Big Tancook Island is the largest of many islands in

Mahone Bay Mahone Bay is a bay on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada along the eastern end of Lunenburg County. The bay has many islands, and is a popular sailing area. Since 2003 the Mahone Islands Conservation Association has been working to prot ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. It measures approximately (north to south) by forming roughly a "C" shape. Its area is and has a rocky shoreline with open fields and softwood forest dotted by ponds, residential properties and fish stores. It is separated from nearby

Little Tancook Island Little Tancook Island is a Canadian island located off the coast of Nova Scotia. The island is one of the 365 islands dotting Mahone Bay. The island is long by wide and is roughly triangular in shape. It is separated from Big Tancook Island b ...

to the east by a wide strait called "The Chops". Big Tancook Island is approximately from Sandy Cove Point on the

Aspotogan Peninsula The Aspotogan Peninsula () is a peninsula in the eastern part of Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, separating St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia, St. Margarets Bay in the east from Mahone Bay in the west. The peninsula was ...

- the nearest point on the mainland. Wildlife populations are limited to deer, muskrats, snakes, and pheasants, and a great variety of birds. The community of Big Tancook is the only one located on Big Tancook Island. It has a population of about 200 in summer and 150 in winter. It is home to one of the last remaining

one-room school One-room schools, or schoolhouses, were commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries, including Prussia, Norway, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain. In most rural and s ...

houses in Canada:

Big Tancook Island Elementary School Big Tancook Island Elementary School is a public school in Big Tancook Island, Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlanti ...

, which also serves Little Tancook Island. High school students must be transported to the mainland town of

Chester, Nova Scotia Chester is a village on the Chester Peninsula, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. The nearby waters of Mahone Bay and its numerous islands are well known for yachting and have made the Chester Yacht Club into a cruising destination. A provi ...

. The island was once a summer fishing ground for Indigenous peoples. The word "Tancook" is an anglicized

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the northe ...

term that translates into "facing the open sea." The island was later settled by German immigrants. The residents primarily make their living through

lobster fishing Lobsters are widely fished around the world for their meat. They are often hard to catch in large numbers, but their large size can make them a profitable catch. Although the majority of the targeted species are tropical, the majority of the glob ...

, or the ferry service. Several small professional and artistic businesses operate on and from the island.

Transportation

A scheduled ferry service operates daily year-round from Big Tancook Island and Little Tancook to Chester. The MV ''William G. Ernst'' is a passenger-only ferry operated by the provincial Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. Emergency response is provided by the Big Tancook Island Emergency Response Association (BTIERA), which is supported through volunteer efforts and community fundraising. In 2020, the plans for a car ferry from

Blandford Blandford Forum ( ), commonly Blandford, is a market town in Dorset, England, sited by the River Stour about northwest of Poole. It was the administrative headquarters of North Dorset District until April 2019, when this was abolished and i ...

to Tancook were announced. The ferry will allow for shorter and more frequent trips, as well as easier access for emergency and transport vehicles.

References

External links

Tancook Community News

Big Tancook Island Elementary School
{{Authority control Islands of Mahone Bay