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New Glasgow, Nova Scotia

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New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
Town
Motto: 
Ciad Mile Failte
Location of New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
Location of New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
Country Canada
Province Nova Scotia
MunicipalityPictou County
Founded1784
IncorporatedMay 6, 1875
Government
 • MayorAnn MacLean
 • Governing BodyNew Glasgow Council
Area
 • Total9.93 km2 (3.83 sq mi)
Elevation
6 m (20 ft)
Population
 (2006)
 • Total9,455
 • Density950.2/km2 (2,461/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-4 (AST)
Postal code
B2H
Area code902
Telephone Exchange301, 331, 695, 752 ,755 ,759, 771, 921, 928 ,396
Median Earnings*$18,461
NTS Map011E10
GNBC CodeCBBJR
Websitehttp://www.newglasgow.ca/

New Glasgow (2006 pop.: 9,455[1]; urban area pop. 20,876 [1]), is the largest town in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated on the banks of the East River, which flows into Pictou Harbour and the Northumberland Strait, and which was once a commercial trade route.

New Glasgow is one of the province’s main growth centres outside Halifax and Sydney.

The population of the New Glasgow census agglomeration in the 2006 census was 36,288,[1] fourth largest in the province and 77th largest in the country. This includes the smaller adjacent towns of Stellarton, Westville, and Trenton as well as the western rural area of the county.[2].


History

Deacon Thomas Fraser first settled the area that would become New Glasgow in 1784. It was officially named "New Glasgow", after Old Glasgow in Scotland, in 1809, the same year its first trading post was developed. In 1840, George MacKenzie started the town's first shipbuilding company, which eventually built or owned 34 vessels. Hundreds of ships have since been built along the East River. Scottish immigrants, including those on the Ship Hector in 1773, heavily settled the area.

Geography

New Glasgow is located on Nova Scotia's north shore, 165 kilometres northeast of Halifax, 110 kilometres west of the Canso Causeway to Cape Breton and 20 kilometres south of the Prince Edward Island ferry at Caribou. The town can be easily accessed from several exits off the Trans Canada Highway. It is found in the Atlantic Standard Timezone, four hours behind UTC.

New Glasgow is divided by the East River (north - south), a tidal estuary with salt and fresh water. The three lane George Street bridge is the only vehicle crossing within town limits and is considered the main entrance into the downtown core on the east side of the river. The closest bridges out of town are the Trenton Connector and the Trans Canada Highway.

New Glasgow's residents consider themselves North or South enders (on the east side of river), East siders (usually in the central area between North and South end), and West siders. The West side of town is the largest residential area. There are inclines on both sides of the river.

Well-known People

See also: List of people from Pictou County, Nova Scotia

Education

See also: List of Nova Scotia schools

There are five schools in New Glasgow; including three primary-to-six elementary schools, a junior high school and a high school. The junior high school is made up of grades seven to nine. North Nova Education Centre, which opened it's doors in 2003, is made up of grades ten to twelve, and has students from four ‘feeder’ schools, East Pictou Middle School, New Glasgow Junior High School, Trenton High School and Thorburn Consolidated.

Economy

Major employers in the area include the Maritime Steel Foundry in downtown New Glasgow, the Convergys call centre in the Aberdeen Business Centre, the Aberdeen Regional Hospital, the Michelin tire plant in the nearby rural community of Granton, the Neenah Paper mill north of New Glasgow at Abercrombie Point, and Sobeys, a national grocery chain, based in Stellarton. The area's economy was greatly damaged with the closure of TrentonWorks (a rail car company) in 2007.

New Glasgow's historic downtown core is home to over 150 shops and services, including restaurants, pubs, a cabaret, clothing stores, gift shops, a furniture department store, a marina on the riverfront, government offices and branches of National banks. A major revitalization plan was recently announced for the downtown core. A large sum of the funds will be provided by the federal government. Among the projects are a walking bridge that will connect the riverfront marina with the Samson Trail on the west side, improvements to the historic town hall, an updated and possibly expanded library, and beautification of public spaces and store fronts. [3]

The town is the commercial centre of northern Nova Scotia. Well known chain stores include Sobeys (two locations), Atlantic Superstore, Shoppers Drug Mart, Zellers, Sears, Staples Business Depot, The Brick and Central.

New Glasgow's major commercial districts are East River Road and Westville Road. East River Road is a four lane thoroughfare that is home to the Aberdeen Shopping Centre, which includes Empire Studio 7 Cinemas. Westville Road, which has seen the most new development in recent years, is home to many car dealerships and the area's largest mall, the Highland Square Mall.

There are several fast food outlets to choose from on both sides of the river, including McDonald's, KFC, Tim Horton's, Subway, Dairy Queen, A&W, Harvey's, Swiss Chalet, and Wendy's.

Recently, a brand new 12,263 square metre Wal-Mart opened next to Highland Square, replacing the smaller location in the mall. The old store will remain vacant until Canadian Tire moves from their smaller location within the mall in Spring 2008 [4]. Meanwhile, Home Depot & EB Games is said to be coming to town. [5]

About a minute away from the Westville Road commercial district, on the opposite side of the Trans Canada Highway in Stellarton, a new business park is currently being developed. Two hotels have already been confirmed for the park, including Holiday Inn Express. [6]

Culture

Museums in New Glasgow include the Carmichael Stewart House Heritage Museum, local Military Museum, and local Sports Hall of Fame. Glasgow Square Theatre, located on the downtown riverfront, is a 285 seat auditorium that hosts year round concerts, plays, and other community functions. The theatre can be transformed into an outdoor amphitheatre. During the summer it hosts celebrations for Canada Day on June 30, the New Glasgow Riverfront Jubilee during the first weekend in August, and the Race on the River Dragon Boat Festival in mid-August.

The award winning New Glasgow Jubilee features popular local and national musical acts. It has become the town's most successful event since it's inception in 1995.

The Race on the River features teams representing local companies and organizations paddling along the East River to raise money for local charities.

New Glasgow's oldest summer mainstay, The Festival of the Tartans, has been scaled back over the years. There is no longer a parade. The festival is a celebration of the town's Scottish roots.

Sports

New Glasgow's John Brother MacDonald Stadium (formerly New Glasgow Stadium) is home to the Weeks Crushers of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League and the Weeks Major Midgets of the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League.

The Crushers were based in Halifax and known as Team Pepsi until 2004 when the Weeks Hockey Organization bought the club and moved it to New Glasgow. After struggling to attract fans in Halifax's crowded hockey market, the team soared up the attendance ladder in New Glasgow and is now one of the league's top draws.

Thanks to the arrival of the Crushers, New Glasgow was able to host the 2005 MJAHL All Star game and the 2006 MJAHL Entry Draft. It was announced on December 29, 2006 that New Glasgow and the Crushers will host the 2008 Fred Page Cup.

The town hosted the Telus Cup (then Air Canada Cup), in 1997 and the 2001 World Under 17 Hockey Championships (co-hosted with Truro).

In 2007, the first ever Major Junior hockey game (St. John's Fog Devils vs PEI Rocket) was played here.

On February 9, 2008, New Glasgow was one of six communities across Canada selected to be showcased on CBC Sports' day-long Hockey Day in Canada. The New Glasgow segments featured hometown NHL player Jon Sim and the town's annual Westside winter carnival.

New Glasgow is the home of the annual Johnny Miles running event weekend, named after the four time Boston Marathon winner. It's the second largest running event in Atlantic Canada, behind only Halifax's Blue Nose Marathon. It began in 1975 as a full marathon. In 1997, it was forced to be scaled back to a 10 km event due to decreasing participation. However, the running event has experienced a resurgence in recent years.

The area boosts numerous soccer fields and soccer players that play at the Sobeys soccer complex in nearby Stellarton. A new indoor soccer complex recently opened in that town.

Amalgamation

Talk of amalgamating the area has increased in recent years. Smaller neighboring towns are having a hard time coping financially on their own due to the declining economy. With the province of Nova Scotia having already amalgamated Halifax County, Cape Breton County, and Queens County into regional municipalities, people feel it's only a matter of time before that concept is introduced in Pictou County. The two most often suggested scenarios involve amalgamating the entire county (six municipalities) into a regional municipality or amalgamating the upper East River towns (New Glasgow, Stellarton, Trenton, Westville) into a large town or small city.

Media

Notes and References

  1. ^ a b 2006 Census Results
  2. ^ "New Glasgow" Census subdivisions
  3. ^ http://www.ngnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=47048&sc=49
  4. ^ http://www.ngnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=75578&sc=49
  5. ^ http://www.ngnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=13354&sc=49
  6. ^ http://www.ngnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=33827&sc=49

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