the 42-year life of the ICR from 1876 to 1918, the railway had grown to a monopoly position in land transportation. Following its demise in 1918, the ICR trackage and facilities formed the majority of CNR's Maritimes operations and CN (acronym abbreviated post-1960) maintained Moncton as its principal regional headquarters well into
1160-416: 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
1276-592: 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
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#17328587132641392-505: A southern, a central, and a northern route. In 1849, Major William Robinson recommended the northern route as most secure from American attack. Funding talks were established between the various colonial administrations and the British government, but progress remained slow and little was accomplished beyond talk. Railway construction came to the Maritime provinces as early as the mid-1830s with
1508-682: 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
1624-577: 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
1740-523: 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 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
1856-627: 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
1972-612: 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
2088-556: 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
2204-509: 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 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
2320-576: 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
2436-655: The Department of Railways and Canals purchased the Drummond County Railway from James Naismith Greenshields and folded it into the ICR to provide the railway with a direct route from Sainte-Rosalie (east of Saint-Hyacinthe where it met the GTR main line) to Lévis. After this purchase was complete, the ICR stopped using the GTR's route via Richmond. The ICR opened a branch of 10.06 kilometres (6.25 mi) on June 22, 1903, between Rivière Ouelle Station and Pointe St. Denis on
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#17328587132642552-635: The First World War , particularly since as the CPR line to Saint John ran through the state of Maine on its eastward route from Montreal, thereby any war shipments on CPR would violate the United States' neutrality. Halifax grew in importance, particularly as Germany introduced use of submarines for the first time to a large-scale conflict, requiring the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Navy to institute
2668-629: The Gaspé Peninsula , redundant and it was sold in 1998 to short line operator Quebec Railway Corporation which operated for a time the New Brunswick East Coast Railway and associated subsidiaries. The ICR line from Truro to Sydney was sold to a short line operator, the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway , in 1993. The former ICR main line from Sainte-Rosalie to Charny and the east end of Lévis to Rivière-du-Loup, as well as
2784-736: The Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917, played havoc with much of the ICR's infrastructure in the Richmond neighbourhood of north-end Halifax. The ICR's North Street station was heavily damaged and its Richmond Yard and shipping terminals were destroyed or rendered unusable. Hundreds of freight cars were destroyed and dozens of passenger and military hospital cars were heavily damaged. Many ICR employees, most notably train dispatcher Vincent Coleman , responded with heroism and desperate determination to evacuate wounded and summon relief. The explosion severely but only briefly hampered war-time operations at
2900-508: The Intercolonial Railway ( ICR ), was a historic Canadian railway that operated from 1872 to 1918, when it became part of Canadian National Railways . As the railway was also completely owned and controlled by the Government of Canada , the Intercolonial was also one of Canada's first Crown corporations . The idea of a railway connecting Britain's North American colonies arose as soon as
3016-456: The Maritime provinces , is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces : New Brunswick , Nova Scotia , and Prince Edward Island . The Maritimes had 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
3132-724: The Ocean passenger train between Halifax and Montreal following the entire route of the ICR the entire way except for the waterfront section in Levis. Former ICR stations in Lévis and Pictou have been designated as National Historic Sites of Canada , as well as the Joffre Roundhouse constructed by the ICR in Charny . The establishment of the ICR has been designated a National Historic Event . Canadian Maritimes The Maritimes , also called
3248-753: 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
3364-566: 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 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
3480-526: 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
3596-574: 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
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3712-541: The United States and Europe at Halifax and Saint John, provided railcar ferries to Cape Breton Island, and steamship services operated by the Newfoundland Railway to Newfoundland at North Sydney. As a government-owned railway and the only operator of a rail connection to the port of Halifax and the extensive defence establishment there, the ICR became a lifeline for the Canadian and British war effort throughout
3828-460: 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
3944-527: 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
4060-568: The 1880s). In 1915 the ICR, together with the federally-owned National Transcontinental Railway (NTR) and the Prince Edward Island Railway (PEIR), as well as several bankrupt or defunct shortlines in New Brunswick, were grouped under the collective banner of the Canadian Government Railways (CGR) for funding and administrative purposes, although each company continued to operate independently. On September 6, 1918,
4176-473: 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
4292-459: The 1980s. Until the late-1970s, the ICR line through northern New Brunswick and eastern Quebec continued to host a large portion of CN's freight and the majority of its passenger traffic to Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland. In 1976, a 48-kilometre (30 mi) "cutoff" was built from Pelletier, Quebec , to a point on the former ICR main line west of Rivière-du-Loup, eliminating 320 kilometres (200 mi) of mountainous trackage on
4408-525: 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
4524-633: 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,
4640-488: The CNR system on January 30, 1923. The ICR had been called the "People's Railway" and this slogan was similarly applied to the CNR for a period. Despite many claims of political interference in its construction and subsequent operation, the majority of IRC from an operations viewpoint remained economically self-sufficient. This was largely because ICR balance books never had to contend with falling freight and passenger revenues as
4756-476: 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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4872-641: The Halifax peninsula to a new "Ocean Terminal" was accelerated. The ICR repaired the North Street Station to serve for another year but switched passenger service to a new south end station near the present day Halifax railway station in January 1919. For most of its history the Intercolonial reporting mark was ICR, but was changed to IRC during the First World War. Intercolonial publications, newspaper reports and popular usage used ICR. The railway's logo
4988-648: The ICR lines from Moncton to Saint John and Moncton to Halifax remain in operation under CN. A short section on the waterfront of Lévis was abandoned on October 24, 1998, due to network rationalization, resulting in the CN main line between Charny and the east end of Levis running on former NTR trackage. Despite the replacement or upgrading of bridges and track since the 19th century, almost the entirety of Fleming's route continues to operate; its fills and rock cuts and iron bridges, once considered extravagant, remain much as they were when they were built. Via Rail continues to operate
5104-627: The ICR main line and branch lines. Passenger trains on the ICR operated between all points on the system which included the following major sections: Several " name trains " were started by the ICR, including the Maritime Express and the longest-enduring "name" passenger train in Canada to this very day, the Ocean Limited . ICR passenger trains also connected with steamship services to Prince Edward Island at Shediac and Pictou , steamship services to Quebec at Pictou, steamship services to
5220-671: 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
5336-430: The Maritimes to Canada's then-largest city to transit without interchanging. In 1887 the ICR took over and completed construction of a line running from Oxford Junction to Stellarton , along Nova Scotia shores of the Northumberland Strait. This line was known as the "Short Line" and it provided an alternate route for ICR trains heading to Pictou County and Cape Breton Island from New Brunswick. The Temiscouata Railway
5452-473: 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 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
5568-409: 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
5684-501: The Maritimes, with the company employing thousands of workers, purchasing millions of dollars in services, coal, and other local products annually, operating ferries to Cape Breton Island at the Strait of Canso, and carrying the Royal Mail. The IRC was the face of the federal government in many communities in a region that was still somewhat hostile to what many believed was a forced Confederation (anti-Confederation organizers remained active in Nova Scotia and particularly New Brunswick into
5800-411: 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
5916-425: The Province of Canada (Ontario and Quebec) in 1867. Section 145 of the British North America Act, 1867 created a constitutional requirement for the federal government to build established the Intercolonial Railway: Despite being enshrined in the BNA Act of 1867, it would still be another decade before a route was finally selected and construction was completed; however, as a start, the federal government assumed
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#17328587132646032-444: The Province of Canada to the British colonies on the coast would serve a vital military purpose during the winter months when the waters of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and St. Lawrence River were frozen and shipping was impossible, but it would similarly serve an economic purpose for the Maritimes by opening up year-round access to new markets. Significant surveys were conducted throughout the 1830s–1850s. Several rival routes emerged:
6148-408: The South Shore of the St. Lawrence. In 1904 the ferry Champlain entered service between Pointe St. Denis and the North Shore ports of St. Irenée, Murray Bay and Cap à l'Aigle. Also in 1904, the ICR purchased the Canada Eastern Railway , giving it a connection to the Fredericton area. Moncton became the headquarters for the company and extensive shops and yard facilities were built, as well as
6264-535: The Springhill & Parrsboro Railway which ran south to the mining town of Springhill and on to the Bay of Fundy port of Parrsboro . The SP&P changed its name to the Cumberland Railway & Coal Company Ltd. in 1884 and operated under this name through the closure of the coal mines in Springhill in 1958 and the abandonment of the railway line south of Southampton to Parrsboro on June 14, 1958. The railway continued limited services between Southampton, Springhill and Springhill Junction until permission to abandon
6380-636: The U.S. Atlantic port of Portland, Maine , over a much longer journey to a Maritime port. As a result, Portland boomed during the winter months when Montreal's shipping season was closed. Nevertheless, the geopolitical instability in North America resulting from the American Civil War led to increased nervousness on the part of British North American colonies, particularly wary of the large Union Army operating south of their borders. The demands for closer political and economic ties between colonies led to further calls for an "Intercolonial Railway". An 1862 conference in Quebec City led to an agreement on financing
6496-432: 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
6612-402: The bankrupt Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) was nationalized by the Borden government, as part of a three-year long programme of re-organization of Canadian railways by Minister of Railways and Canals John Dowsley Reid . The CNoR's government-appointed Board of Management was directed to assume control of the CGR system at this time. On December 20, 1918, Reid consolidated the management of
6728-406: The biggest Canadian public works project of the 19th century. Sections of the railway opened as follows: The ICR was initially built to broad gauge of 5 feet 6 inches (1,680 mm) to be compatible with other railways in British North America, namely its component systems, the NSR and the E&NA, as well as its western connection at Rivière-du-Loup, the GTR. Before the construction
6844-484: 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
6960-411: The construction was to be tendered to local contractors, with engineering oversight to be provided by Fleming's staff, however political interference and contractor negligence (or incompetence) led to escalating costs on some of the contracts, forcing Fleming to assume some of the direct contractor duties as violators were discovered and purged from the project. Perhaps the greatest case of cost overruns
7076-434: 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
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#17328587132647192-460: 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
7308-450: 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
7424-413: 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
7540-431: 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
7656-400: The following: Despite pressure from commercial interests in the Maritimes and New England who wanted a rail connection closer to the border, the Chaleur Bay routing was chosen, amid the backdrop of the American Civil War, as it would keep the Intercolonial far from the boundary with Maine. Fleming was appointed "engineer in chief" of the ICR project by the federal government. The majority of
7772-427: The former NTR to Quebec City. Following this development, the majority of freight traffic to the Maritimes shifted to the NTR's line through central New Brunswick, relegating the ICR line east of Rivière-du-Loup to secondary main line status. Following CN's privatization in 1995, the company undertook a network rationalization program which made the IRC line between Moncton and Rivière-du-Loup, along with its trackage on
7888-430: 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
8004-404: The installation of iron bridges over streams and rivers rather than the cheaper wooden structures that many railways of the time favoured. This latter decision proved extremely far-sighted as the strength of the bridges and their material saved the line from lengthy closures on numerous occasions in the early years during forest fire seasons. The scale of construction on the Intercolonial made it
8120-401: 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
8236-448: 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
8352-437: 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
8468-481: 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
8584-530: The name Canadian Government Railways but continued to be widely known as the Intercolonial. An equally important connection was the line from Cape Breton where the largest private employer in Canada, the Dominion Steel and Coal Company (through its predecessors) produced vast quantities of steel and coal for the war effort, much of which was carried by the ICR westward to other industrial centres, before returning via Halifax for shipment overseas. The tragedy of
8700-425: 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
8816-767: The opening of the Albion Railway , a coal mining railway in Nova Scotia's Pictou County and the second railway to open in British North America . Construction in the 1850s saw two important rail lines opened in the Maritimes to connect cities on the Atlantic coast with steamship routes in the Northumberland Strait and the Gulf of St. Lawrence: An intercolonial rail system in the British North American colonies
8932-685: The operations of the NSR and E&NA which were to be wholly absorbed into the ICR. The route connecting the NSR and the E&;NA was not contestable as the line had to cross the Cobequid Mountains and the Isthmus of Chignecto where options were limited by the local topography . In New Brunswick, it was a different story, as the choice was narrowed to three options. A commission of engineers, headed by Sandford Fleming had been unanimously appointed in 1863 to consider
9048-526: 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
9164-519: The port and forest industry town of Dalhousie . At Rivière du Loup, in the 1880s the ICR made connections with the steamers of the St. Lawrence Steam Navigation Company. This steamship line was absorbed by the Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Company in 1886. In the late 1880s, the ICR received running rights over the GTR main line between Levis and Montreal (via Richmond ), allowing passengers and cargo from
9280-413: The port. The railway mobilized repair crews from across Eastern Canada to clear debris with remarkable speed and resumed its full schedule five days after the explosion, albeit with diminished passengers cars as many were severely damaged. Wharves and freight facilities were rebuilt for wartime service within a month. Construction that had begun on a second route using a vast rock cut through the south end of
9396-465: The railway age began in the 1830s. In the decades following the War of 1812 and ever-mindful of the issue of security, the colonies of Upper and Lower Canada (later the Province of Canada after 1840) wished to improve land-based transportation with the Atlantic coast colonies of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick , and to a lesser extent Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland . A railway connection from
9512-478: The railway with the Maritime colonies and Canada splitting construction costs and Britain assuming any debts, but the deal fell through within months. It is speculated that this failure to achieve a deal on the Intercolonial in 1862, combined with the ongoing concerns over the American Civil War, led to the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, and eventually to Confederation of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and
9628-605: 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
9744-517: 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
9860-424: 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
9976-405: 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
10092-670: 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
10208-659: The remaining line was granted in February, 1962. The last of the rails from the Springhill to Springhill Junction line were lifted in 1964. The Intercolonial Railway in the meantime was operated as part of the Canadian Government Railways after 1915 and was fully merged into the Canadian National Railways (CNR) in 1918. Today Springhill Junction remains a siding on CN Rail's Halifax-Montreal mainline and
10324-897: 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
10440-571: 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 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
10556-410: 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,
10672-482: 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
10788-464: 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
10904-511: 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
11020-467: 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
11136-543: 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
11252-500: 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 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
11368-582: The steamship service of the Quebec & Gulf Ports Steamship Company, which was reorganized in 1880 as the Quebec Steamship Company. By the late 1880s, this concern operated only one steamer, the Miramichi, between Quebec and Pictou; all of its other vessels had been shifted to service between New York and the West Indies. In 1884, the ICR built a branch from its mainline east of Campbellton to service
11484-460: 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
11600-482: 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
11716-489: 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
11832-459: 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
11948-501: 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
12064-417: The use of convoys for protecting ships. Halifax's protected harbour allowed ships to load and form up into convoy formations under protection due to torpedo nets strung across the harbour entrance. The ICR swelled in its ranks of employees and equipment as it struggled to carry the burden of military supplies from central Canada to the Atlantic coast. After 1915, the busy wartime railway officially operated under
12180-542: The various companies by creating the Canadian National Railways (CNR), by means of an order issued by the Privy Council . Another bankrupt western railway system, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway (GTPR), was nationalized by the federal government on March 7, 1919, and became part of the CNR system on July 12, 1920. GTPR's parent company, the GTR was also nationalized on May 21, 1920, before being included in
12296-619: The whistle of the steam engine in the passes of the Rocky Mountains, and to make the journey from Halifax to the Pacific in five or six days. But a rail connection between the Maritime colonies and the Province of Canada was not to be for another quarter century. Central Canada's dominant railway player in the 1850s was the Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) and its profit-driven business model chose
12412-472: Was a large bull moose herald, part of a campaign to promote hunting and fishing tourism traffic. It appeared on many promotional publications but seldom appeared on rolling stock. The ICR was Canada's first national railway (although some might argue the case for the GTR), having pre-dated the CPR by nine years, and it was also the first significant Crown corporation . The ICR was a pervasive and ubiquitous presence in
12528-765: 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
12644-440: Was caused by political interference during construction of the section of new line between the NSR trackage at Truro and the E&NA trackage near Moncton. This resulted in several diversions from the most direct route: To Fleming's credit, he insisted upon a high quality of workmanship in designing the route, using fills several metres higher than the surrounding landscape, where possible, to prevent snow accumulation, and mandated
12760-554: Was completed in 1889 from Rivière du Loup to Edmundston, New Brunswick , giving the ICR a connection with the Canadian Pacific line up the St. John Valley. In 1890, the ICR completed construction of what had begun as the Cape Breton Eastern Extension Railway , with a line running from its former NSR terminus at New Glasgow eastward through Antigonish to the port of Mulgrave where a railcar ferry service
12876-829: Was converted into yard facilities. Both Rivière-du-Loup and Campbellton had unsuccessfully lobbied to become the new headquarters of the ICR following the Moncton fire. As a result of the ICR with its subsidized freight-rate agreements, as well as the National Policy of prime minister John A. Macdonald , the industrial revolution struck Maritime towns quickly. The ICR was the perfect vehicle for transporting raw ore such as iron ore and coal to steel plants in Trenton, Sydney Mines and Sydney, as well as finished and semi-finished products to other Maritime and central Canadian locations. This led to foundries and factories of various industries springing up throughout Nova Scotia and New Brunswick along
12992-427: Was even complete, Fleming had the ICR re- gauged to standard gauge in 1875, following the trend of standardization sweeping U.S. and Canadian railways at the time. In 1879, the ICR purchased the GTR line between Rivière-du-Loup and Levis , opposite from Quebec City. This line had been completed in 1860 by the GTR, and the ICR had had running rights on it since 1876. The main line of the ICR competed directly with
13108-507: Was instituted over a 1.6-kilometre (1 mi) route across the deep waters of the Strait of Canso to Point Tupper . The line then headed east across the centre of Cape Breton Island, crossing the Bras d'Or Lake on the newly built Grand Narrows Bridge , continuing to the port of North Sydney (with ferry and steamship connections to Port aux Basques, Newfoundland ) and terminating in the burgeoning industrial centre and port of Sydney . In 1899,
13224-497: Was never far from the minds of government and civic leaders and in an 1851 speech at a Mason's Hall in Halifax, local editor of the Novascotian , Joseph Howe spoke these words: I am neither a prophet, nor the son of a prophet, yet I will venture to predict that in five years we shall make the journey hence to Quebec and Montreal, and home through Portland and St. John, by rail; and I believe that many in this room will live to hear
13340-550: 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
13456-517: 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
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