Georges Island, Halifax
Encyclopedia
Georges Island is a glacial drumlin
Drumlin
A drumlin, from the Irish word droimnín , first recorded in 1833, is an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or ground moraine.-Drumlin formation:...

 and the largest island entirely within the harbour limits of Halifax Harbour
Halifax Harbour
Halifax Harbour is a large natural harbour on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, located in the Halifax Regional Municipality.-Harbour description:The harbour is called Jipugtug by the Mi'kmaq first nation, anglisized as Chebucto...

 located in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

's Halifax Regional Municipality. The Island is the location of Fort Charlotte, which was built during Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...

 and is now a National Historic Site.

History

The island was originally named île à la Raquette which means Snowshoe Island. For a brief time, the Island was known as île d'Enville, named after the leader of the great Duc d’Anville Expedition who was buried on the island for a number of years. In 1749, the island was named "George Island" after King George II
George II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...

, and then finally, in 1963, it was renamed "Georges Island".

Upon the arrival of Edward Cornwallis
Edward Cornwallis
Lieutenant General Edward Cornwallis was a British military officer who founded Halifax, Nova Scotia with 2500 settlers and later served as the Governor of Gibraltar.-Early life:...

 and the outbreak of Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...

, fortifications were established on Citadel Hill (Fort George) (1749) and Georges Island (Fort Charllotte) (1750).

During the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

, two thousand French sailors were imprisoned on the island after the British victory in the Battle off Cape Race, Newfoundland
Action of 8 June 1755
The Action of 8 June 1755 was a naval battle between France and Great Britain early in the French and Indian War. The British captured the third-rate French ships Alcide and Lys off Cape Race, Newfoundland in the Gulf of St. Lawrence...

.

During the war, Fort Charlotte was one of four forts where Acadians were imprisoned over the nine years of the Expulsion of the Acadians(the others were Fort Frederick, Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...

; Fort Cumberland
Fort Cumberland
Fort Cumberland can refer to:*Fort Cumberland *Fort Cumberland also known as Fort Beauséjour*Fort Cumberland Fort Cumberland is located in Cucumber Land, Cumber is short for Cucumber. Fort Cumberland was founded by Johnson Merrell, a moonshiner in 1687...

; and Fort Edward (Nova Scotia)
Fort Edward (Nova Scotia)
Fort Edward is a National Historic Site in Windsor, Nova Scotia, Canada and was built during Father Le Loutre's War. The fort was created to help prevent the Acadian Exodus from the region...

). The Acadian prisoners in the vicinity of Halifax were subject to various degrees of confinement and dependence upon victualization, without the right to own land, continuously, from 1759 to 1768. Only a few of them ever were confined to Georges Island, and only for relatively short periods. Most of the time they (the men) were occupied with road building, fisheries, wharf building, and wood cutting, and lodged close to where they worked.

During the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...

 the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants)
84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants)
The 84th Regiment of Foot was a British regiment in the American Revolutionary War that was raised to defend present day Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada from the constant land and sea attacks by American Revolutionaries...

 were stationed at the fort to protect the harbour from American Privateers.

Georges Island was part of the "Halifax Defence Complex" from the mid-18th century to the Second World War, with Citadel Hill and Fort Charlotte on the island being restored by Parks Canada
Parks Canada
Parks Canada , also known as the Parks Canada Agency , is an agency of the Government of Canada mandated to protect and present nationally significant natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative...

. For nearly two hundred years Georges Island was the scene of constant military activity. Tales of executions, forts and hidden tunnels surround the folklore associated with the mysterious island. It had an Island Prison Camp, a Look Out Point, an Acadian
Acadian
The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...

 Prison camp, and a Quarantine Station.

Today

Although not yet open to the public, it has been named a National Historic Site, and its fortifications named Fort Charlotte are currently undergoing restoration by the federal heritage department. Parks Canada has announced that they hope to open the park to visitors within the next 3 to 5 years (by 2012 - 2014). In March 2009, the federal government designated $3.5 million to install water, sewer and electrical services on the National Historic Site over the next year. “This would be the first step towards opening the island,” said Carla Wheaton, Parks Canada cultural resource manager. “Following that, we would still need to construct visitor facilities, such as washrooms (and) possibly a visitors’ centre.” For now, anyone wishing to visit must have permission from the Canadian Government. Besides Fort Charlotte, the Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Coast Guard
The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...

 operates an unmanned radar station (since 1977) and a lighthouse (since 1876http://www.nslps.com/lights/lighthouse_page_01.asp?ID=137). Georges Island is known to local fisherman to have lots of blueberries
Blueberry
Blueberries are flowering plants of the genus Vaccinium with dark-blue berries and are perennial...

 and black garter snake
Garter snake
The Garter snake is a Colubrid snake genus common across North America, ranging from Alaska and Canada to Central America. It is the single most widely distributed genus of reptile in North America. The garter snake is also the Massachusettsstate reptile.There is no real consensus on the...

shttp://museum.gov.ns.ca/mnh/nature/snakes/melanist.htm. The "Great Offshore Picnic" takes place once a year on Georges Island. In the summer of 2006 the lighthouse was used by the U.S. Navy in training exercises. The island is part of Halifax Regional Municipality District 12. In addition to the ruins of Fort Charlotte, the island also has a prominent concrete lighthouse, built in 1918 which replaced an earlier tower built in 1876. The light-keeper's house remains standing a few hundred feet to the south.

List of Lighthouse Keepers

  • 1876–1920 Ross, Robert
  • 1920–1946 Nolan, W.H.
  • 1921 Ross, S.
  • 1921 Ross, J.
  • 1946 Bedgood, H.J.
  • 1946 Edwards, E.J.
  • 1946–1964 Matthews, Victor Maynard
  • 1964–1972 Barkhouse, D.D.

After 1972 the lighthouse was automated.
Then in 2005 the foghorn was decommissioned.

External links




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