Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Encyclopedia
Lunenburg is a Canadian
port town in Lunenburg County
, Nova Scotia
.
Situated on the province's South Shore
, Lunenburg is located on a peninsula at the western side of Mahone Bay
. The town is approximately 90 kilometres southwest of the county boundary with the Halifax Regional Municipality
.
The town was established during Father Le Loutre's War
. The historic town was designated a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site
in 1995. This designation ensures protection for much of Lunenburg's unique architecture and civic design, being the best example of planned British
colonial settlement in North America.
in the first half of the seventeenth century. In 1745 there were reported to be only eight settlers in the village. Four year later, Cornwallis reported that there were a number of families that lived in comfortable wooden houses.
Despite the British Conquest of Acadia
in 1710, Nova Scotia remained primarily occupied by Catholic Acadians and Mi'kmaq. Father Le Loutre's War
began when Edward Cornwallis
arrived to establish Halifax with 13 transports on June 21, 1749. By unilaterally establishing Halifax the British were violating earlier treaties with the Mi'kmaq (1726), which were signed after Dummer's War
. Upon the outbreak of Father Le Loutre's War
, on October 5, 1749, Governor Edward Cornwallis
sent Commander White with troops in the 20 gun sloop Sphinx to Mirligueche (i.e., Lunenburg) and had the village destroyed. By 1753 there still was only one family in the area - a Mi'kmaq man named "Old [Paul] Labrador" and his metis family.
After establishing Halifax, the British quickly began to build other settlements. To guard against Mi'kmaq, Acadian and French attacks on the new protestant settlements, British fortifications were erected in Halifax (1749), Dartmouth (1750), Bedford
(Fort Sackville) (1751), Lunenburg
(1753) and Lawrencetown
(1754). The Natives and Acadians raided the Lunenburg peninsula nine times in the first six years of its establishment.
Three years into the war, John Creighton
led a group of Foreign Protestants
to settle the area and renamed it Lunenburg (1753). In 1753, during Father Le Loutre's War
, the British unilaterally established Lunenburg, that is, without negotiating with the Mi'kmaq people. In the spring, Governor Hopson was received warnings from Fort Edward
that as many as 300 natives nearby were prepared to oppose the settlement of Lunenburg and intended to attack upon the arrival of settlers. Supervised by Lawrence and protected by several ships of the British Navy and by 160 Regular soldiers, protestant settlers established the village.
The original inhabitants of Lunenburg (mostly Germans
from the southern Rhineland
, Swiss
and French Protestants from Montbéliard
) came during the same wave of immigration that produced the Pennsylvania Dutch
. They were "Foreign Protestants" encouraged by the British
to settle in the area. Lunenburg was settled by Foreign Protestants
who came from the present day Tripoint
of France
, Germany
and Switzerland
. The town was named in honour of King George II, who also happened to be the duke of Braunschweig-Lüneburg.
, in mid December 1753, within six months of their arrival at Lunenburg, the new settlers rebelled against their living conditions. The rebellion became known as "The Hoffman Insurrection." The Rebellion was led by John Hoffman, one of the Captains who had established the settlers in the town.
Hoffman led a mob which eventually locked up in one of the blockhouses a number of Commander Patrick Sutherland’s troops and the Justice of the Peace. Commander Patrick Sutherland at Lunenburg asked for reinforcements from Halifax and Colonel Robert Monckton
was sent with troops. Monckton arrested Hoffman and brought him to Halifax where he was fined and imprisoned on Georges Island (Nova Scotia) for two years.
Because of the living conditions and encouragement from Le Loutre, a number of the French and German-speaking Foreign Protestants
left the village to join the Acadian
communities.
(1754–1763), the town was protected by several small blockhouses that were garrisoned by British regulars as well as by provincial troops from Massachusetts. These forts were erected to protect the town from raids by French warships and from attacks by Acadians and Indians. During the Expulsion of the Acadians, specifically the Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755)
, the British sent the Acadian cattle at Grand Pre to Lunenburg to support the British settlement that was established with Foreign Protestants
.
) when five people were killed from the Ochs and Roder families. By the end of May 1758, many of those on the Lunenburg Peninsula abandoned their farms and retreated to the protection of the fortifications around the town of Lunenburg, losing the season for sowing their grain. For those that did not leave their farms for the town, the number of raids intensified.
During the summer of 1758, there were four raids on the Lunenburg Peninsula. On July 13, 1758, one person on the LaHave River
at Dayspring
was killed and another seriously wounded by a member of the Labrador family. The next raid happened at Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia
on August 24, 1758, when eight Mi'kmaq attacked the family homes of Lay and Brant. While they killed three people in the raid, the Mi'kmaq were unsuccessful in taking their scalps, which was the common practice for payment from the French. Two days, later, two soldiers were killed in a raid on the blockhouse at LaHave, Nova Scotia. Almost two weeks later, on September 11, a child was killed in a raid on the Northwest Range.
Another raid happened on March 27, 1759, in which three members of the Oxner family were killed. The last raid happened on April 20, 1759. The Mi’kmaq killed four settlers at Lunenburg who were members of the Trippeau and Crighton families.
, the American Privateers engaged in the Raid of Lunenburg (1775) and the Raid on Lunenburg (1782)
and on both occasions devastated the town. In the raid of 1775, the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants)
had been defending Nova Scotia, attacking the American privateer ship off of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, as the privateers were looting the town. The privateers were then taken to Halifax.
, Nova Scotia’s contribution to the war effort was communities either purchasing or building various privateer ships to siege American vessels. Three members of the community of Lunenburg purchased a privateer schooner and named it Lunenburg on August 8, 1814. The owners were Capt. Oxner, Henry Wollenkaupt, Philip Rudolf and Henry Mosher. The schooner was ninety-three tons, five guns and a crew of forty-five men.
The Lunenburg captured the American vessel Lucy on September 15, 1814, and the American ship Ranger on November 15, both prizes were brought back to Lunenburg. One of the largest American privateer schooners the Lunenburg caught was Minerva, of Wiscasset, Maine. Another was the sloop Experiment, caught off of Point Judith, Rhode Island on January 21, 1815. Over the following weeks, the Lunenburg captured three American sloops and one schooner by February 15, 1815.
After a long naval battle in Mahone Bay, the Lunenburg militia was sent to take prisoners from American Privateer Young Teazer
.
Bluenose
and her daughter Bluenose II
which remains an important tourist attraction in the town, her home port.
. The schooner replica Bluenose II
is operated by the museum and based out of Lunenburg. The town is also home to the privately run Halifax and Southwestern Railway
Museum and the Knaut-Rhuland House Museum
.
The town has a history of being an important seaport and shipbuilding
centre. There are now numerous small businesses, high-tech industries including Composites Atlantic and HB Studios
, and trade plants including High Liner Foods, which was at one point the largest fish plant in Canada. This plant now handles manufacturing and most fishing is done offshore.
was partly set and filmed in Lunenburg and the science fiction television show Haven
is partly filmed there though it is set in the United States. The town is featured prominently in a 2010 series of Cisco Systems
network product ads featuring Ellen Page
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
port town in Lunenburg County
Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia
Lunenburg County is a county located on the South Shore of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, It ranges from Hubbards to the east and Vogler's Cove to the west.-History:...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
.
Situated on the province's South Shore
South Shore (Nova Scotia)
The South Shore is a region of Nova Scotia, Canada. Although it has no formal identity and is variously defined by geographic, county and other political boundaries, it is generally understood as the Atlantic coast running southwest from Halifax Harbour to the end of Shelburne County...
, Lunenburg is located on a peninsula at the western side of Mahone Bay
Mahone Bay
Mahone Bay is a bay located on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada along the eastern end of Lunenburg County.Opening south directly onto the Atlantic, its eastern shore is formed by the Aspotogan Peninsula and its western shore is formed by the First Peninsula...
. The town is approximately 90 kilometres southwest of the county boundary with the Halifax Regional Municipality
Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
Halifax Regional Municipality is the capital of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The Regional Municipality had a 2006 census population of 372,679, while the metropolitan area had a 2010 estimated population of 403,188, and the urban area of Halifax had a population of 282,924...
.
The town was established during Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...
. The historic town was designated a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
in 1995. This designation ensures protection for much of Lunenburg's unique architecture and civic design, being the best example of planned British
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
colonial settlement in North America.
Foreign Protestants
For over a hundred years, Lunenburg was an Acadian/ Mi’kmaq village named Mirligueche. It was established under the command of Isaac de RazillyIsaac de Razilly
Isaac de Razilly was a member of the French nobility appointed a knight of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem at the age of 18. He was born at the Château d'Oiseaumelle in the Province of Touraine, France. A member of the French navy, he served for many years during which he played an important...
in the first half of the seventeenth century. In 1745 there were reported to be only eight settlers in the village. Four year later, Cornwallis reported that there were a number of families that lived in comfortable wooden houses.
Despite the British Conquest of Acadia
Siege of Port Royal (1710)
The Siege of Port Royal , also known as the Conquest of Acadia, was conducted by British regular and provincial forces under the command of Francis Nicholson against a French Acadian garrison under the command of Daniel d'Auger de Subercase, at the Acadian capital, Port Royal...
in 1710, Nova Scotia remained primarily occupied by Catholic Acadians and Mi'kmaq. Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...
began when Edward Cornwallis
Edward Cornwallis
Lieutenant General Edward Cornwallis was a British military officer who founded Halifax, Nova Scotia with 2500 settlers and later served as the Governor of Gibraltar.-Early life:...
arrived to establish Halifax with 13 transports on June 21, 1749. By unilaterally establishing Halifax the British were violating earlier treaties with the Mi'kmaq (1726), which were signed after Dummer's War
Dummer's War
Dummer's War , also known as Lovewell's War, Father Rale's War, Greylock's War, the Three Years War, the 4th Indian War or the Wabanaki-New England War of 1722–1725, was a series of battles between British settlers of the three northernmost British colonies of North America of the time and the...
. Upon the outbreak of Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...
, on October 5, 1749, Governor Edward Cornwallis
Edward Cornwallis
Lieutenant General Edward Cornwallis was a British military officer who founded Halifax, Nova Scotia with 2500 settlers and later served as the Governor of Gibraltar.-Early life:...
sent Commander White with troops in the 20 gun sloop Sphinx to Mirligueche (i.e., Lunenburg) and had the village destroyed. By 1753 there still was only one family in the area - a Mi'kmaq man named "Old [Paul] Labrador" and his metis family.
After establishing Halifax, the British quickly began to build other settlements. To guard against Mi'kmaq, Acadian and French attacks on the new protestant settlements, British fortifications were erected in Halifax (1749), Dartmouth (1750), Bedford
Bedford, Nova Scotia
Bedford is a community in the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was an independent town from 1980-1996. Bedford lies on the northwestern end of Bedford Basin, an extension of the Halifax Harbour...
(Fort Sackville) (1751), Lunenburg
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Lunenburg , is a Canadian port town in Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia.Situated on the province's South Shore, Lunenburg is located on a peninsula at the western side of Mahone Bay. The town is approximately 90 kilometres southwest of the county boundary with the Halifax Regional Municipality.The...
(1753) and Lawrencetown
Lawrencetown, Nova Scotia
There are several locations in Nova Scotia with the name Lawrencetown:* Lawrencetown in Annapolis County* Lawrencetown in Halifax County* Upper Lawrencetown, also in Halifax County* West Lawrencetown, also in Halifax County...
(1754). The Natives and Acadians raided the Lunenburg peninsula nine times in the first six years of its establishment.
Three years into the war, John Creighton
John Creighton (judge)
John Creighton was a founding father of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. He led the settlement through the tubulent times of Father Le Loutre's War, the French and Indian War and the American Revolution. He represented Lunenburg County in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1770 to 1775...
led a group of Foreign Protestants
Foreign Protestants
The "Foreign Protestants" were a group of immigrants to Nova Scotia in the mid-18th century and the ethnonymical basis behind the name "New Brunswick", as well as support behind naming "Prince Edward Island" for a representative of the Braunschweiger dynasty....
to settle the area and renamed it Lunenburg (1753). In 1753, during Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...
, the British unilaterally established Lunenburg, that is, without negotiating with the Mi'kmaq people. In the spring, Governor Hopson was received warnings from Fort Edward
Fort Edward (Nova Scotia)
Fort Edward is a National Historic Site in Windsor, Nova Scotia, Canada and was built during Father Le Loutre's War. The fort was created to help prevent the Acadian Exodus from the region...
that as many as 300 natives nearby were prepared to oppose the settlement of Lunenburg and intended to attack upon the arrival of settlers. Supervised by Lawrence and protected by several ships of the British Navy and by 160 Regular soldiers, protestant settlers established the village.
The original inhabitants of Lunenburg (mostly Germans
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
from the southern Rhineland
Rhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
, Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and French Protestants from Montbéliard
Montbéliard
Montbéliard is a city in the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It is one of the two subprefectures of the department.-History:...
) came during the same wave of immigration that produced the Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch
Pennsylvania Dutch refers to immigrants and their descendants from southwestern Germany and Switzerland who settled in Pennsylvania in the 17th and 18th centuries...
. They were "Foreign Protestants" encouraged by the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
to settle in the area. Lunenburg was settled by Foreign Protestants
Foreign Protestants
The "Foreign Protestants" were a group of immigrants to Nova Scotia in the mid-18th century and the ethnonymical basis behind the name "New Brunswick", as well as support behind naming "Prince Edward Island" for a representative of the Braunschweiger dynasty....
who came from the present day Tripoint
Tripoint
A tripoint, or trijunction , is a geographical point at which the borders of three countries or subnational entities meet....
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. The town was named in honour of King George II, who also happened to be the duke of Braunschweig-Lüneburg.
The Hoffman Insurrection
During Father Le Loutre's WarFather Le Loutre's War
Father Le Loutre’s War , also known as the Indian War, the Micmac War and the Anglo-Micmac War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the British and New England colonists were led by British Officer Charles...
, in mid December 1753, within six months of their arrival at Lunenburg, the new settlers rebelled against their living conditions. The rebellion became known as "The Hoffman Insurrection." The Rebellion was led by John Hoffman, one of the Captains who had established the settlers in the town.
Hoffman led a mob which eventually locked up in one of the blockhouses a number of Commander Patrick Sutherland’s troops and the Justice of the Peace. Commander Patrick Sutherland at Lunenburg asked for reinforcements from Halifax and Colonel Robert Monckton
Robert Monckton
Robert Monckton was an officer of the British army and a colonial administrator in British North America. He had a distinguished military and political career, being second in command to General Wolfe at the battle of Quebec and subsequently being the Governor of New York State...
was sent with troops. Monckton arrested Hoffman and brought him to Halifax where he was fined and imprisoned on Georges Island (Nova Scotia) for two years.
Because of the living conditions and encouragement from Le Loutre, a number of the French and German-speaking Foreign Protestants
Foreign Protestants
The "Foreign Protestants" were a group of immigrants to Nova Scotia in the mid-18th century and the ethnonymical basis behind the name "New Brunswick", as well as support behind naming "Prince Edward Island" for a representative of the Braunschweiger dynasty....
left the village to join the Acadian
Acadian
The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...
communities.
French and Indian War
During the French and Indian WarFrench and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
(1754–1763), the town was protected by several small blockhouses that were garrisoned by British regulars as well as by provincial troops from Massachusetts. These forts were erected to protect the town from raids by French warships and from attacks by Acadians and Indians. During the Expulsion of the Acadians, specifically the Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755)
Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755)
The Bay of Fundy Campaign occurred during the French and Indian War when the British ordered the Expulsion of the Acadians from Acadia after the Battle of Beausejour . The Campaign started at Chignecto and then quickly moved to Grand Pré, Rivière-aux-Canards, Pisiguit, Cobequid, and finally Port...
, the British sent the Acadian cattle at Grand Pre to Lunenburg to support the British settlement that was established with Foreign Protestants
Foreign Protestants
The "Foreign Protestants" were a group of immigrants to Nova Scotia in the mid-18th century and the ethnonymical basis behind the name "New Brunswick", as well as support behind naming "Prince Edward Island" for a representative of the Braunschweiger dynasty....
.
Raid on Lunenburg (1756)
There were nine raids on the Lunenburg Peninsula during the war. For example, Indians (Maliseet) attacked in the Raid on Lunenburg (1756), in which twenty settlers were killed. Despite the protection of increased number of blockhouses built on the peninsula, eight more Indian/ Acadian raids happened against those on the Lunenburg Peninsula over the next three years. A total of 32 people from Lunenburg were killed in the raids with more being taken prisoner. The British reported that most of these raids were by the Mi'kmaq and Acadians at Cape Sable (present-day Shelburne and Yarmouth Counties).Raids on Lunenburg (1757-1759)
Following the raid of 1756, there were eight more raids on the Lunenburg Peninsula over the next three years. In 1757, there was a raid on Lunenburg in which six people from the Brissang family were killed. The following year, March 1758, there was a raid on the Lunenburg Peninsula at the Northwest Range (present-day Blockhouse, Nova ScotiaBlockhouse, Nova Scotia
Blockhouse is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Lunenburg Municipal District in Lunenburg County .- History :...
) when five people were killed from the Ochs and Roder families. By the end of May 1758, many of those on the Lunenburg Peninsula abandoned their farms and retreated to the protection of the fortifications around the town of Lunenburg, losing the season for sowing their grain. For those that did not leave their farms for the town, the number of raids intensified.
During the summer of 1758, there were four raids on the Lunenburg Peninsula. On July 13, 1758, one person on the LaHave River
LaHave River
The LaHave River is a river in Nova Scotia, Canada, running from its source in Annapolis County to the Atlantic Ocean. Along its way, it splits the communities of LaHave and Riverport and bisects the town of Bridgewater flowing into the LaHave River estuary .The river and various spots in the area...
at Dayspring
Dayspring, Nova Scotia
Dayspring is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Lunenburg Municipal District in Lunenburg County. It is home to the traditional wooden shipyard, Snyders Shipbuilding, builders of Theodore Too, among many other vessels ....
was killed and another seriously wounded by a member of the Labrador family. The next raid happened at Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia
Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia
Mahone Bay is a town located on the northwest shore of Mahone Bay along the South Shore of Nova Scotia in Lunenburg County.- History :...
on August 24, 1758, when eight Mi'kmaq attacked the family homes of Lay and Brant. While they killed three people in the raid, the Mi'kmaq were unsuccessful in taking their scalps, which was the common practice for payment from the French. Two days, later, two soldiers were killed in a raid on the blockhouse at LaHave, Nova Scotia. Almost two weeks later, on September 11, a child was killed in a raid on the Northwest Range.
Another raid happened on March 27, 1759, in which three members of the Oxner family were killed. The last raid happened on April 20, 1759. The Mi’kmaq killed four settlers at Lunenburg who were members of the Trippeau and Crighton families.
American Revolution
During the American RevolutionAmerican Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
, the American Privateers engaged in the Raid of Lunenburg (1775) and the Raid on Lunenburg (1782)
Raid on Lunenburg, Nova Scotia (1782)
Not to be confused with the Raid on Lunenburg, Nova Scotia The Raid on Lunenburg occurred during the American Revolution when the famous American Privateer Captain Noah Stoddard of Fairhaven, Massachusetts and four other privateer vessels attacked the British settlement at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia...
and on both occasions devastated the town. In the raid of 1775, the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants)
84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants)
The 84th Regiment of Foot was a British regiment in the American Revolutionary War that was raised to defend present day Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada from the constant land and sea attacks by American Revolutionaries...
had been defending Nova Scotia, attacking the American privateer ship off of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, as the privateers were looting the town. The privateers were then taken to Halifax.
War of 1812
During the War of 1812War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
, Nova Scotia’s contribution to the war effort was communities either purchasing or building various privateer ships to siege American vessels. Three members of the community of Lunenburg purchased a privateer schooner and named it Lunenburg on August 8, 1814. The owners were Capt. Oxner, Henry Wollenkaupt, Philip Rudolf and Henry Mosher. The schooner was ninety-three tons, five guns and a crew of forty-five men.
The Lunenburg captured the American vessel Lucy on September 15, 1814, and the American ship Ranger on November 15, both prizes were brought back to Lunenburg. One of the largest American privateer schooners the Lunenburg caught was Minerva, of Wiscasset, Maine. Another was the sloop Experiment, caught off of Point Judith, Rhode Island on January 21, 1815. Over the following weeks, the Lunenburg captured three American sloops and one schooner by February 15, 1815.
After a long naval battle in Mahone Bay, the Lunenburg militia was sent to take prisoners from American Privateer Young Teazer
Young Teazer
The Young Teazer was an American privateer schooner that the 74-gun third rate trapped in a naval battle off Chester, Nova Scotia during the War of 1812. Young Teazer was under the command of William D. Dobson and Hogue was under the command of Captain Thomas Bladen Capel...
.
Bluenose
Lunenburg has long history of building woodenships. The most famous is the world famous schoonerSchooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
Bluenose
Bluenose
Bluenose was a Canadian fishing and racing schooner from Nova Scotia built in 1921. She was later commemorated by a replica Bluenose II built in 1963. A celebrated racing ship and hard-working fishing vessel, Bluenose became a provincial icon for Nova Scotia as well as important Canadian symbol in...
and her daughter Bluenose II
Bluenose II
Bluenose II is a replica of the fishing schooner Bluenose which serves as Nova Scotia's sailing ambassador. Bluenose II was launched at Lunenburg on July 24, 1963, built to original plans and by many of the same workers. The original Bluenose captain Angus J. Walters took the helm of the new...
which remains an important tourist attraction in the town, her home port.
Economy
Tourism is now Lunenburg's most important industry and many thousands visit the town each year. A number of restaurants, inns, hotels and shops exist to service the tourist trade. Numerous artists operate their own galleries. The town is home to the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic, part of the Nova Scotia MuseumNova Scotia Museum
Nova Scotia Museum is the corporate name for the most decentralized museum in Canada - 27 museums across Nova Scotia, including over 200 historic buildings, living history sites, vessels, specialized museums and close to a million artifacts and specimens...
. The schooner replica Bluenose II
Bluenose II
Bluenose II is a replica of the fishing schooner Bluenose which serves as Nova Scotia's sailing ambassador. Bluenose II was launched at Lunenburg on July 24, 1963, built to original plans and by many of the same workers. The original Bluenose captain Angus J. Walters took the helm of the new...
is operated by the museum and based out of Lunenburg. The town is also home to the privately run Halifax and Southwestern Railway
Halifax and Southwestern Railway
The Halifax and Southwestern Railway was a historic Canadian railway operating in the province of Nova Scotia. The H&SW was created in spring 1901 when William Mackenzie and Donald Mann approached the provincial government with plans to finish the abortive plans for a railway from Halifax to...
Museum and the Knaut-Rhuland House Museum
Knaut-Rhuland House Museum
The Knaut-Rhuland House Museum is an 18th century house in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. It is a designated Provincial, Municipal, and National Historic Site. The Knaut-Rhuland House is owned and managed by the Lunenburg Heritage Society and is open to the public during the summer.-History:The house is...
.
The town has a history of being an important seaport and shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
centre. There are now numerous small businesses, high-tech industries including Composites Atlantic and HB Studios
HB Studios
HB Studios is a video game development company, founded in July 2000 by Jeremy Wellard, and located in Nova Scotia, Canada.-History:HB's headquarters are located in the small town of Lunenburg on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The company started with nine developers working on Cricket 2002 for...
, and trade plants including High Liner Foods, which was at one point the largest fish plant in Canada. This plant now handles manufacturing and most fishing is done offshore.
Culture
The 2010 Japanese movie HanamizukiHanamizuki
is a 2010 Japanese romance drama film inspired by the lyrics of a love song of the same name by Yō Hitoto. The film is directed by Nobuhiro Doi, and its script was written by Noriko Yoshida. The film spans the ten-year period from 1996 to 2006, and it stars Yui Aragaki as Sae, a high school student...
was partly set and filmed in Lunenburg and the science fiction television show Haven
Haven (TV series)
Haven is a supernatural drama television series loosely based on the Stephen King novel The Colorado Kid. The show, filmed on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, Canada, is an American/Canadian co-production. The one-hour drama premiered on July 9, 2010, on Syfy...
is partly filmed there though it is set in the United States. The town is featured prominently in a 2010 series of Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...
network product ads featuring Ellen Page
Ellen Page
Ellen Philpotts-Page , known professionally as Ellen Page, is a Canadian actress. Page received both Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for her role as the title character in the film Juno...
.
Gallery
See also
- Lunenburg Opera HouseLunenburg Opera HouseThe Lunenburg Opera House is a landmark located within the boundaries of the UNESCO World Heritage town of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada. Conforming to the town’s architectural traditions, modeled after European music halls, the opera house was built from local timbers in 1907 by the Independent...
- Royal eponyms in CanadaRoyal eponyms in CanadaIn Canada, a number of sites and structures are named for royal individuals, whether a member of the past French Royal Family, British Royal Family, or present Canadian Royal Family, thus reflecting the country's status as a constitutional monarchy under the Canadian Crown.-King Francis I:-Queen...
External links
- Town of Lunenburg
- World Heritage site
- Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic
- Photographs of the Montbeliard monument, Lunenburg
- A Short History of St. John's Anglican Church
- Basil Brownless: The Story of Lunenburg's Most Historic Church: The 250-year history of St. John's Anglican Church. Lunenburg, 2002.
- Municipality of the District of Lunenburg - Things to do in the surrounding area