The Halifax Explosion From wikipedia: The Halifax Explosion was a maritime disaster in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on the morning of 6 December 1917. SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship laden with high explosives, collided with the Norwegian vessel SS Imo in the Narrows, a strait connecting the upper Halifax Harbour to Bedford Basin. A fire on board the French ship ignited her cargo, causing a large explosion that devastated …
On a small hill overlooking the stream the Acadians built the second parish church of l’Assomption in village Landry. The graveyard was located nearby. The church and graveyard are long ago forgotten. The name of the stream during the Acadian period is unknown, but its rather unique current name is a reminder of a bygone era when the province was a small British colony, opening up to immigration.
This article is taken from WHHS guest speaker Rev. David Curry, January 5 2006. Some Literary Figures from Windsor’s Past Deborah How Cottnam (“Portia”), Griselda Tonge & Sir Charles G.D. Roberts I want to thank the West Hants Historical Society for inviting me to speak about “Some Literary Figures from Windsor’s Pastâ€. Your President has …
This address was given by Reverend David Curry on November 1st, 2007 to the West Hants Historical Society in Windsor, NS. ‘Thy Sweet Love Remember’d’: A Poet & A Church “When in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes,†Shakespeare’s Sonnet # 29 begins,[footnote]William Shakespeare, The Sonnets of Shakespeare (New York, Paddington Press, Royal Shakespeare Theatre Edition, …
The West Hants Historical Society salutes our local soldiers who died one hundred years ago in L917 during World War 1. We will always remember your sacrifice. Note: You can view their military records online by searching for the Regimental Number (Reg No) at the Library and Archives Canada web site as follows:
http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/military-heritage/first-world-war/personnel-records/Pages/search.aspx
“…the inhabitants of the part of this town known as “Poverty Point”, near Smith’s Island [the area off Exit 6 in Windsor, past the old Visitor Centre], were woke from their slumbers at about 11 o’clock in the night by the rush of water which broke over the dykes in the immediate vicinity. Ten minutes after the dykes gave way the whole body of water found its level, covering in the low-lands for miles and miles around. About twenty houses are situated here; these were flooded nearly eight feet, which presented an appearance the morning after more like that of a street in Venice than a terra firma.
The following article was a WHHS Heritage Banquet address by Rev. David Curry in 2003. It has been converted from a pdf file to be shared here. Alden Nowlan: The Forgotten Poet of Stanley I would like to thank the West Hants Historical Society for the privilege of speaking this evening and to commend the Society …
Alden Nowlan – The Forgotten Poet of Stanley, NS Read More »
The county of Hants was established June 17, 1781, on territory taken from Kings County and consisted of the townships of Windsor, Falmouth and Newport. The name Hants is an old abbreviation for the English county of Hampshire, from the Old English name Hantescire. The Mi’kmaq were the first people of Hants County, having arrived several thousand years ago. They were semi-nomadic and hunted, fished and gathered to make their living. They made their encampments along the rivers at the “head of the tide” where the fishing was easy.
Our summer student, Fadila Chater, has been tasked with a project that will creatively incorporate the diverse cultural history of Hants County. She is looking for people to interview in a short documentary film. She is looking for individuals from different cultural or ethnic backgrounds to share their personal stories or ancestral stories from either the Mi’kmaq, Acadian, African Nova Soctian, or new immigrant communities from the Hants County area.
Does your family have a story? A Nova Scotian performance ensemble is seeking out information about of local women who helped in the relief efforts of the Halifax Explosion. Xara Choral Theatre Ensemble will be touring a show called The Hours Turn to Nothing to Annapolis Royal at Kings Theatre on June 10, which tells the story of nurses and midwives who came to the aid of pregnant women and many others who were hurt in the 1917 disaster. Historical documentation has revealed that women were specifically requested to support the relief effort, in part because many pregnant women within range of the blast were jolted into labour.
