Exploring Halifax's Industrial Heritage: the Williams Lake
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Exploring Halifax’s Industrial Heritage: The Williams Lake Historic Corridor Rachael Nicholls Bachelors of Community Design, Honours School of Planning Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova Scotia April 10th, 2015 Thesis advisor: Kate Thompson 1 Acknowledgements This research would not have been possible without the help and passion of many people. Thank you to Kate Thompson for always making yourself available to talk, and for guiding me through this project. Thank you to Iris Shea, Anne von Maltzahn, Allan Marryatt, and Heather Watts, for always replying quickly to my endless questions and supplying me with useful material. And thank you to Michele Raymond and Kathleen Hall, for showing me around Williams Lake, and sharing your enthusiasm about the lovely area that you call home with me. i Summary An industrial corridor used to follow Lawsons Creek, which flows from Williams Lake to the Northwest Arm, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This site was actively used for a variety of manufacturing enterprises in the 18th and 19th centuries. Although the scale of these industries was small, they were representative of the activities that occurred in the Province at that time. Today, few physical traces remain of this industrial past, and the area is mostly undeveloped open space and low-density residential. There are no markers or signs on the corridor land acknowledging its industrial heritage and cultural significance. This research explores the natural and human histories of the study area, and its current situation and uses. These elements have been analyzed to identify possible themes and stories for a future interpretation plan, as well as opportunities and constraints for interpretation that should be considered. Possible interpretation media are also discussed and assessed for suitability. This information may be useful to interpreters and interested heritage or environmental groups in future interpretation endeavors for the area. ii Table of Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... i Summary ......................................................................................................................... ii List of Figures ................................................................................................................. v Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Literature Review ........................................................................................................... 3 Goal and objectives ....................................................................................................... 7 Approach ......................................................................................................................... 7 Methods ........................................................................................................................... 8 Data collection .................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Data Analysis ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10 Synthesis ............................................................................................................................................................................. 11 History ........................................................................................................................... 11 Natural History .................................................................................................................................................................. 11 Human History (Mid 1700s – Early 1900s) .................................................................................................................. 21 A. The macrocosm: An overview of the history of Nova Scotia and Halifax ...................................................................... 21 B. The microcosm: Activities of the Williams Lake historic industrial corridor .................................................................. 27 Current day situation ................................................................................................... 33 The corridor site in 2015 ................................................................................................................................................. 33 A. Remains of the corridor ................................................................................................................................................ 34 B. Current ownership ........................................................................................................................................................ 37 C. Access to Williams Lake and Lawsons Creek ............................................................................................................. 38 Land-use and proposed development ........................................................................................................................... 39 A. The Halifax Regional Municipal Planning Strategy: RP + 5 ..................................................................................... 39 B. Zoning: Halifax Mainland Land-use Bylaw ................................................................................................................ 42 C. Proposed Development ................................................................................................................................................. 43 Other guiding frameworks .............................................................................................................................................. 44 A. The 2009 Nova Scotia Master Interpretive Plan ......................................................................................................... 44 B. Standards and Guidelines for the Conservation of Historic Places in Canada ................................................................ 45 Possible interpretation plan content .......................................................................... 46 A. Theme one: The relationship between the natural environment and industrial activities ............................... 46 Coastal location, bathymetry, and shipping ........................................................................................................................ 47 Water flow and topography: the stream as power and the trestle ......................................................................................... 47 Water quality and success in the ice trade .......................................................................................................................... 47 Fire-proneness ................................................................................................................................................................... 47 Vegetation and tanning .................................................................................................................................................... 48 B. Theme two: The relationship between the global (national, provincial, and municipal events) and the local site (the industrial corridor) ............................................................................................................................................. 48 A military town ................................................................................................................................................................ 50 Immigration ...................................................................................................................................................................... 50 Technology ........................................................................................................................................................................ 51 Confederation and the railway ........................................................................................................................................... 51 C. Theme three: How the nature of industrial activity and its relationship to local place changed over time ... 51 The scale of industry ......................................................................................................................................................... 52 iii Technology and the relationship of industry to the land ....................................................................................................... 52 The origin of manufactured goods: the corridor era versus the current-day ............................................................................ 53 Interpretation methods and media ............................................................................. 53 A. Provincial best practices ............................................................................................................................................... 53 B. Examples of local interpretation sites ............................................................................................................................ 54 C. Potential interpretation media .....................................................................................................................................