The Lone Shieling is a Scottish-style sheep crofters hut (also known as a bothan or shieling) located in Cape Breton Highlands National Park, Nova Scotia. [1] Built in 1942, it is one of the earliest structures in the park and is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building (ID 4627) due to its historical and architectural significance. [2] A short trail, named for the building, leads to Lone Shieling. [3] The building is constructed from irregular field stone with a timber and thatch roof. [2]
The construction of Lone Shieling was an expressed wish of Professor Donald S. MacIntosh, originally from Pleasant Bay, Inverness County, Nova Scotia, who willed 100 acres of land to the Province of Nova Scotia for the park upon his death in 1934. [4] As noted on the site plaque, he asked:
... that the Government of the Province will maintain a small park at the Intervale and will build there a small cabin which will be constructed in the same design or plan as the lone shieling on the Island of Skye, Scotland. [4]
A "lone shieling" is mentioned in the "Canadian Boat-Song" (also known as "The Lone Shieling" [5] ), an anonymous poem published in 1829 describing the experience of Scottish emigrants from the Highland Clearances who lived on Cape Breton Island. [6] Quotations from the poem are displayed at the building, [4] specifically:
Lone Shieling sits in one of the most protected areas of Cape Breton Highlands National Park, surrounded by "one of the largest old growth hardwood forests in the Maritimes". [1]
Cape Breton Island is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada.
Cape Breton Highlands National Park is a Canadian national park on northern Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia. The park was the first national park in the Atlantic provinces of Canada and covers an area of 948 square kilometres (366 sq mi). It is one of 42 in Canada's system of national parks.
The Cabot Trail is a scenic highway on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a 298 km (185 mi) loop around the northern tip of the island, passing along and through the Cape Breton Highlands and the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.
The Gàidhealtachd usually refers to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and especially the Scottish Gaelic-speaking culture of the area. The similar Irish language word Gaeltacht refers, however, solely to Irish-speaking areas.
Baddeck is a village in northeastern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated in the centre of Cape Breton, approximately 6 km east of where the Baddeck River empties into Bras d'Or Lake.
Judique is an unincorporated place within the Municipality of the County of Inverness on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the site of the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre and a stop on the scenic Ceilidh Trail.
The Gaelic College, formally The Royal Cape Breton Gaelic College, is a non-profit educational institution located in the community of St. Ann's, on Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island, along the Cabot Trail. Founded in 1938, its focus has been on the perpetuation of Highland Scottish Gaelic culture.
Chéticamp is an unincorporated place on the Cabot Trail on the west coast of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a local service centre. A majority of the population are Acadians. Together with its smaller neighbour, Saint-Joseph-du-Moine, Chéticamp makes up the largest Francophone enclave on Cape Breton Island. The 2006 population was 3,039 people.
The Cape Breton Highlands, commonly called the Highlands, refer to a highland or mountainous plateau across the northern part of Cape Breton Island in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia.
Canadian Gaelic or Cape Breton Gaelic, often known in Canadian English simply as Gaelic, is a collective term for the dialects of Scottish Gaelic spoken in Atlantic Canada.
Scouting in Nova Scotia has a long history, from 1908 to the present day. There is early record of Boys' Brigade scouts, Canadian Boy Scouts and Salvation Army's Life-Saving Scouts in Nova Scotia. Scouting in Nova Scotia is currently conducted by local Scout groups and various associations including Scouts Canada, L'Association des Scouts du Canada and Canadian Federation of Independent Scouts affiliates such as BPSA - Nova Scotia.
Dingwall is an unincorporated area of approximately 600 residents in the Aspy Bay region of the Municipality of the County of Victoria, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated just off the Cabot Trail, 84.68 kilometers northeast of county seat Baddeck. The federal electoral riding is Sydney—Victoria.
Scottish Canadians are people of Scottish descent or heritage living in Canada. As the third-largest ethnic group in Canada and amongst the first Europeans to settle in the country, Scottish people have made a large impact on Canadian culture since colonial times. According to the 2016 Census of Canada, the number of Canadians claiming full or partial Scottish descent is 4,799,010, or 13.93% of the nation's total population. However, some demographers have estimated that the number of Scottish Canadians could be up to 25% of the Canadian population. Prince Edward Island has the highest population of Scottish descendants at 41%.
Boisdale is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality on Cape Breton Island. It was named for Lochboisdale, the main village of the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. Neil Campbell was granted land in the area in 1836. In 1821, Thomas Lockman, an Irishman who came to Cape Breton in 1799 and lived at Lloyds Cove, petitioned for land, and got a grant next to Neil Campbell's lot in 1842. Angus McIntyre got a grant in 1846, and in 1869, land at what was then called Boisdale was granted to Dugald O'Henley. Farming and lumbering were the basic industries. In 1840, a small log church was constructed by Father John Grant on where the present-day church resides. It was replaced by a new building in 1862, which burned down in September 1928. In 1846, Boisdale Parish was officially erected. A post office was established at Boisdale Chapel in 1854. On October 1, 1873 a new post office was established with Michael McIntyre as office keeper. In 1874, the total population of Boisdale, was that of 500. During this time, the area had 1 store, 3 sawmills, 1 grist mill, and a post office, of which mail was delivered bi-weekly. By 1908, it contained 1 hotel, 2 general stores, 1 saw mill, and 2 gristmills. The population at that time, was 300. In 1915, a newer 40,000 gallon open-wood tank was built replacing an older 40,000 gallon wood tank, for the water services within the area. Father Alexander F. MacGillivray, whom was the fifth pastor of Boisdale, had installed the bell within St. Andrew's Church in Boisdale, in 1882, and had built the Glebe house there in 1890. A new and larger bell, cast by the Meneely Bell Company of New York, was installed in St. Andrew's Church, by Father MacGillivray, on Nov. 14, 1897. In 1921, Father Gillis built St. Andrew's Parish Hall, James Johnston of Red Islands, Nova Scotia was the contractor. The formal opening of the hall was held on September 13, 1921. The original St. Andrew's Parish Church was destroyed by fire on Sunday, September 11, 1927. Construction of a new stone church commenced in June 1929, with help from workers from Quebec. The design style of the church was inspired by the Norman architecture as well as the St Mary the Virgin, Iffley church in England. Link, Weber, and Bowers, architects hailing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, designed the architecture of the church. The approximate cost of the church was $55,000, but the exterior walls had to be repointed during the summer of 1930, which added an extra $7,500 to the total cost. The new church was blessed on Sunday, August 31, 1930, by Bishop James Morrison, assisted by the late Bishop Alexander MacDonald. In 1931, the total population of Boisdale was 449. There was also a train station located on Station Road, in Boisdale during this time. The former Glebe House for St. Andrew's Church was burnt down in 2011, due to a fire. Dugald Smith was the teacher in 1839, and a school-house had been constructed by that time. A new school-house was completed in 1917. Education within the area dates back to the early 1800s, with the Boisdale Consolidated School closing in 2003. The enrolment for the school, in the 1957–1958 academic year, were 82 students, and 3 teachers. By the 1987 Academic year, there were only 21 students, all within grades primary-second, and fourth. In 1943, within what is now known as Ironville, then known as Boisdale Barrachois until 1907, a youth summer camp was built. The two-week summer camp operated from 1943, until its closure in the 1980s. Efforts were made in 1997 to re-open the camp in the spring of 1998. The camp officially closed in 2010, due to the deterioration of some of the buildings. The property in which the youth camp was on, was sold in 2013. In August 1977, the community of Boisdale, as well as Father Webb, unveiled and held a ceremony for the opening of an indoor stone, ice-skating rink. Father Webb also built a Co-op store, in the 70s. A new hall above the store replaced the old Holyrood Hall, which burned down on December 18, 1975. By 1956, the population of Boisdale was 133. Over the years the population decreased, down to 138 by 1991, and estimated to be 105 by the 2001 Census.To the Hill of Boisdale,a book on the genealogical history of Boisdale was published in 1986, and later in a revised edition in 2001, by Father Allan MacMillan, then Priest of the Diocese of Antigonish. Highland Gold Maple, a family-owned and operated sugar maple producer, has been operating within the area for over fifteen years. In late April 2018, their operation burned to the ground due to a fire. By March 2019, Highland Gold Maple had rebuilt the Sugar Shack and are back in operation.
Keltic Lodge is a premier resort hotel in the village of Ingonish, Nova Scotia in Canada, on the northeastern coast of Cape Breton Island.
Franey Mountain is located in Victoria County, in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, within Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Franey Mountain is part of the Cape Breton Highlands plateau and is located 4.5 kilometres (2.8 mi) west of Ingonish, Cape Breton Island. The elevation of the mountain is 430 metres (1,410 ft). It is the highpoint of the massif between Dundas Brook and Clyburn Brook.
The Highland Village Museum / Baile nan Gàidheal / An Clachan Gàidhealaich is an outdoor living history museum dedicated to Nova Scotia’s Gaelic folk-life, culture, and language. Highland Village is located in Iona, Nova Scotia, Canada, on 43 acres of natural landscape overlooking the Bras d'Or Lake in Central Cape Breton.
Cap-Rouge was an Acadian village of some 30 families situated on Cape Breton Island, north of Chéticamp, in Nova Scotia, named for the nearby cape of the same name. The Cap Rouge region followed the western coast of Cape Breton Island, extending about seven miles to the north of Chéticamp. It included La Bloque, Ruisseau des Maurice, Rivière à Lazare and Ruisseau du Canadien. Today however, the name Cap-Rouge is used to refer to all Acadian communities expropriated for the creation of the National Park, including the Rigouèche, the Buttereau, the Presqu’île and the Source de la Montain.
The Municipality of the County of Inverness is a county municipality on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. It provides local government to about 17,000 residents of the historical county of the same name, except for the incorporated town of Port Hawkesbury and the Whycocomagh 2 Miꞌkmaq reserve, both of which are enclaves. Public services are provided in the areas of recreation, tourism, administration, finance, and public works.
The Municipality of the County of Victoria is a county municipality on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. It provides local government to about 7,000 residents of the eponymous historical county except for the Wagmatcook 1 reserve. The municipal offices are in the village of Baddeck.