Nova Scotia, a province of the Dominion of Canada, lying between 43° 25' and 47° N. lat. and 59° 40' and 60° 25' W. long., consists of a long, narrow peninsula, and the island of Cape Breton, which is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Canso. It is bounded on the N. by Northumberland Strait (which separates it from Prince Edward Island) and by the Gulf of St Lawrence; NE., S., and SE. by the Atlantic Ocean; W. by the Bay of Fundy; and NW. by New Brunswick, with which it is connected by an isthmus only 11 miles wide, separating the Bay of Fundy from Northumberland Strait. Across this isthmus is the Chignecto Ship-railway (1889-92).
The greatest length of the province is 350 miles, the greatest breadth about 120 miles, and the area 20,907 sq. m. (13,380,480 acres)—one-third less than that of Scotland. It is estimated that about one-fifth part of the area consists of lakes, rivers, and inlets of the sea. About 5,000,000 acres are fit for tillage; about 1,839,020 acres are in crop and pasture, and 21,624 acres are devoted to fruit cultivation. Pop. (1806) 67,515; (1851) 276,117; (1871) 387,800; (1891) 450,523.
The coast-line is about 1000 miles in length, and the shores abound with excellent harbours, of which the chief are Halifax Harbour, Chedabucto, St Margaret's, Mahone, and St Mary's bays, Annapolis, Mines, and Chignecto basins, and Victoria Harbour. There are numerous rivers, but few of them are more than 50 miles long. The most important are the Avon, Annapolis, and Shubenacadie. Of the rivers of Nova Scotia fifteen flow into the Northumberland Strait, four into St George's Bay, seventeen into the Atlantic, and twenty-four into the Bay of Fundy. Among the lakes the chief is Great Bras d'Or Lake (which is really an inland sea), about 50 miles long, and with an area of about 500 sq. m., and a depth of water varying from 12 to 60 fathoms. The next largest lakes are Lake Rossignol, 20 miles in length; Ship Harbour, 15 miles long; Grand Lake, and College Lake. The most remarkable body of water in the province is Mines Basin, the east arm of the Bay of Fundy, penetrating 60 miles inland, and terminating in Cobequid Bay. The tides rise in the basin with great impetuosity, and form what is called a 'bore.' At the equinoxes they have been known to rise from 40 to 50 feet. On an average, however, the rise is about 30 feet, while in Halifax Harbour, on the opposite side of the coast, the spring-tides rise only from 6 to 8 feet. The country is beautifully variegated by ranges of hills and broad valleys, both of which run longitudinally through the province. The Cobequid range of mountains, as they are called, run through the interior of the province. On each side of these mountains are two extensive ranges of rich arable lands. The Annapolis valley is especially favourably situated, and is noted for the magnificent apples grown there. The southern part of Cape Breton is very much the same in appearance as the northern part of the mainland, but the northern part of the island is bold and steep, the land at North Cape being 1800 feet above the sea-level. The distance from North Cape to Cape Ray on the Newfoundland coast is 48 miles.
The principal cities and towns are Halifax (40,000), Dartmouth (4000), Yarmouth (6000), Truro (7000), Pictou (5000), Amherst (4000), Windsor (8600), Kentville (4000), Annapolis (2000), and Digby (1500). The climate of Nova Scotia is remarkably temperate considering its northern latitude. The extreme of cold is 20° below zero, and the extreme of heat 98° in the shade. The western counties average from 6 to 8 degrees warmer than the eastern, and in Annapolis county the mercury rarely falls below zero. Vegetation is very rapid, and the autumn forms a delightful season. Spring is rather tedious, and the winter variable. Fogs are prevalent along the coasts, but do not penetrate inland to any extent.
Agriculture and horticulture are among the principal industries in the province. Rye, oats, and barley, buckwheat, Indian corn, tomatoes, potatoes, turnips, and all root-crops grow in abundance. Wheat is not grown to any great extent, although there is nothing to prevent its cultivation. Apples, pears, plums, cherries, and other garden fruits attain the utmost perfection. The apple-orchards in Annapolis and King's counties are very productive. They extend along the roadside in an unbroken line for 50 miles, and in the autumn form a sight which, once seen, is not soon forgotten. More attention is now being devoted to dairying and to the raising of live-stock than was formerly the case. The manufactures of the province are yet limited, but are being developed. Cottons and woollens are manufactured in various parts of the country. There are ironworks at Londonderry, steel-works at New Glasgow, and stove and hardware works at Amherst; and there are also several sugar-refineries, paper-mills, boot and shoe and other manufactures of leather, manufactures of agricultural and other machinery, furniture and wooden ware, and many sawmills. The shipbuilding industry was formerly a most important one, but has suffered from the substitution of iron for wooden vessels. Endeavours are, however, being made to develop the iron shipbuilding trade. Mining is extensively carried on. The annual production of gold has risen from 16,000 oz. in 1884 to from 25,000 to 30,000 oz.; and the total yield from the time mining was commenced is over 500,000 oz. The average yearly earnings per man are stated to be £135. Coal and iron are abundantly distributed and extensively worked; and the manufacture of iron and steel is likely to be much increased. Upwards of 1,500,000 tons of coal are raised annually, and are sent to different parts of Canada, the West Indies, and South America. Notwithstanding that the export of coal to the United States fell off considerably when the reciprocity treaty with that country came to an end in 1866, the output of coal has increased year by year, the falling off in the United States trade being more than counterbalanced by the great increase in the consumption in the Dominion. Other minerals are also abundant, including tin, silver, manganese, gypsum, slates, and several varieties of precious stones. The fisheries of Nova Scotia are regarded as among the finest in the world. A large number of men and boats are engaged in the industry, which is valued at from seven to eight million dollars annually. The waters abound with mackerel, cod, herring, shad, salmon, halibut, haddock, lobsters, &c. The value of the imports into Nova Scotia is about 10,000,000, of which 4,000,000 come from Great Britain, and nearly 3,000,000 from the United States. The exports may be valued at 9,000,000, of which 2,000,000 go to Great Britain, 3,000,000 to the United States. The chief exports are fish-products, minerals, lumber, agricultural products, and general manufactures.
There are 700 miles of railway in the province, and many new lines are projected. The province is connected with both the Canadian and United States railway-systems. There are two canals in the province, one from Halifax to Cobequid (not now in use), and the other connecting St Peter's Bay and Bras d'Or Lake. The Chignecto Ship-railway, already referred to, is meant to carry ships by railway over the isthmus of Chignecto, so as to avoid the long detour necessary to pass from the Gulf of St Lawrence to the Bay of Fundy and the United States by way of the Nova Scotia coast.
The religious denominations according to the census in 1891 were as follows: Roman Catholics, 122,452; Presbyterians, 108,952; Baptists, 83,122; Church of England, 64,410; Methodists, 54,195. Education is free, and there are numerous public schools and academies, besides a normal and middle school, several convents, and the following six colleges: Dalhousie College and University, St Mary's College (Roman Catholic), and the Presbyterian College, Halifax; Acadia College (Baptist), Wolfville; St Francis College (Roman Catholic), Antigonish; and King's College and University, Windsor. The last, belonging to the Church of England, was founded in 1787.
The public affairs of the province are administered by a lieutenant-governor, and executive council of nine members, and a legislative assembly of thirty-eight members elected by the people for four years. The province is represented in the Dominion parliament by ten senators and twenty-one members of the Lower House. The expenditure in 1893 was 822,462. The annual revenue of the province in 1893 was 769,976, of which $432,867 represented the contributions from the Dominion treasury, under the terms by which Nova Scotia became a member of the Confederation; the rest was made up of mining royalties, receipts from crown-lands, &c.
The government offer land on reasonable terms—100 acres for 40. The wild land is, however, covered with bush, and has to be cleared before cultivation is possible. Improved farms can be purchased in different parts of the province at prices ranging from 4 to $20 per acre, including buildings, &c. Excellent shooting and fishing are to be found all over the province, especially in the less accessible parts, where big game is still fairly abundant.
History.—Nova Scotia was first visited by Cabot in 1497, and the first colonisation recorded is that in 1604 of the French under De Monts, who attempted for some years to form settlements at Port Royal—now Annapolis—St Croix, &c. The settlers were finally expelled by the colonists of Virginia, who claimed the country by right of the discovery of Cabot. Other attempts were made at colonisation, but with small success. The country was ceded to France by the treaty of Breda in 1667; its possession, however, remained a source of contention between England and France, until it was finally ceded to England by the treaty of Utrecht in 1713. A memorable event in the history of the province was the expulsion of the Acadians (q.v.) in 1755, some of the events connected with which are the subject of Longfellow's Evangeline. Cape Breton was the scene of many struggles between the French and British, especially in the neighbourhood of Louisburg (q.v.). In 1763 it was annexed to Nova Scotia. It was subsequently made a separate province, but again united to Nova Scotia in 1819. Many attempts were made to develop the province, but the foundations of its present position date from the immigration in 1784 of the loyalists who preferred to take up their homes in British territory rather than remain under the dominion of the United States. The province of
New Brunswick was created in 1784 out of Nova Scotian territory.
See Haliburton's Nova Scotia (1829), Murdoch's History of Nova Scotia (1867), Hannay's Nova Scotia (1879), Kingsford's History of Canada (1889), and the government handbooks.