Halifax

Halifax, the capital of Nova Scotia and the principal Atlantic seaport of Canada, is situated on the eastern or Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, in 44° 39' N. lat. and 63° 37' W. long. It is the nearest to Great Britain of any city on the American continent, being but 2178 miles from Cape Clear. Previous to the founding of the city, the magnificent sheet of water that constitutes its harbour was called by the Indians Chebucto, signifying the greatest of havens—a name not inappropriate for what is one of the finest harbours in the world. It is easily accessible at all seasons of the year, at all times of the tide, by ships of any tonnage; and is capable of affording safe anchorage to the whole British navy. The fact that it was selected as the American rendezvous of the ill-starred expedition of D'Anville against the British colonies in America in 1746 led to a demand on the part of those colonies that a place of such strategic importance should no longer be unoccupied by imperial troops. Their demand was ably supported by Lord Halifax, and accordingly an expedition was fitted out in 1749, under command of the Hon. Edward Cornwallis, which founded the city and gave to it the name of its English patron. It at once became the capital of the province, and the principal naval and military station of Great Britain in America, and has remained so ever since. It is garrisoned by imperial troops, and is strongly fortified—its supposed impregnability securing for it the appellation of 'the Cronstadt of America.' The dockyard, covering 14 acres, is one of the finest in the British colonies. Down to the close of the Napoleonic wars Halifax was little more than a military and naval entrepôt; but of late years it has assumed more and more the character of a commercial city. It is built on the western side of the harbour, and extends along it about two miles and a half. The streets are well laid out, and are lighted by electricity. The commercial portion of the city is built principally of freestone. Its water-supply is excellent, and statistics show it to be one of the healthiest cities in America. It is the residence of the Roman Catholic archbishop of Halifax (whose archiepiscopal see includes Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland) and of the Church of England bishop of Nova Scotia. It is also the seat of Dalhousie University and of a large number of other educational institutions, including a school for the blind, and one for the deaf and dumb. In common with the rest of the province, its public schools are free, and attendance at them between certain ages is compulsory. It is the eastern or Atlantic terminus of the Intercolonial Railway of Canada and of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and has lines of steamers connecting it with London, Liverpool, New York, Boston, Bermuda, the West Indies, St Pierre, and both the east and west coasts of Newfoundland. It has also the largest graving-dock (580 by 102 feet) in America, constructed in 1880-89, at a cost of 1,000,000, and capable of receiving the largest ship afloat. The proximity of Halifax to the coalfields of Pictou and Cape Breton and its extensive wharf accommodation make it a favourite coaling station for steamers navigating the North Atlantic. Its population in 1881 was 36,100; its population at the census of 1891 was 38,556. Dartmouth, on the opposite shore of the harbour—practically a suburb of Halifax—has a population of 6200. In an average year the foreign trade of the port amounts to 10,000,000 or $12,000,000. The total number of vessels entering and clearing the harbour is from 2000 to 3000, with a tonnage of 1,500,000 tons.