The Mersey River, formerly known as Rivière Rossignol by the

Acadians The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

, is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

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 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is named after the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed par ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The river proper flows from the eastern end of Eleven Mile Lake in

Annapolis County Annapolis County is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia located in the western part of the province located on the Bay of Fundy. The county seat is Annapolis Royal. History Established August 17, 1759, by Order in Council, Annapoli ...

southward to Kejimkujik Lake in

Kejimkujik National Park Kejimkujik National Park () is a National Park of Canada, covering in the southwest of Nova Scotia peninsula. Located within three municipalities, Annapolis, Queens, Digby, it consists of two separate land areas: an inland part, which is coinc ...

, then through

Lake Rossignol Lake Rossignol is the largest freshwater lake in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located in the south-western interior of the province. History As a reservoir, it was created in 1929 when the Bowater Mersey Paper Company Limited dammed the Mersey R ...

to empty into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

at the town of Liverpool, Nova Scotia. The true source of the river however is as far northwest as Sandy Bottom Lake (

) or Tuskopeake Brook (

) on the northern tributary. The river was a major transportation route for the Mi'kmaq people of Nova Scotia. Later, it was used to transport logs out of the interior of the province. The river was described in Albert Bigelow Paine's '' The Tent Dwellers'', albeit under the name 'Liverpool river'. There are a number of hydroelectric projects on the river, which has been exploited for more than a hundred years. Much of the headwater area is composed of

fen A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich Groundwater, ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as ...

. It is a popular river for novice canoeists. Smallmouth bass has been found in the Mersey and neighbouring watersheds.

References

{{authority control Rivers of Nova Scotia Landforms of Annapolis County, Nova Scotia Region of Queens Municipality Landforms of Queens County, Nova Scotia

See also

References