Cape Sable Island
Cape Sable Island, locally referred to as Cape Island, is a small
The island is situated in
History
Cape Sable was first inhabited by the Mi'kmaq, who called the area and generally the island itself "Kespoogwitik", meaning "where the land ends".[1] Cape Sable Island was charted by explorers from Portugal who named it "Beusablom", meaning "Sandy Bay".[1]
French Colony
Cape Sable and
During the
Siege of 1630
In 1629, as a result of these Scottish victories, Cape Sable was the only major French holding in North America.[5] There was a battle between Charles and his father at Fort St. Louis (See National Historic Site - Fort St. Louis), the latter supporting the Scottish who had taken Port Royal. The battle lasted two days. Claude was forced to withdraw in humiliation to Port Royal.[6]
As a result, La Tour appealed to the King of France for assistance and was appointed lieutenant-general in Acadia in 1631.[7]
By 1641, La Tour lost Cape Sable Island, Pentagouet (
La Tour retired to Cap de Sable with his third wife Jeanne Motin, wed in 1653, and died in 1666.[9]
Father Rale's War
During
In 1725 the British signed a treaty (or "agreement") with the Mi'kmaq of Cape Sable and other parts of Nova Scotia but the rights of the Mi'kmaq defined in it to hunt and fish on their lands have often been disputed by the authorities.[11][12]
French and Indian War
The British
During the French and Indian War, the British sought to neutralize any military threat Acadians posed and to interrupt the vital supply lines Acadians provided to Louisbourg by deporting Acadians from Acadia.[14] In April 1756, Major Jedidiah Preble and his New England troops, on their return to Boston, raided a settlement near Port La Tour and captured 72 men, women and children.[15]
In the late summer of 1758, the British launched three large offensives against the Acadians. One was the
En route to the
New England Planters
Following the
Many Cape New Englanders took advantage of the offer of 50 acres (200,000 m2) of land to each male adult who would leave his home and live on those vacated lands in Atlantic Canada. Cape Sable Island was well known to Cape Cod fishermen and they moved north in 1760 to take advantage of a new life. The Cape Sable settlement soon became, and remains today, an important base for inshore fisheries. It is famous as the birthplace of the Cape Islander fishing boat, a motor fishing boat which emerged about 1905.[19] Ferry service provided transportation to the island in the early 20th century. A causeway was eventually constructed for pedestrian and automobile traffic, opening on August 5, 1949. Today the lobster fishery is the island's biggest industry.
American Revolution
Raid on Cape Sable Island (1778)
During the American Revolution, on September 4, 1778, the light infantry company of the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants), under the command of Cpt. Ranald MacKinnon, was in the Raid of Cape Sable Island. American Privateers were threatening Cape Sable Island when the 84th Regiment arrived; they surprised the ship in the night and destroyed it. For his aggressive action, MacKinnon was praised highly by Brigadier General Eyre Massey. In response, one of his friends, Cpt. MacDonald, wrote to Major John Small, "McKinnon was embarrassed by the praise of the General and requested it not be inserted in the record since he only did his duty."[20]
Communities of Cape Sable Island
The following communities are included within the Community of Cape Sable Island:[21]
- Cape Sable Island
- Centreville
- Clam Point
- Clark's Harbour
- Lower Clarks Harbour
- Newellton
- North East Point
- South Side
- Stoney Island
- The Hawk
- West Head
Shipwrecks
Cape Sable is the centre of a busy fishing area and an important landfall for shipping in the Age of Sail. This traffic produced many shipwrecks such as the SS Hungarian in 1862 and the schooner Codseeker in 1877.
Climate
Cape Sable Island has an
The island lies in the path of
Climate data for Cape Sable Island (1948-1986) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 12.0 (53.6) |
12.0 (53.6) |
14.0 (57.2) |
16.0 (60.8) |
18.9 (66.0) |
22.8 (73.0) |
24.0 (75.2) |
24.0 (75.2) |
23.9 (75.0) |
22.0 (71.6) |
17.2 (63.0) |
13.9 (57.0) |
24.0 (75.2) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 1.4 (34.5) |
0.7 (33.3) |
3.0 (37.4) |
5.7 (42.3) |
8.8 (47.8) |
12.0 (53.6) |
13.8 (56.8) |
14.9 (58.8) |
15.1 (59.2) |
12.3 (54.1) |
8.7 (47.7) |
4.6 (40.3) |
8.4 (47.1) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | −1.6 (29.1) |
−2.1 (28.2) |
0.6 (33.1) |
3.6 (38.5) |
6.8 (44.2) |
9.7 (49.5) |
11.3 (52.3) |
12.4 (54.3) |
12.7 (54.9) |
10.0 (50.0) |
6.2 (43.2) |
1.4 (34.5) |
5.9 (42.6) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −4.8 (23.4) |
−5.0 (23.0) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
1.4 (34.5) |
4.6 (40.3) |
7.3 (45.1) |
8.7 (47.7) |
9.9 (49.8) |
10.3 (50.5) |
7.6 (45.7) |
3.6 (38.5) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
3.3 (37.9) |
Record low °C (°F) | −17.2 (1.0) |
−18.3 (−0.9) |
−14.5 (5.9) |
−6.7 (19.9) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
2.8 (37.0) |
5.0 (41.0) |
5.6 (42.1) |
0.6 (33.1) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−7.8 (18.0) |
−19.0 (−2.2) |
−19.0 (−2.2) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 140.4 (5.53) |
112.7 (4.44) |
104.8 (4.13) |
98.7 (3.89) |
86.4 (3.40) |
76.2 (3.00) |
68.3 (2.69) |
104.6 (4.12) |
73.4 (2.89) |
89.8 (3.54) |
122.2 (4.81) |
139.6 (5.50) |
1,217.1 (47.92) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 86.5 (3.41) |
71.5 (2.81) |
83.5 (3.29) |
94.6 (3.72) |
86.1 (3.39) |
76.2 (3.00) |
68.3 (2.69) |
104.6 (4.12) |
73.4 (2.89) |
89.1 (3.51) |
120.8 (4.76) |
113.3 (4.46) |
1,067.9 (42.04) |
Average snowfall cm (inches) | 53.9 (21.2) |
41.2 (16.2) |
21.2 (8.3) |
4.2 (1.7) |
0.3 (0.1) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.7 (0.3) |
1.3 (0.5) |
26.3 (10.4) |
149.0 (58.7) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) | 17 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 138 |
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm) | 8 | 6 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 11 | 112 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm) | 11 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 32 |
Source: Environment Canada[23]
|
Birdwatching
The island is a notable
See also
References
Texts
- Nicholls, Andrew. A Fleeting Empire: Early Stuart Britain and the Merchant Adventurers to Canada. McGill-Queen's University Press. 2010.
Endnotes
- ^ a b "Cape Sable Lighthouse". Nova Scotia Lighthouse Preservation Society. Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
- ^ M. A. MacDonald. Fortune and La Tour. Methuen Press. 1983.p.14
- ^ Place Names of Nova Scotia Nova Scotia Archives and Records Management
- ^ Nichols, 2010. p. xix
- ^ Roger Sarty and Doug Knight. Saint John Fortifications: 1630-1956. New Brunswick Military Heritage Series. 2003. p. 18
- ^ Nicholls, 2010, p. 139
- ^ Roger Sarty and Doug Knight. Saint John Fortifications: 1630-1956. Goose Lane Editions. 2003. p. 18
- ^ M. A. MacDonald. La Tour and Fortune. p. 89
- ^ MacBeath, George (1979) [1966]. "Saint-Étienne de La Tour (Turgis), Charles de (1593–1666)". In Brown, George Williams (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. I (1000–1700) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
- ^ Dan Conlin, Pirates of the Atlantic (2009), Halifax: Formac Publishing, p. 34, 44, 52
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-07-19. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ John Grenier, Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press. 2008
- JSTOR 10.3138/j.ctt15jjfrm.
- ^ Winthrop Bell. Foreign Protestants, University of Toronto, 1961, p. 504; Peter Landry. The Lion and the Lily, Trafford Press. 2007.p. 555
- ^ John Grenier, The Far Reaches of Empire, Oklahoma Press. 2008. p. 198
- ^ Marshall, p. 98; see also Bell. Foreign Protestants. p. 512
- ^ Marshall, p. 98; Peter Landry. The Lion and the Lily, Trafford Press. 2007. p. 555
- ^ "Nova Scotia Motorized Fishing Boats" by David A. Walker
- ^ Kim Stacy (1994). No One harms me with impunity - the History, Organization and Biographies of the 84th Highland Regiment (Royal Highland Emigrants) and Young Royal Highlanders during the Revolutionary War 1775-1784. Unpublished manuscript. p. 29
- ^ Nova Scotia Community Counts: Community of Cape Sable Island[permanent dead link]
- ^ "SS Hungarian" Nova Scotia Museum Marine Heritage Database Archived 2007-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Canadian Climate Normals 1961-1990". Environment Canada. 31 October 2011. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
- ^ Important Bird Areas of Canada page for Cape Sable Island Archived March 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine