Tusket is a small

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

community located in

Yarmouth County Yarmouth County is a rural county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It has both traditional Anglo-Scottish and Acadian French culture as well as significant inland wilderness areas, including over 365 lakes and several major rivers. It com ...

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 ...

on route 308. Argyle Township Court House and Gaol

History

"Neketaouksit", the Mi'kmaq word for the "Great Forked Tidal River", evolved to what is now called Tusket. The village was originally settled by

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, ...

s before the British launched the Cape Sable Campaign. Afterward the community was also settled by

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

United Empire Loyalists United Empire Loyalist (UEL; or simply Loyalist) is an honorific title which was first given by Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester, the 1st Lord Dorchester, the governor of Province of Quebec (1763–1791), Quebec and Governor General, governor ...

from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

in 1785, after the Great Expulsion. In the 19th century the village was very prosperous as a major ship building centre. In 1801, the town rescued those who remained from the ship wreck of the Industry, after drifting in lifeboats for 5 days in the Bay of Fundy.Naval Chronicle.
/ref> The Old Tusket Courthouse, built in 1805 and featuring a bell tower, is the oldest standing courthouse in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The first Nova Scotian to die in aerial combat in World War II was from Tusket (Jack Elmer Hatfield, No. 264 Squadron RAF). The French-speaking high school École secondaire de Par-en-Bas is located in the community. The

Université Sainte-Anne Université Sainte-Anne is a French-language university in Pointe-de-l'Église, Nova Scotia, Canada. It and the Université de Moncton in New Brunswick are the only French-language universities in the Maritime Provinces. History Université Sa ...

has a campus located in Tusket as well, in order to serve the

community in surrounding areas. There are many places, past and present, which use the word Tusket: Tusket (the village itself), Tusket River, Tusket Falls, Tusket Islands, Tusket Hill (present-day Amiraults Hill), Tusket Wedge (present-day Wedgeport), Tusket Forks (present-day Quinan) and villages that used to be called Upper Tusket and Lower Tusket. Present day Tusket is at the head of the Tusket River estuary, where high tide salt water meets the fresh water flow of the Tusket River. The Tusket River and Basin presents a 32 kilometre wide basin with a very irregular 500 kilometre coastline. Points, peninsulas, ridges and islands are separated by tidal channels, inlets, estuaries, bays, salt marshes and tidal flats. The salt marshes are unique since they encompass 8000 acres, or one third the total acreage of natural salt marsh in the province. They are highly productive and play an important role in the ecology of our coastline and the off-shore waters. They also played a major role in the settlement of the Tusket Basin by the Acadian people. The Acadians made drainage ditches on the natural salt water marshes to be able to harvest the hay growing there. They were renowned for the construction of dykes and aboiteaux to produce hay-lands. Hay stacks are still visible today, in our region. One such aboiteau can be viewed at the West Pubnico Acadian Museum in West Pubnico, Nova Scotia. It was discovered and retrieved from a local salt marsh. These waters are laden with nutrients, after having filtered through 32 kilometres of river, and tons of dead plant matter and grasses. The Mi'kmaq, who lived inland, travelled by canoe down the Tusket River to the sea. They depended, seasonally, on the availability of some staples. They harvested seals, sea bird eggs, cod, shellfish, smelts, gaspereau, sturgeon, salmon, eels, tomcod, waterfowl, beaver, otter, rabbits, deer, moose, caribou and bear. All of these still inhabit the Tusket River system, except for the caribou.

References

{{reflist 1850 establishments in Nova Scotia Communities in Yarmouth County Populated places established in 1785