Georges Island (named after King George II) is a glacial

drumlin A drumlin, from the Irish word ("little ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or groun ...

and the largest island entirely within the harbour limits of

Halifax Harbour Halifax Harbour is a large natural harbour on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada, located in the Halifax Regional Municipality. Halifax largely owes its existence to the harbour, being one of the largest and deepest ice-free natural har ...

located in

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 ...

Halifax Regional Municipality Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

. The Island is the location of Fort Charlotte - named after King George III's wife

Charlotte Charlotte most commonly refers to: *Charlotte (given name), a feminine form of the given name Charles ** Princess Charlotte (disambiguation) ** Queen Charlotte (disambiguation) *Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, a city * Charlotte (cake) ...

. Fort Charlotte was built during

Father Le Loutre's War Father Le Loutre's War (1749–1755), also known as the Indian War, the Mi'kmaq War and the Anglo-Mi'kmaq War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the Kingdo ...

, a year after

Citadel Hill (Fort George) Citadel Hill is a National Historic Site in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Four fortifications have been constructed on Citadel Hill since the city was founded by the British in 1749, and were referred to as Fort George—but only the third fort ...

. The island is now a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of 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 of national historic significance. Parks C ...

. As of August 6, 2020, the island is open to the public on the weekends (and Fridays during peak summer season), from June until Thanksgiving weekend.

History

The island was originally named ''île à la Raquette'' which means Snowshoe Island. For a brief time, the Island was known as ''île d'Enville'', named after the leader of the great Duc d’Anville Expedition who was buried on the island for a number of years. In 1749, the island was named "George Island" after King George II, and then finally, in 1963, it was renamed "Georges Island". Upon the arrival of

Edward Cornwallis Edward Cornwallis ( – 14 January 1776) was a British career military officer and member of the aristocratic Cornwallis family, who reached the rank of Lieutenant General. After Cornwallis fought in Scotland, putting down the Jacobite r ...

and the outbreak of

, fortifications were established on

(1749) and Georges Island (Fort Charlotte) (1750). Acadian memorial Halifax

During the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

, two thousand French sailors were imprisoned on the island after the British victory in the Battle off Cape Race, Newfoundland. During the war, Fort Charlotte was one of four forts where Acadians were imprisoned over the nine years of 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 ...

(the others were Fort Frederick,

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John () is a port#seaport, seaport city located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. It is Canada's oldest Municipal corporation, incorporated city, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign ...

;

Fort Cumberland A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

and Fort Edward). The Acadian prisoners in the vicinity of Halifax were subject to various degrees of confinement and dependence upon victualization, without the right to own land, continuously, from 1759 to 1768. According to historian Ronnie Gilles-LeBlanc there were approximately 1660 Acadians held prisoner on the island during the deportation (1755–1763), with a maximum of 600 prisoners at one time. Many Acadian men in the region were occupied with road building, fisheries, wharf building, and wood cutting, and lodged close to where they worked. During 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

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 ...

were stationed at the fort to protect the harbour from American Privateers. Numerous American privateers were held prisoner in the fort throughout the war. Georges Island was part of the "Halifax Defence Complex" from the mid-18th century to the

Second World War 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 ...

, with Citadel Hill and Fort Charlotte on the island being restored by

Parks Canada Parks Canada ()Parks Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Parks Canada Agency (). is the agency of the Government of Canada which manages the country's 37 National Parks, three National Marine Co ...

. For nearly two hundred years Georges Island was the scene of constant military activity. Tales of executions, forts and hidden tunnels surround the folklore associated with the mysterious island. It had an Island Prison Camp, a Look Out Point, an

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, ...

Prison camp, and a Quarantine Station. The

Georges Island Lighthouse Georges Island Lighthouse is a prominent concrete lighthouse, built in 1917 on Georges Island in Nova Scotia, replacing an earlier tower built in 1876. The light-keeper's house remains standing a few hundred feet to the north."Georges Island Lighthouse: Later History
", Nova Scotia Lighthouse Preservation Society.

Notable prisoners

* Privateer David Ropes

Today

In March 2009, the federal government designated $3.5 million to install water, sewer and electrical services on the National Historic Site over the following year. "This would be the first step towards opening the island," said Carla Wheaton, Parks Canada cultural resource manager. "Following that, we would still need to construct visitor facilities, such as washrooms (and) possibly a visitors’ centre." As of summer 2020, the island is open to the public on weekends (and Fridays in July and August)

The island may be visited from the second weekend in June until Thanksgiving weekend in October. Getting to the island can be done either via Ambassatours ferry from the Halifax Waterfront, CAD 26.75 per adult (includes historic site access), or private vessel, must purchase historic site access upon landing on the island, CAD 8.50 per adult. The

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; ) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in Canadian waters, such as navigation aids and i ...

operates an unstaffed radar station commissioned in 1977.

References

Texts
Ronnie-Gilles LeBlanc. Acadians in Halifax and on Georges Island, 1755-17641
* Marshall, Dianne (2003). ''Georges Island The keep of Halifax Harbour''. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Nimbus Publishing Ltd. — goes into detail the history of the island

External links

Georges Island National Historic Site of CanadaSatellite Image of George's IslandAerial Photos of Halifax and Surrounding Area (www.avinova.ca)
{{Coord, 44, 38, 27, N, 63, 33, 35, W, name=Georges Island, region:CA-NS_type:isle_scale:10000, display=title Landforms of Halifax, Nova Scotia History of Halifax, Nova Scotia Islands of Nova Scotia Prison islands Ruins in Canada National Historic Sites in Nova Scotia Conflicts in Nova Scotia Military forts in Nova Scotia Landforms of Halifax County, Nova Scotia

History

Notable prisoners

Today

See also

References

External links