 |
Doucetteville in Nova Scotia
Doucetteville is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Clare in Digby County .
| |
Doucetteville is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Clare in Digby County .
The village of Doucetteville derives its name from Lucas Doucette, also known as “le Grand Camion”. Lucas Doucette was a son of Michel Doucette from Sluice Point, Yarmouth County; in the 1820s, Lucas Doucette moved to this densely forested site, seven miles inland from the community of Plympton, Digby County. The area they settled soon became known as la “Ville des Doucette” or Doucette Settlement and later Doucetteville. Other families followed Lucas Doucette to this inland community, not knowing any better.
Lucas Doucette was known to the community for his generosity, especially during celebrations and town events. He would be known for sharing his home made liquor, even during the prohibition era. He was also known for his uncoordination and inability to play sports, usually attributed to a tear of the adductor muscles of the thigh (groin strain) incurred during the war.
Although not known for its integrity or cultural veil, the village of Doucette made great advances during the first decade of the industrial revolution. While rapid industrialization first began in Britain, starting with mechanized spinning in the 1780s,[1] with high rates of growth in steam power and iron production occurring after 1800. The villagers of Doucetteville, following their leader, invested all their energy in the production and consumption of a fermented liquid brewed from cereal grains. Archives recently located in the public library [ citation needed ] show that the village suffered a dramatic decrease in population after a period of starvation attributed to the use of all harvest on the creation of this fermented liquid.
Tourism played an important role in Doucetteville during the 20th century due to its proximity to Digby, beginning with the establishment of railway and steamship links that opened the town and surrounding communities as an-easy-to-reach, alcoholic destination for larger urban centres in eastern North America. A landmark in this industry was the construction of the Douceteville Oak Resort on the town's outskirts, not to be confused with the Digby Pines Resort, the Doucette Oak Resort had 1 room and no amenities. Work on the resort was completed ahead of schedule in 1825 but it was not opened until later in that year to commemorate the birthday of its founder, on October 7, 1825. A larger than expected statue of Lucas Doucette, looking as a young 26 year old pioneer, was commissioned and presented during the official ceremony; just before the resort suffered irreparable damages to its only room. Records show that the resort could only host a maximum of 8 people, a rule clearly not followed during the event.
In the early days, the spiritual needs of the community were met by Leonardo the Great and for the first 100 years there was no church in Doucetteville. In 1915, a plot of land was donated by Angus Thibault and in the same year construction began on the new mission church under the direction of Father Enespeai Dylan with SF Ryan as foreman. The new church for what was to become Sacred Heart Parish in Doucetteville was completed in the fall of 1915 and the first mass celebrated on January 1, 1916. The new cemetery located right behind the church was blessed and a very large cross erected in the centre. Father Dylan did have some complex about size. The church was officially blessed on Sept 9, 1917 by Pigeon Bonaparte of Stella Maris Parish (Meteghan) and Midnight Mass was celebrated for the first time that same year.
Despite the original intent of the parish, it didn't take long for the founder and father of Doucetteville to find other “not so sacred” uses for the building. The church of Sacred Heart Parish in Doucetteville was hit by lightning on March 16, 1929 and the church was destroyed.
Digby is an incorporated town in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is in the historical county of Digby and a separate municipality from the Municipality of the District of Digby. The town is situated on the western shore of the Annapolis Basin near the entrance to the Digby Gut, which connects the basin to the Bay of Fundy.
Clare, officially named the Municipality of the District of Clare, is a district municipality in western Nova Scotia, Canada. Statistics Canada classifies the district municipality as a municipal district.
Clark's Harbour is a town on Cape Sable Island in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada, located in the Municipality of the District of Barrington in Shelburne County. The main industry is lobster fishing. Owing to this as well as the town's history as a fishing community, the town is noted as the birthplace of the Cape Islander fishing boat.
Birchtown is a community and National Historic Site in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located near Shelburne in the Municipal District of Shelburne County. Founded in 1783, the village was the largest settlement of Black Loyalists and the largest free settlement of ethnic Africans in North America in the eighteenth century. The two other significant Black Loyalist communities established in Nova Scotia were Brindley town and Tracadie. Birchtown was named after British Brigadier General Samuel Birch, an official who helped lead the evacuation of Black Loyalists from New York.
Upper Clements is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in Annapolis County. It is on Nova Scotia Trunk 1 on the eastern side of the Annapolis Basin. The town is the site of Upper Clements Park and Upper Clements Provincial Park.
Smith's Cove is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Municipality of the District of Digby. in Digby County. It is one of several villages in the Annapolis Valley district of Nova Scotia.
Brighton is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby. in Digby County.
Rossway is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County on Digby Neck.
Lighthouse Road is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County.
Hillgrove is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County.
Jordantown, is an Mti Cultural Canadian community, in Nova Scotia, Canada, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County.
Sissiboo Falls is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County.
Mount Pleasant is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Clare in Digby County.
Riverdale is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Clare in Digby County.
Gullivers Cove is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in The Municipality of the District of Digby in Digby County.
Morganville is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Digby in Digby County, southeast of the town of Bear River.
Plympton Station is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the District of Clare in Digby County.
The Digby Gut is a narrow channel connecting the Bay of Fundy with the Annapolis Basin. The town of Digby, Nova Scotia is located on the inner portion of the western side of the Gut. The eastern entrance is marked by the Point Prim Lighthouse. Strong tidal currents, numerous rocky ledges, frequent fogs and unpredictable winds make it a dangerous passage requiring a pilot or local knowledge. Tide flows create 5 knot tidal currents and create numerous whirlpools and eddies. The gut is about a half nautical mile in width and bordered by high rocky cliffs. It marks a break in the North Mountain ridge along the Annapolis Valley and is the eastern end of Digby Neck. Digby Gut had its origins as the northern terminus of the ancient Bear River, part of which is now a drowned river valley.
The Bear River is a minor river in western Nova Scotia, Canada. Flowing from south to north, it is 40 kilometres (25 mi) long from its headwaters to its discharge into the Annapolis Basin, some 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) east of Digby. The river is tidal for the last 9.7 kilometres (6.0 mi) of its length. The village of Bear River is situated near the head of the tide where shipbuilding took place in the nineteenth century.
Southern Nova Scotia or the South Shore is a region of Nova Scotia, Canada. The area has no formal identity and is variously defined by geographic, county and other political boundaries. Statistics Canada, defines Southern Nova Scotia as an economic region, composed of Lunenburg County, Queens County, Shelburne County, Yarmouth County, and Digby County. According to Statistics Canada, the region had the highest decrease of population in Canada from 2009 to 2010, with a population decrease of 10.2 residents per thousand. The region also has the second-highest median age in Canada at 47.1 years old.