Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

base in Halifax,

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 ...

. Established in 1759, the Halifax Yard served as the headquarters for the Royal Navy's

North American Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when the ...

for sixty years, starting with the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...

. The Royal Navy continued to operate the station until it was closed in 1905. The station was sold to

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 to ...

in 1907 becoming Her Majesty's Canadian Dockyard, a function it still serves today as part of

CFB Halifax Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Halifax is Canada's east coast naval base and home port to the Royal Canadian Navy Atlantic fleet, known as Canadian Fleet Atlantic (CANFLTLANT), that forms part of the formation Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT). I ...

History

Halifax Harbour had served as a Royal Navy seasonal base from the founding of the city in 1749, using temporary facilities and a

careen Careening (also known as "heaving down") is a method of gaining access to the hull of a sailing vessel without the use of a dry dock. It is used for cleaning or repairing the hull. Before ship's hulls were protected from marine growth by fasteni ...

ing beach on

Georges Island Georges Island, or George's Island, may refer to: Geography * Georges Island (Massachusetts), offshore from the city of Boston, Massachusetts *Georges Island (Nova Scotia), offshore from the community of Halifax in the Halifax Regional Municipal ...

. The British purchased the property which now contains the Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Scott for the Naval Yard. This property had belonged to John Gorham (Gorham Point), Captain Ephraim Cook, Philip Durell,

Joseph Gerrish Joseph Gerrish (September 29, 1709 – June 3, 1774) was a soldier, merchant, judge and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the 1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia. He is buried in the Old Burying Ground (Halifax, Nova Scot ...

and William Nesbitt. (In the summer of 1751, Gorham built the first registered vessel in Halifax, a brig he named Osborn Galley at Gorham Point.) Land and buildings for a permanent Naval Yard were purchased in 1758 and the Yard was officially commissioned in 1759. The Yard served as the main base for the Royal Navy in North America during the

, the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

, the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...

and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It be ...

. In 1818 Halifax became the summer base for the squadron which shifted to the

Royal Naval Dockyard, Bermuda HMD Bermuda ( Her/His Majesty's Dockyard, Bermuda) was the principal base of the Royal Navy in the Western Atlantic between American independence and the Cold War. The Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda had occupied a useful position astr ...

for the remainder of the year. The Halifax yard did not have a

dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

until 1887 so it was officially called the "Halifax Naval Yard" when first established, although it was popularly known as the Halifax Dockyard. The graving dock, coaling facilities and

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...

slip were added between 1881 and 1897. The station closed in 1905 and sold to Canada in 1907 becoming Her Majesty's Canadian Dockyard, a function it still serves today as part of

. The Yard was located on the western shores of Halifax Harbour to the north of Citadel Hill and the main Halifax townsite. In addition to refitting and supplying the North American Squadron the Halifax Yard played a vital role in supplying masts and

spars The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve, also known as the SPARS (SPARS was the acronym for "Semper Paratus—Always Ready"), was the women's branch of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. It was established by the United States ...

for the entire Royal Navy after the loss of the timber resources in the American colonies in the

. Masts cut all over

British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestow ...

were collected and stored in Halifax to be shipped to British Dockyards in wartime with heavily escorted mast

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

s. The site was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being ...

in 1923.

Facilities

The Naval Yard was initially defended by its own large

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

, three redoubts and a fortified stone wall. These defences were enhanced and later replaced by the large network of army fortifications whose main purposes was to safeguard the Naval Dockyard including nearby Fort Needham, Fort George, the Halifax Citadel;

York Redoubt York Redoubt is a redoubt situated on a bluff overlooking the entrance to Halifax Harbour at Ferguson's Cove, Nova Scotia, Canada, originally constructed in 1793. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1962. History York Redoub ...

; Fort Charlotte on Georges Island,

Fort Clarence 300px, The archway by the fort's drawbridge was demolished in the 1930s. The fort, on the left, is now converted into flats. Fort Clarence is a now defunct fortification that was located in Rochester, Kent, England. History The fort was buil ...

in Dartmouth; five forts on McNabs Island and extensive batteries at Point Pleasant. Many of the original Royal Navy 18th and 19th century buildings in the Dockyard were destroyed in the 1917 Halifax Explosion; others were demolished in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

to make way for machine shops, stores buildings and drill halls needed to man and maintain the many escort ships being commissioned during the crash expansion of the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack subma ...

during the

Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allies of World War II, ...

. Only one residence from 1814 and the Admiral's Residence from 1816 survived. The Admiral's residence in now the Maritime Command Museum. The original Naval Yard clock has been restored and moved to the Halifax Ferry Terminal entrance while the original Naval Yard bell is preserved at the

Maritime Museum of the Atlantic The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic is a maritime museum located in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The museum is a member institution of the Nova Scotia Museum and is the oldest and largest maritime museum in Canada with a collection o ...

in Halifax, a museum which also features a large diorama depicting the Naval Yard in 1813 at its height in the

Age of Sail The Age of Sail is a period that lasted at the latest from the mid-16th (or mid- 15th) to the mid-19th centuries, in which the dominance of sailing ships in global trade and warfare culminated, particularly marked by the introduction of nava ...

. The building and facilities in the base included: * careening wharf * mast ponds and mast house * boat house * refitting yard * building slip * astronomical observatory * commissioner's residence * graving yard (after 1887) * coal facility * torpedo boat yard * Wardroom * victualling yard (North Dockyard) * Gate Warder's House * Commissioner's House * Hospital – home to

Royal Naval College of Canada The Royal Naval College of Canada (RNCC) was established by the Department of the Naval Service after the formation of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in 1910. The college was placed under the auspices of the Minister of Naval Service (and of Marine ...

from 1911 to 1917 * Admiralty House – home to the Admiral of the North American Station and now Maritime Command Museum

Ships

The main purpose of the Halifax Yard was to supply, man and refit ships but it also built some warships including: * * Ships based at the Royal Navy Yard Halifax included: * * * * * *

Administration of the dockyard and other key officials

The Master Shipwright was originally the key civil official at the royal navy dockyards during the 16th century until the

Navy Board The Navy Board (formerly known as the Council of the Marine or Council of the Marine Causes) was the commission responsible for the day-to-day civil administration of the Royal Navy between 1546 and 1832. The board was headquartered within the ...

introduced resident commissioners of the navy in the 17th century, after which he became deputy to the resident commissioner. In 1832 the post of commissioner was replaced by the post of superintendent, who was retained the same powers and authority as the former commissioners. In September 1971 all

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countries ...

s of the Royal Navy holding positions of Admiral Superintendents at Royal Dockyards were restyled as Port Admirals.

Resident Commissioner of the Navy, Halifax Nova Scotia

Incomplete list of post holders included: # 1775–1778, Captain Marriott Arbuthnot # 1778–1781, Captain Sir Richard Hughes # 1781–1783, Captain

Andrew Snape Hamond Captain Sir Andrew Snape Hamond, 1st Baronet (17 December 1738 – 12 September 1828) was a British naval officer and Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia from 1781 to 1782 and Comptroller of the Navy from 1794 to 1828. Career Born in Blackhea ...

# 1783–1799, Captain

Henry Duncan Henry Duncan may refer to: * Henry Duncan (minister) (1774–1846), Scottish minister, geologist and social reformer; founder of the savings bank movement * Henry Duncan (naval officer, born 1735) (1735–1814), Naval captain and Deputy Comptroller ...

# 1799–1800, Captain Isaac Coffin # 1800–1803, Captain

# 1803–1812, Captain

John Nicholson Inglefield Captain John Nicholson Inglefield (1748 – 7 February 1828) was an English naval officer in the Royal Navy. Biography John Nicholson Inglefield was the son of a ship's carpenter, Isaac Inglefield, and his wife, a sister of the ship desig ...

# 1812–1819, Captain Philip Wodehouse

Master Shipwright, Halifax Dockyard

Incomplete list of post holders included: # 1756–1762, George Kittoe (originally appointed as acting master shipwright) # 1763–1770, Abraham Constable # 1783–1792 Provo Featherstone Wallis, father of Provo Wallis # 1813–1818, Thomas Forder Hawkes # 1818–1839, Algernon Frederick Jones Note: (post holders were appointed until 1875)

Master Attendant, Halifax Dockyard

Incomplete list of post holders included: # 1758, Richard Hamilton # 1763, David Hooper # 1780–1787, Samuel Hemmens # 1788–1799, Thomas Read # 1799–1802, John Jackson # 1806, John Parry # 1807–1810, Thomas Atkinson # 1815–1827, John Douglas

Storekeeper, Halifax Dockyard

Incomplete list of post holders included: # 1756-1773/,

(superannuated) # 1773–1780, Richard Williams (resigned March 1780) # 1780, Mar–Aug, John Gambier # 1780, George Thomas # 1790–1799, Titus Livie # 1832–1840, John Robert Glover # 1841–1852, Alex Elliot

Naval Storekeeper, Halifax Dockyard

Title changed in 1853 # 1853–1854, Alex Elliot # 1855–1858, Edgecumbe Chevallier # 1858–1859, John N. Macgregor

Naval Storekeeper and Agent Victualler, Halifax Dockyard

Additional title and responsibility added in 1859 # 1859, John N. Macgregor

Officers-in-Charge, Royal Naval Hospital Halifax

Royal Naval Hospital Halifax - Officers-in-Charge, Health Centre, CFB Halifax, Nova Scotia

# 1795–1803 Duncan Clark (surgeon) # 1803–1806 John Jackson #1807–1808 David Ridgway #1811–1812 John Clifford ( – 31 Dec. 1812) #1813–1819

David Rowlands (surgeon) Dr. David D. Rowlands, M.D., F.R.S., F.A.S. (1778–1846) was a Welsh naval surgeon, who became the Inspector of H.M. Hospital and Fleets for the Royal Navy. He had the distinction of being the Surgeon for the Royal Navy at Halifax when he tre ...

(Rowland), F.R.S. (1778,

Cardigan, Ceredigion Cardigan ( cy, Aberteifi, ) is both a town and a community in the county of Ceredigion, Wales. Positioned on the tidal reach of the River Teifi at the point where Ceredigion meets Pembrokeshire, Cardigan was the county town of the historic coun ...

– 13 January 1846,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

) Inspector of H.M. Hospitals and Fleets – surgeon on ship Royal William; monument to his wife at St. Paul's Church (Halifax); tended to the wounded of HMS ''Shannon'', including Captain Philip Broke; monument to him and another to his sister in Parish Church of St Mary where they were buried #1819–1827 David Ridgway #1828–1837 J.H. McEwan #1841–1855 Alexander Elliott #1855–1859 Edgecombe (Edgecumbe) Chevallier #1860–1866 J.N. MacGregor #1867–1880 Benjamin Stokes #1881–1899 Andrew Vizard (1841-27 Oct 1922) #1900–1901 Nathaniel A. Hay #1901–1904 Henry Baker #1904–1905 A.C. Cocks

References

Sources

# Brent Raymond
"Tracing the Built Form of HMC Dockyard"
Nova Scotia Museum, 1999. Curatorial Report No. 88 # Clowes, Sir William Laird (1897–1903). The royal navy, a history from the earliest times to the present Volume III. London, England: S. Low Marston. # Clowes, Sir William Laird (1897–1903). The royal navy, a history from the earliest times to the present Volume IV. London, England: S. Low Marston. # Clowes, Sir William Laird (1897–1903). The royal navy, a history from the earliest times to the present Volume V. London, England: S. Low Marston. # George Bates. John Gorham 1709–1751. Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society. # Gwyn, Julian, (2004). ''Frigates and Foremasts: The North American Squadron in Nova Scotia Waters, 1745–1815'' Vancouver, BC: UBC Press . OCLC 144078613. # Harrison, Simon (2010–2018). "Master Attendant at Halifax Dockyard". threedecks.org. S. Harrison. # Harrison, Simon (2010–2018). "Master Shipwright at Halifax Dockyard". threedecks.org. S. Harrison. # Harrison, Simon (2010–2018). "Storekeeper at Halifax Dockyard". threedecks.org. S. Harrison. # Marilyn Gurney, ''The Kings Yard'', Maritime Command Museum, Halifax.
Research guide B5: Royal Naval Dockyards

CFB Halifax Officers Mess
.

External links

{{Navy Board, state=collapsed Military of Canada Royal Navy bases in Canada History of Halifax, Nova Scotia Naval history of Canada Royal Navy dockyards in Canada Royal Canadian Navy dockyards