Guysborough County, Nova Scotia

Template:About Template:Infobox settlement

Guysborough County is a historic county in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. The area was first inhabited by the indigenous Mi'kmaq, and was colonized by France in the 17th century. Following the defeat of France in North America, the area was settled by loyalists after the American Revolutionary War. The county was divided from Sydney County in 1836, and was again divided into two administrative districts with separate councils in 1879: Guysborough and St. Mary's. The town of Canso was incorporated in 1901, followed by Mulgrave in 1923. Canso was dissolved as a town in 2012.

While there has been no county administration since 1879, Guysborough County exists as a census subdivision. As of 2021, Guysborough County had a population of 7,373, down from a peak population of 18,320 in 1901. The largest communities are Canso, Mulgrave, Sherbrooke, and Guysborough.

History

The Mi'kmaq were the first inhabitants of the areas, having a seasonal settlement near Cook's Cove, and are known to have frequented other sites like Canso and the St Mary's River. The Mi'kmaq name for the region was Eskikewa'kik, meaning "skin dressing place". European fishermen and fur traders first visited the area in the 16th century, with the French establishing a colonial presence in the 17th century. The area came under the control of the British after Queen Anne's War, and most of the Acadian population left in the 1760's. From 1720 to 1759, the British establishment at Canso was a highly contested strategic location for the colonial wars against France.

Present day Guysborough County was first part of Halifax County, established 1759.Template:Sfn Sydney County was divided from Halifax County in 1784, and comprised of present day Antigonish and Guysborough Counties.Template:Sfn That same year, the community of Guysborough was founded by Loyalists, named for Sir Guy Carleton By the mid 19th century, Guysborough County was organized into multiple townships: Guysborough, Manchester, Wilmot, Stormont, and St Mary's.Template:Sfn

File:Map of Antigonish and Guysborough Counties 1878.jpg

Map of Antigonish and Guysborough Counties from 1878.

Guysborough County was created when Sydney County was divided in 1836.Template:Sfn The new county took it's name from the Township of Guysborough, which became the county seat. What remained of Sydney County was renamed to Antigonish County in 1863.

Guysborough County has had a large Black population since 1784.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Black Nova Scotian community in Guysborough is unique in that they descend almost entirely from Black Loyalists. In 1872, there were 918 residents of African ancestry in Guysborough.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

In 1840, Guysborough County was subdivided into two districts for court sessional purposes – Guysborough and St. Mary's. In 1863, the boundary between Halifax County and Guysborough County was altered and a polling district was added to Guysborough County. In 1879, the two districts were incorporated as district municipalities. In 1901, Canso was incorporated as a town with it's own municipal government, Mulgrave followed suit in 1923. Canso was dissolved as a town in 2012 and merged into the Municipality of the District of Guysborough.

The last racially segregated school in Canada closed in 1983 in Guysborough County.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Municipal Government

The district is divided into eight electoral districts, each of which elects a local councilor. The Warden of the Municipality is selected from among the council, by the council. The current Warden is Paul Long, councilor for district 1.Template:Sfn The Chief Administrative Officer is the head of the administrative branch of the municipal government.Template:Sfn

Demographics

As a census division in the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Guysborough County had a population of Template:Nts living in Template:Nts of its Template:Nts total private dwellings, a change of Template:Percentage from its 2016 population of Template:Nts. With a land area of Template:Convert, it had a population density of Template:Pop density in 2021.<ref name=2021census>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Col-begin Template:Col-2 Population trend<ref>Censuses 1871-1941</ref><ref>Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006 census</ref>

Census	Population	Change (%)
2021	7,373	Template:Loss3.3%
2016	7,625	Template:Loss6.4%
2011	8,143	Template:Loss10.1%
2006	9,058	Template:Loss7.8%
2001	9,827	Template:Loss10.0%
1996	10,917	Template:Loss6.9%
1991	11,724	Template:Loss8.5%
1986	12,721	Template:Loss0.2%
1981	12,752	N/A
1941	15,461
1931	15,443
1921	15,518
1911	17,048
1901	18,320
1891	17,195
1881	17,808
1871	16,555	N/A

Template:Col-2 Mother tongue language (2011)<ref>Statistics Canada: 2011 census</ref>

Language	Population	Pct (%)
English only	7,755	96.52%
French only	160	1.99%
Non-official languages	100	1.24%
Multiple responses	25	0.31%

Template:Col-2 Ethnic Groups (2006)<ref name="SC2006-Ethnicity">2006 Statistics Canada Census Ethnocultural Portrait of Canada: GuysboroughCounty, Nova Scotia</ref>

Ethnic Origin	Population	Pct (%)
Canadian	4,520	50.5%
Scottish	2,760	30.8%
English	2,620	29.3%
Irish	2,240	25.0%
French	1,795	20.1%
German	1,050	11.7%
Dutch (Netherlands)	270	3.0%

Template:Col-end

Communities

Template:Main

Towns

Mulgrave

District municipalities

Access Routes

Highways and numbered routes that run through the county, including external routes that start or finish at the county limits:<ref>Atlantic Canada Back Road Atlas Template:ISBN Pages 56, 70–73, 83</ref> Template:Col-begin Template:Col-4