Englishtown is an

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in the Municipality of the County of Victoria,

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 ...

, Canada. It is the site of the Englishtown Ferry

cable ferry A cable ferry (including the types chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

that carries Nova Scotia Route 312 across St. Anns Harbour. The area was known as Mohagadecek by the

Miꞌkmaq 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 ...

. It is one of the oldest settlements in North America, having been established as a French fishing port in 1597. In 1629, Charles Daniel constructed Fort Sainte Anne, the first French fortification in Île-Royale. It was the site of the first Jesuit mission in North America. Along with

St. Peter's, Nova Scotia St. Peter's (Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile Pheadair''; formerly known as "Santo Pedro", "Saint-Pierre", "Port Toulouse", and "St. Peters") is a small incorporated village located on Cape Breton Island in Richmond County, Nova Scotia, Richmond Count ...

, it was the only settlement on Ile Royale prior to

Louisbourg Louisbourg is an unincorporated community and former town in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. History The harbour had been used by European mariners since at least the 1590s, when it was known as English Port and Havre à l'An ...

. The French also knew it as Grand Cibou, and Port Dauphin. It was called Baile nan Gall (Town of the English) in

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; Endonym and exonym, endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic language, Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongs ...

. After 1669 there were no (European) inhabitants in the area for the next 50 years. Settlers arrive in the late 1700s. Little is known about them since their immediate descendants emigrated in search of better conditions. A well-known resident from the 1800s was giant Angus McAskill. Englishtown Bus Cafe

References

{{Reflist 1629 establishments in the French colonial empire Communities in Victoria County, Nova Scotia Populated places established in 1629