Halifax County, Nova Scotia

Halifax County
County
Location of Halifax County in Nova Scotia
Coordinates: 44°54′N63°06′W / 44.9°N 63.1°W / 44.9; -63.1 Coordinates: 44°54′N63°06′W / 44.9°N 63.1°W / 44.9; -63.1
Country	Canada
Province	Nova Scotia
Established	August 17, 1759
Incorporated County	April 17, 1879
Dissolved into the Halifax Regional Municipality	April 1, 1996
Government
• Type	Regional Council
• Present Governing Council	Halifax Regional Council
Area [1]
• Total	5,557.29 km2 (2,145.68 sq mi)
Population  (1996) [2]
• Total	342,966
• Density	62/km2 (160/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-4 (AST)
Area code(s)	902
Median Earnings [lower-alpha 1]	$54,108
Website	http://halifax.ca
Median household income, 2000 (all households)

Halifax County (Scottish Gaelic : Siorrachd Halifax, French : Comté de Halifax) is a county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The Municipality of the County of Halifax was the municipal government of Halifax County, apart from the separately incorporated towns and cities therein. The Municipality was dissolved in 1996, together with those town and city governments, in their amalgamation into Halifax Regional Municipality. ^[3]

History

Deriving its name from George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax (1716–1771) Halifax County was established by Order-in-Council on August 17, 1759. The boundaries of four other counties - Annapolis, Kings, Cumberland and Lunenburg - were specifically defined at that time, with Halifax County comprising all the part of peninsular Nova Scotia that was not within their limits.

Following the Seven Years' War, Cape Breton Island was formally annexed to Nova Scotia. For a time it formed part of Halifax County.

The boundaries of Halifax County were modified in 1822. That part of St. Mary's Township (established in 1818) which had been in Halifax County was annexed to and included within Sydney County.

The dividing line between the Districts of Halifax and Colchester was confirmed and established on May 3, 1828. In 1835, Halifax County was divided and the Counties of Colchester and Pictou County were created out of parts of what had previously been Halifax County. Eventually in 1880 the boundary between the Counties of Halifax and Colchester was fixed.

On April 1, 1996, Halifax County was dissolved and the Halifax Regional Municipality was created. The boundaries of the county and the regional municipality are the same. The county, however, also includes reserves of Cole Harbour, Sheet Harbour and Shubenacadie, parts of the Millbrook and Shubenacadie First Nations.

Halifax County continues to exist as a county in Nova Scotia, but all municipal government and service delivery is provided by either the Regional Municipality or the Indigenous Canadian Reserves, with no additional county level government or administration.

Communities

Main article: List of communities in Halifax County, Nova Scotia

Regional municipalities

• Halifax Regional Municipality

Reserves

• Beaver Lake 17
• Cole Harbour 30
• Sheet Harbour 36
• Shubenacadie 13
• Wallace Hills 14A

Demographics

As a census division in the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Halifax County had a population of 440,072 living in 190,650 of its 200,619 total private dwellings, a change of 9.1% from its 2016 population of 403,390. With a land area of 5,477.53 km² (2,114.89 sq mi), it had a population density of 80.3/km² (208.1/sq mi) in 2021. ^[4]

References

1. "Electronic Area Profiles". Statistics Canada. Statistics Canada. 29 October 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
2. "Electronic Area Profiles". Statistics Canada. Statistics Canada. 29 October 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
3. "History of Halifax". Halifax. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
4. "Population and dwelling counts: Canada and census divisions". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2022.