Enfield, Nova Scotia

Summary

Enfield is an urban community located 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) north of Halifax Stanfield International Airport in the Shubenacadie Valley on the border of Hants and Halifax counties in Nova Scotia, Canada. Specifically, Enfield exists in both the East Hants Municipal District and Halifax and is divided by the Shubenacadie River.

Enfield
Enfield is located in Nova Scotia
Enfield
Enfield
Location of Enfield, Nova Scotia
Coordinates: 44°56′36″N 63°32′09″W / 44.94333°N 63.53583°W / 44.94333; -63.53583
Country Canada
Province Nova Scotia
MunicipalityHalifax Regional Municipality
East Hants
Area
 • Land0.12 km2 (0.05 sq mi)
Elevation
19 - 140 m (62 - 459 ft)
Population
 (2016)
 • Total4,469
 • Density308/km2 (800/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC-4 (AST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-3 (ADT)
Canadian Postal code
B2T
Area code902
Telephone exchange883

History edit

Grants of land around what is now Enfield were given after 1760. The first was given to a Benjamin Franklin, a parcel of land on the side of the Shubenacadie River opposite the main part of the present village. A Mr. Hall was hired by Franklin to take charge of the grant, and to operate a Wayside Inn. The Grand Lake East area was the location of another grant that was later purchased by Norman Fitzgerald Uniacke on speculation that the newly built Shubenacadie canal would provide him and his brother with a strategic location from which they could transport goods.

Andrew Horne, son of Jacob Horne, purchased land in the area that is today known as the Horne Settlement Enfield became a village comparatively late in the history of Nova Scotia; it does not appear in any early census of the province. Early people living in the area were probably listed under Nine Mile River, Douglas or 'The Crossing'. (Enfield was previously known as 'The Crossing'.) It is recorded that Enfield was named at a public meeting, called at Malcolm's Pottery in 1862. Thomas B. Donaldson suggested the name Enfield. In 1863, due to his interest and perseverance, the name "Enfield" was officially adopted as the name for the settlement. It has been said that he took a fancy to the name when he resided in the town of Enfield, Connecticut. On selling out his general store business in 1867, he purchased the Hall farm located in the OX-Bow on the Hants side of the Shubenacadie River, crossed by the bridge on Highway No. 2. This farm was operated by his son Charles F. for the years 1900 – 1950, and the old homestead is now part of the large modern home owned by his grandson, Frank C. Donaldson. Firmly established as a permanent resident in 1871, Thomas B. drew a plan for a church building in the village. His plan was adopted and the building erected within the year. Eleven men went to the woods to get out logs – some of these were T. Kenty, C. Todd, Lang, Miller, and the Halls. The 105th anniversary of this church was celebrated on June 20, 1976, when every pew was filled. It was by then a part of the United Church of Canada, but originally, the church was Methodist. When the congregation joined the United Church in Elmsdale, the building was turned over to the Women's Institute of Nova Scotia-Enfield Branch. It became the home of the Enfield Heritage Centre, which was founded by the WINS (Enfield Branch.) The church building was demolished in the early 2000s, after the Women's Institute members could no longer maintain it. The Enfield Heritage Centre is now housed in the former E H Horne School and is maintained by the Enfield Heritage Centre Association.

It is said that the first school was built at Horne Settlement, and serviced young and old alike. Among the school teachers was Miss Sarah Hanson who came out of the state of Maine, with others who were interested in investing in the Shubenacadie Canal. Later a school was built at Enfield near where the current Chinese restaurant is situated. This building was used as school until the early 1940s. It was later divided into two parts and became the homes of Marie & Vince Horne and Margaret & Andy MacDonnell. There was a school on the Horne Settlement Road near Jack Hawkins house (on the opposite side of the road) for many years. It remained abandoned for some years, and has since been demolished. In 1942 a new school was built and gifted to the community by Edmund H Horne. This school opened in January 1943 and served the people of Enfield as a school until June 2000. The Enfield District School was later built as the population of Enfield grew, and along with the E H Horne School it housed the elementary grade students of Enfield. In June 2000 the new Enfield District school opened to replace both the E H Horne School and the former Enfield District School. The new school serves grades Primary to Five. The other grades now go to school in Milford at either the Riverside Education Centre or for the higher grades to Hants East Rural High.

The area is primarily a bedroom community for those working in HRM or at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport.

Situated near the halfway point between Halifax and Truro, Enfield was once home to a prominent railway station constructed by the Nova Scotia Railway and later the Intercolonial Railway and Canadian National Railway; it has since been sold, moved and now is a private cottage near Monte Vista. During the mid-19th century, a system of locks on the Shubenacadie River in Enfield assisted small vessels in navigating from the Bay of Fundy to nearby Shubenacadie Grand Lake as part of the Shubenacadie Canal.

The Enfield Rugby Football Club (Established 2007) won the NSRFU Summer Division II Championship against the Halifax Tars 26-12 after completing an undefeated 8-0 season. They were also the Truro 7's Indoor Rugby Men's Div 'A' Champions for 2009.

On April 19, 2020, a spree killing that spanned a wide area of Nova Scotia resulted in a police chase that ended on Highway 2 in Enfield.[1]

Climate edit

Enfield has a humid continental climate with some marine influence, as typical of Nova Scotia. The nearest station is at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport located around 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) south of the Enfield core.

Climate data for Halifax Stanfield International Airport (1981−2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high humidex 18.4 18.3 27.7 32.1 36.0 40.2 42.4 41.9 42.1 31.9 25.4 20.4 42.4
Record high °C (°F) 14.8
(58.6)
17.5
(63.5)
25.6
(78.1)
29.5
(85.1)
32.8
(91.0)
33.4
(92.1)
33.9
(93.0)
35.0
(95.0)
34.2
(93.6)
25.8
(78.4)
19.4
(66.9)
16.3
(61.3)
35.0
(95.0)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) −1.3
(29.7)
−0.6
(30.9)
3.1
(37.6)
9.1
(48.4)
15.3
(59.5)
20.4
(68.7)
23.8
(74.8)
23.6
(74.5)
19.4
(66.9)
13.1
(55.6)
7.3
(45.1)
1.7
(35.1)
11.3
(52.3)
Daily mean °C (°F) −5.9
(21.4)
−5.2
(22.6)
−1.3
(29.7)
4.4
(39.9)
10.0
(50.0)
15.1
(59.2)
18.8
(65.8)
18.7
(65.7)
14.6
(58.3)
8.7
(47.7)
3.5
(38.3)
−2.4
(27.7)
6.6
(43.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −10.4
(13.3)
−9.7
(14.5)
−5.7
(21.7)
−0.3
(31.5)
4.6
(40.3)
9.7
(49.5)
13.7
(56.7)
13.7
(56.7)
9.7
(49.5)
4.2
(39.6)
−0.4
(31.3)
−6.4
(20.5)
1.9
(35.4)
Record low °C (°F) −28.5
(−19.3)
−27.3
(−17.1)
−22.4
(−8.3)
−12.8
(9.0)
−4.4
(24.1)
0.6
(33.1)
6.1
(43.0)
4.4
(39.9)
−0.8
(30.6)
−6.7
(19.9)
−13.1
(8.4)
−23.3
(−9.9)
−28.5
(−19.3)
Record low wind chill −40.4 −41.1 −33.9 −24.4 −10.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 −3.0 −10.1 −23.9 −35.6 −41.1
Average precipitation mm (inches) 134.3
(5.29)
105.8
(4.17)
120.1
(4.73)
114.5
(4.51)
111.9
(4.41)
96.2
(3.79)
95.5
(3.76)
93.5
(3.68)
102.0
(4.02)
124.9
(4.92)
154.2
(6.07)
143.3
(5.64)
1,396.2
(54.97)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 83.5
(3.29)
65.0
(2.56)
86.9
(3.42)
98.2
(3.87)
109.8
(4.32)
96.2
(3.79)
95.5
(3.76)
93.5
(3.68)
102.0
(4.02)
124.6
(4.91)
139.1
(5.48)
101.8
(4.01)
1,196.1
(47.09)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 58
(23)
45
(18)
37
(15)
16
(6.3)
2
(0.8)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
17
(6.7)
45
(18)
221
(87)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2 mm) 18.7 15.2 15.1 14.8 13.7 12.9 11.3 11.0 10.2 12.1 15.1 17.4 167.4
Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm) 8.0 6.1 8.6 12.1 13.5 12.9 11.3 11.0 10.2 12.1 12.8 9.8 128.4
Average snowy days (≥ 0.2 cm) 14.6 12.0 9.6 5.2 0.61 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.14 3.9 11.7 57.7
Average relative humidity (%) 83.8 82.8 83.8 85.5 87.0 88.2 89.5 90.9 91.6 89.9 87.0 85.6 87.1
Source: Environment Canada[2]

Demographics edit

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Enfield had a population of 36 living in 17 of its 18 total private dwellings, a change of -2.7% from its 2016 population of 37. With a land area of 0.12 km2 (0.046 sq mi), it had a population density of 300.0/km2 (777.0/sq mi) in 2021.[3]

Economy edit

 
Headquarters of Air Canada Jazz

Air Canada Jazz,[4] CanJet,[5] and Maritime Air Charter are headquartered in Enfield and in the Halifax Regional Municipality.[6][7][8]

Regional airline Air Nova, which became a part of Air Canada Jazz, is headquartered in Enfield.[9]

Notable residents edit

References edit

  1. ^ Jerrett, Andrea (April 19, 2020). "'Devastating day for Nova Scotia': 22 people, including RCMP officer, killed in shooting". CTV News. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  2. ^ "Halifax Stanfield INT'L A, Nova Scotia". Canadian Climate Normals 1981–2010. Environment Canada. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
  3. ^ "Population and dwelling counts: Canada and designated places". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  4. ^ "Contact Us Archived 2012-04-16 at the Wayback Machine." Air Canada Jazz. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
  5. ^ "Contact Us Archived 2008-12-27 at the Wayback Machine." CanJet. Retrieved on May 21, 2009.
  6. ^ "Contact Us Archived 2011-07-14 at the Wayback Machine." Maritime Air Charter. Retrieved on December 30, 2010. "Maritime Air Charter Limited 549 Barnes Road Enfield, NS B2T 1K3 < Please note that while our physical location has changed to 645 Pratt and Whitney Drive, at present our mailing address remains unchanged >"
  7. ^ "Our Location Archived 2011-01-13 at the Wayback Machine." Direct image link Archived 2011-07-14 at the Wayback Machine - Maritime Air Charter. Retrieved on December 30, 2010.
  8. ^ "Map." Halifax Regional Municipality. Retrieved on March 2, 2011.
  9. ^ "Our Facilities." Air Nova. August 23, 2000. Retrieved on June 18, 2009.