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Administrative division of Canada
Also known as Nouvelle-Écosse, Province de Nouvelle-Écosse,
Province of Nova Scotia
Total area: 55,490 square kilometres (21,425 square miles)
Population: 899,942 (1991)
Nova Scotia, one of the three Maritime and one
of the four Atlantic provinces of Canada, bordered on the north by the
Bay of Fundy, the province of New Brunswick,
Northumberland Strait, and the Gulf of St Lawrence and on the east, south,
and west by the Atlantic Ocean. Nova Scotia consists primarily of a mainland
section, linked to New Brunswick by the Isthmus of Chignecto, and Cape
Breton Island, separated from the mainland by the Strait of Canso.
Nova Scotia is sometimes known
as the Land of Evangeline, a reference to the American poet Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow's "Evangeline" (1847), about the expulsion of the French-speaking
Acadians from the area in 1755. On July 1, 1867, Nova Scotia became one
of the founding members of the Canadian Confederation. The province's name,
which is Latin for New Scotland, was first applied to the region in the
1620s by settlers from Scotland.
Land and Resources
Nova Scotia, with an area of 55,490 sq km (21,425 sq mi), is the second
smallest Canadian province; about 3 per cent of its land area is owned
by the federal government. The province has an extreme length of about
600 km (375 mi) and an extreme breadth of about 160 km (100 mi); almost
5 per cent of its area consists of inland water surface. Elevations range
from sea level, along the coast, to 532 m (1,745 ft), in Cape Breton Highlands
National Park. The coastline of Nova Scotia is 7,578 km (4,709 mi) long.
Sable Island is situated about 160 km (100 mi) offshore in the Atlantic.
Physical Geography
Nova Scotia can be divided into four major geographical regions-the Atlantic
Uplands, the Nova Scotia Highlands, the Annapolis Lowland, and the Maritime
Plain. The Atlantic Uplands, which occupy most of the southern part of
the province, are made up of ancient resistant rocks largely overlain by
rocky glacial deposits. The Nova Scotia Highlands are composed of three
separate areas of uplands. The western section includes North Mountain,
a long ridge of traprock along the Bay of Fundy; the central section takes
in the Cobequid Mountains, which rise to 367 m (1,204 ft) at Nuttby Mountain;
and the eastern section contains the Cape Breton Highlands, with the province's
highest point. The Annapolis Lowland, in the west, is a small area with
considerable fertile soil. The fourth region, the Maritime Plain, borders
Northumberland Strait.
Most of Nova Scotia's rivers radiate outward in the Atlantic Uplands and
the Nova Scotia Highlands. The rivers, which generally are short and narrow,
include the St Mary's (the province's longest at 95 km/59 mi), Mersey,
Shubenacadie, La Have, and Mira. The Annapolis River flows parallel to
the north-western coast. The province contains hundreds of lakes, the largest
being Bras d'Or, a salt-water lake in the centre of Cape Breton Island.
The biggest bodies of fresh water are Lakes Rossignol and Ainslie and Kejimkujik
and Grand lakes.
Climate
The sea moderates the climate of Nova Scotia, which has mild winters compared
to the interior of Canada and slightly cooler summers than many other areas
in the southern part of the nation. Halifax, which is fairly typical of
the province, has a mean January temperature of -3.2° C (26.2°
F) and a mean July temperature of 18.3° C (65° F) and annually
receives some 1,320 mm (52 in) of precipitation, including about 210 mm
(8.3 in) of snow.
Plants and Animals
Forest covers about three-quarters of the land area of Nova Scotia. Much
of the forest is made up of mixed hardwoods and softwoods and includes
birch, maple, oak, balsam fir, hemlock, red spruce, and white pine. Softwoods
such as balsam fir and spruce predominate in most of Cape Breton Island
and in coastal regions in other parts of the province. Nova Scotia is known
for its large number of wildflowers, notably aster, goldenrod, lily, violet,
and wild rose.
Nova Scotia's large mammals include many white-tailed deer and some moose
and black bear. The province also has large numbers of beaver, chipmunk,
mink, muskrat, rabbit, red fox, and squirrel. Inland streams contain salmon
and trout; lobster, scallop, cod, haddock, herring, striped bass, and swordfish
inhabit coastal marine waters.
Resources, Products and Industries
In the early 1990s services constituted the leading economic activity;
manufacturing, fishing, mining, and farming were also important. Nova Scotia
contains large deposits of coal, gypsum, and salt. Coal is the most important
mineral mined annually in the province. Approximately three-quarters of
the gypsum mined annually in Canada is produced in Nova Scotia. Other mineral
products include tin, barite, clay, copper, peat, sand and gravel, stone,
salt, lead, and zinc. Some petroleum and natural gas have been found under
the Atlantic near Nova Scotia.
About 8 per cent of Nova Scotia's land area is devoted to crops and pasture.
Livestock and livestock products account for three quarters of annual cash
receipts from the sale of crops and livestock and livestock products. The
leading farm commodities are dairy products, poultry, hogs, beef cattle,
eggs, fruit, greenhouse products, potatoes, and wheat. Nova Scotia has
a substantial forestry industry, with most of the wood used for making
paper. Nova Scotia and British Columbia have the largest fishing industries
in Canada, with most of Nova Scotia's income derived from sales of shellfish,
especially scallop and lobster. Other valuable catches are cod, herring,
shrimp, haddock, pollack, hake, flounder, crab, and redfish.
Manufacturing is a leading sector of Nova Scotia's economy. Principal manufactures
include processed food, paper and paper items, transport equipment, printed
materials, wood products, iron and steel, non-metallic minerals, and chemical
products.
Population
According to the 1991 census, Nova Scotia had 899,942 inhabitants, an increase
of 3.1 per cent over 1986. In 1991 the overall population density was about
16 people per sq km (42 per sq mi). English was the sole mother tongue
of some 93 per cent of the people; about 4 per cent had French as their
sole first language. More than 13,000 Native Americans lived in Nova Scotia.
Education and Cultural Institutions
Nova Scotia's first education act, in 1766, provided for public schools,
but not until 1811 did non-denominational, free public education begin.
In the early 1990s there were 527 elementary and secondary schools with
a combined annual enrolment of approximately 168,800 students. In the same
period the province's 22 institutions of higher education enrolled about
32,750 students. The institutions included Dalhousie University (1818),
Mount St Vincent University (1925), St Mary's University (1802), the Technical
University of Nova Scotia (1907), and the Nova Scotia College of Art and
Design (1887), all in Halifax, Acadia University (1838) in Wolfville, St
Francis Xavier University (1853) in Antigonish, Université Sainte-Anne
(1890) in Church Point, the University College of Cape Breton (1951) in
Sydney, and Nova Scotia Agricultural College (1905) in Truro.
Many of Nova Scotia's foremost museums and other cultural facilities are
located in Halifax. Among them are the Nova Scotia Museum, with exhibits
covering historical themes; the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, displaying
memorabilia from the Titanic and other marine artefacts; the Public Archives
of Nova Scotia, featuring displays of documents, paintings, and artefacts
of regional historical significance; and the Dalhousie Arts Centre, which
includes an auditorium and the Dalhousie Art Gallery. Halifax is the home
of Symphony Nova Scotia.
Places of Interest
Nova Scotia has preserved or reconstructed a number of historical sites.
These include Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Park; Fort Anne National
Historic Site in Annapolis Royal, including the remains of a French fort
built from 1695 to 1708; Fort Edward National Historic Site in Windsor,
and Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site, near Louisbourg, including
a partial reconstruction of a large French fort (built 1720-1745). Grand
Pré National Historic Site encompasses the site of a former Acadian
village, and Halifax Citadel National Historic Site contains a massive
19th-century stone fortress.
Sports and Recreation
Nova Scotia's national and provincial parks, its lengthy shoreline, and
its rivers and lakes offer ideal conditions for boating, swimming, fishing,
hiking, camping, and hunting. Golf, tennis, skiing, and ice hockey are
also popular sports in the province.
Government and Politics
Nova Scotia has a parliamentary form of government. The nominal chief executive
of Nova Scotia is a lieutenant-governor appointed by the Canadian governor-general
in council to a term of five years. The lieutenant-governor holds a position
that is largely honorary. The premier, who is responsible to the provincial
legislature, is the actual head of government and presides over the executive
council, or cabinet, which also includes the attorney-general, minister
of finance, minister of education, and about 15 other officials. The unicameral
Nova Scotia Legislative Assembly is made up of 52 members, each popularly
elected to a term of up to five years. Nova Scotia is represented in the
Canadian Parliament by 10 senators appointed by the Canadian govenor-general
in council and by 11 members of the House of Commons popularly elected
to terms of up to five years.
History
The area now known as Nova Scotia was originally inhabited by tribes of
Abenaki and Micmac peoples. The Venetian explorer John Cabot, sailing under
the English flag, may have reached Cape Breton Island in 1497. The first
settlers of the area were the French, who called it Acadie (Acadia) and
founded Port Royal in 1605. Acadia included present-day New Brunswick,
Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The English, rivals of the French
in Europe and the New World, refused to recognize French claims to Acadia,
which they called Nova Scotia (New Scotland) and granted to the Scottish
poet and courtier Sir William Alexander in 1621.
This act initiated nearly a century of Anglo-French conflict, resolved
by the British capture of Port Royal (now Annapolis Royal) in 1710 and
the French cession of mainland Acadia to the British by the Peace of Utrecht
in 1713. Thus, the bulk of the Roman Catholic French-Acadians came under
Protestant British rule. In order to overawe their new subjects, the British
founded the town of Halifax as naval base and capital in 1749. Distrusting
the Acadians' loyalty in the French and Indian War, however, in 1755 the
British deported them. The British replaced the Acadians with settlers
from New England, and later from Scotland and northern England. In 1758
the British conquered the French fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton,
which was joined to Nova Scotia and ceded to them in 1763.
During the American War of Independence, the British colony of Nova Scotia
was a refuge for thousands of Americans loyal to Britain, including many
blacks. In 1784 the colony of New Brunswick was carved out of mainland
Nova Scotia to accommodate these United Empire Loyalists. Cape Breton also
became separate. The remaining Nova Scotians, augmented by some returned
Acadians and many Scots and Irish immigrants, lived by fishing, logging,
shipbuilding, and trade. Some attained great wealth as privateers during
the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812.
After prolonged political struggle, Britain granted Nova Scotia (which
included Cape Breton after 1820) local autonomy in 1848. In 1867, without
consulting the electorate, the Nova Scotia government took its reluctant
people into the Canadian Confederation.
Although joining the union failed to arrest Nova Scotia's economic decline,
it resulted in rail connections to the west and a federal tariff that encouraged
local manufacturing. An iron and steel industry developed in Pictou County
and on Cape Breton, near extensive coal mines. Agricultural areas found
export markets, especially for apples. From the end of World War I through
the depression of the 1930s, Nova Scotia suffered industrial decline and
accompanying unemployment and labour unrest. Thousands emigrated to central
and western Canada or to the United States. The Maritime Rights movement
of the 1920s, protesting Nova Scotia's unfavourable economic position in
relation to the rest of Canada, accomplished little.
After a revival of shipbuilding in World War II, Nova Scotian industry
faced problems of obsolete equipment, heavy freight costs, and dwindling
resources. In 1956 the electorate ended 26 years of Liberal rule by returning
the Progressive Conservatives to power. Later governments-first Liberal
(from 1970-1978) and then Conservative (since 1978)-have been unable to
bring the local economy up to parity with the rest of Canada.
