Below is a list of events that took place in Nova Scotia and have had a substantial impact on Canada’s Industrial History. All information for these events can be found by clicking on the event; you will be redirected to Parks Canada’s website.
Beginnings of Coal Mining. 6 Mines Road, Port Morien, Nova Scotia. Canada’s coal mining industry had its origins during the French period on the north side of Morien Bay. Surface coal was found in Cape Breton recorded by both the French and the English in the late 17th and 18th centuries.
Bluenose National Historic Event. Falkland Street and Victoria Road, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The Bluenose, “Queen of the North Atlantic Fishing Fleet,” was emblematic of the sailing and international fishing fleet.
Exploitation of the Nova Scotia Coal Fields. N/A, Nova Scotia. The coal industry was leading in the transformation of the Maritime economy of the late 19th and 20th centuries.
First Printing Press in North America. 1726 Hollis Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia. September 1751, Bartholomew Green came to Halifax and set up a print shop on Grafton Street. In 1752, Green’s partner, John Bushell, began publishing the Halifax Gazette, Canada’s first newspaper.
General Mining Association. 147 North Foord Street, Stellarton, Nova Scotia. GMA, the British firm established coal mining as a major industry in Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia’s first steam engines were built by GMA and the company’s Albion Rail Road was the first in British North America to use steam trains on iron rails.
Poutrincourt’s Mill. Dugway Road, Lequille, Nova Scotia. Sieur de Poutrincourt created a water-mill on the Lequille River in 1607.
Shipbuilding in Nova Scotia. Corner of Main and Marshall Streets, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. The Shipbuilding industry in Nova Scotia has origins on Cape Breton Island. During the Golden Age of Sail in the 19th century, thousands of wooden ships of all sizes were building along the coast.
Starr Manufacturing Company. 62-68 Prince Albert Road Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Starr was one of the most prominent ice skate manufacturers in the world.
The Development of Whitney Pier. Sydney, Nova Scotia. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, immigrants from Europe, the West Indies, the United States, and elsewhere came to Cape Breton to work in iron and steel production.
The Nova Scotia Coal Strikes of 1922 to 1925. 17 Museum Street, Glace Bay, Nova Scotia. During these four years, Coal Miners demonstrated determination in resisting wage reductions imposed on them by the British Empire Steel Corporation.