Kennetcook is an unincorporated community in the Canadian province of

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, located in East Hants Municipality in

Hants County Hants County is a historical county and census division of Nova Scotia, Canada. Local government is provided by the West Hants Regional Municipality, and the Municipality of the District of East Hants. History Formation The county of Hants ...

History

The community takes its name from the Kennetcook River, and the name is believed to come from a

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

word meaning "The Place Further Ahead" or "The Place Nearby." The river was an important canoe and portage route for the Mi'kmaq, connecting the Piziquid (Windsor) area with the canoe routes and settlement areas along the

Shubenacadie River The Shubenacadie River () is a river in Nova Scotia, Canada. It has a meander length of approximately 72 km from its source at Shubenacadie Grand Lake to its mouth at the community of Maitland on the Cobequid Bay. The lower 30 km of t ...

. A trail from Halifax to the

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

settlements at Noel on the

Minas Basin The Minas Basin () is an inlet of the Bay of Fundy and a sub-basin of the Fundy Basin located in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is known for its extremely high tides. Geography The Minas Basin forms the eastern part of the Bay of Fundy which splits ...

crossed the Kennetcook River at a ford near the site of the village, making it an early crossroads. After the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, the village was part of the Douglas Township and was settled by the troops of the

84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) The 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) 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 Revolution ...

. Joseph Salter, the noted

shipbuilder Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

and first mayor of

Moncton, New Brunswick Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the Maritime Provinces. The city has earned the nickname "Hub City" because ...

, was born in Kennetcook in 1816. In 1901, the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 in rail transport, 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had ...

was built through the village enhancing the crossroads as a retail and service centre for the area. Kennetcook grew to host a hotel by the station, a bank, and several stores. The Midland Railway was acquired by the

Dominion Atlantic Railway The Dominion Atlantic Railway was a historic railway which operated in the western part of Nova Scotia in Canada, primarily through an agricultural district known as the Annapolis Valley. The Dominion Atlantic Railway (DAR) was unusually divers ...

in 1905, and later by the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

. Canada Pacific added additional rail traffic and began shipping farm products and lumber from Kennetcook to Windsor and

Truro Truro (; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. It is Cornwall's county town, s ...

. Highway construction after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

would undermine railway traffic, leading to the end of passenger and regular freight service in 1979 and the removal of the railway in 1983. A

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

spanned the Kennetcook River until 1967. This was the last covered bridge in Nova Scotia.

In literature

Sir Charles G.D. Roberts wrote a fictional story that was set just before the

Expulsion of the Acadians The Expulsion of the Acadians was the forced removal of inhabitants of the North American region historically known as Acadia between 1755 and 1764 by Great Britain. It included the modern Canadian Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia, New Br ...

(1755). The story is an account of a Mi'kmaq raid on British settlers in Kennetcook entitled "Raid on Kennetcook" (alternatively titled "Raid from Beauséjour"). Roberts wrote the story in 1894 while he worked at

University of King's College The University of King's College is a public university, public Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia.Roper, Henry. "Aspects of the History of a Loyalist College: King's College, Windsor, and ...

, which was then located in

Windsor, Nova Scotia Windsor is a community located in Hants County, Nova Scotia, Hants County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a service centre for the western part of the county and is situated on Nova Scotia Highway 101, Highway 101. The community has a history d ...

. In 1953, Canadian poet

Alden Nowlan Alden Albert Nowlan (; January 25, 1933 – June 27, 1983) was a Canadian poet, novelist, and playwright. History Alden Nowlan was born into rural poverty in Stanley, Nova Scotia, adjacent to Mosherville, and close to the small town of Windso ...

graduated from the Folk School located in the Kennetcook Hotel (present-day Law Office).

Notable residents

* Wyatt Sanford, 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympic Games participant (Boxing)

References

External links

Kennetcook Society of Economic & Environmental Development"Kennetcook - History", ''Municipality of East Hants''
{{coord, 45, 10, 40, N, 63, 43, 17, W, name=Kennetcook, Nova Scotia, display=title, region:CA-NS_scale:100000 Communities in Hants County, Nova Scotia Unincorporated communities in Nova Scotia