Liverpool, Nova Scotia

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Liverpool, Nova Scotia
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settlement_type = Community
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image_caption = Liverpool's bridge at Bristol Avenue, crossing the Mersey River


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dot_map_caption =Location of Liverpool, Nova Scotia
dot_x =55 |dot_y =150
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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = CAN
subdivision_type1 = Province
subdivision_name1 = NS
subdivision_type2 = Municipality
subdivision_name2 = Region of Queens Municipality
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established_title = Founded
established_date = 1759
established_title2 = Incorporated Town
established_date2 = 1897
established_title3 = Dissolved
established_date3 = April 19, 1996
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population_as_of = 2001
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timezone = AST
utc_offset = -4
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latd= 44.04 |latm= |lats= |latNS=N
longd= 64.72|longm= |longs= |longEW=W
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postal_code_type = Canadian Postal code
postal_code = B0T 1K0
area_code = 902
blank_name =Telephone Exchange
blank_info = 350 354 356 642 646
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footnotes = *Median household income, 2000 ($) (all households)

Part of a series about Places in Nova Scotia

Liverpool (2001 pop.: 3,295) is a Canadian community and former town located along Nova Scotia's South Shore. It is located in the Region of Queens Municipality.

Geography

The town is located on the Atlantic coast along Nova Scotia's "South Shore". The community occupies the west bank of the mouth of the Mersey River facing the community of Brooklyn on the east bank of the River. Beyond Liverpool, the river becomes an estuary called Liverpool Harbour, partially sheltered by Coffin Island, which leads to the Atlantic Ocean. Liverpool's coordinates are coord|44.04|N|64.72|W|.

History

Liverpool's harbour was long a seasonal camp of Nova Scotia's Mi'kmaq and was known as Ogomkigeak meaning "dry sandy place" and Ogukegeok, meaning "place of departure". The harbour was named Port Rossignol by Samuel de Champlain after a Capt. Rossignol who was using the harbour for fur trading. [Place Names of Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Archives, http://www.gov.ns.ca/nsarm/cap/places/page.asp?ID=362] It became the site of a small Acadian settlement known as Lingley. Like the bread man Jim? Following the expulsion of the Acadians, Liverpool was founded by New England Planters as a fishing port in 1759, named after Liverpool in England—which also lies on the Mersey River. The town was strengthened after the American Revolutionary War by additional arrivals from the Loyalist refugees. During the American Revolution and the War of 1812, Liverpool was used by privateers who preyed on American shipping off Nova Scotia's and New England's coasts. The port was notable for such vessels as brig "Rover" and the schooner Liverpool Packet as well as mariners such as Joseph Barss and merchants such as Enos Collins. An eye-witness account of this period can be found in the published diaries of Simeon Perkins, an important merchant in early Liverpool.

During the nineteenth century, the town became a major seaport as the fishing and ship building industries grew. The town also became a leading exporter of timber which was floated down the Mersey River (or the "Rivière Rossignol" for Acadians) from the inland forests. For a time after the War of 1812, Liverpool was second only to Halifax as the major port in the province, but was later eclipsed by ports in the north shore of the province such as Pictou and New Glasgow.

The introduction of steam shipping and the collapse of the local Bank of Liverpool in 1871 severely hurt the town's economy and it went into a slow decline. Its fortunes were temporarily revived in the 1920s when it became a centre for rum-runners exporting alcohol to the United States during prohibition. More significant growth too place in 1929 when the Mersey Pulp and Paper Mill was built in the village of Brooklyn adjoining Liverpool. World War II also bolstered the economy reviving the town's shipyard with repairs to naval corvettes and minesweepers.

Economy

Tourism has become increasingly important to Liverpool and the South Shore in recent decades, particularly as tourists travel the Lighthouse Route scenic drive between the ferry port at Yarmouth to Halifax. Liverpool has also become a cottaging destination during the summer months for residents of Halifax.

Liverpool's largest employer is a Bowater Paper Company pulp mill in nearby Brooklyn. The Bowater-Mersey mill was established in 1929 and produces 253,000 metric tons of newsprint per year. It is located on the Mersey River estuary and is a joint partnership between Bowater Incorporated and The Washington Post. The mill's port accommodates large ocean freightliners year-round.

Government

In 1996, Liverpool disincorporated as a town and merged with the Municipality of the County of Queens to form the Queens Regional Municipality.

References

"A History of Queens County" (1873) James F. More

Subdivisions of Nova Scotia