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Bass River | |
|---|---|
 Bass River Lighthouse | |
  Bass River Location within Nova Scotia | |
| Coordinates:45°24′53″N63°46′46″W / 45.41472°N 63.77944°W /45.41472; -63.77944[1] | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Province |  Nova Scotia |
| Municipality | Colchester |
| Time zone | UTC-4 (AST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-3 (ADT) |
| Postal code | B0M 1B0 |
| Area code | 902 |
| GNBC Code | CABYG[1] |
Bass River is anunincorporated community in the Canadian province ofNova Scotia, located inColchester County. The community shares its name with the river that flows through it into theCobequid Bay.
Bass River was founded by members of theUlsteremigrant"Judge" James Fulton's family, who himself in c.1767 was the first to settle the area (at King's Rest) a decade after the tragicexpulsion ofAcadians from the region. Those who settled Bass River and its neighbouring communities were largely of directUlster-Scottish descent. Many of these settlers'descendants have remained in the community as is evident from a list ofsurnames prevalent in the area today. Ulster-ScottishCampbells,Creelmans,Davisons/Davidsons,Fishers,Fultons,McLellans, Starratts/Starritts,Vances, andWilsons settled the area, as didLewis's fromScotland.
Other common surnames of the area includeBurns,Cameron,Carde,Carr,Cooke,Corbett,Dickie,Faulkner,Fletcher,Gamble,Gilbert, Grue,Jordan,Lawson,McIntosh,Rushton,Rutherford,Smith,Taggart,Taylor,Thompson, andWelch. Most of these names have Ulster-Scottish or Scottish origins, as much of Colchester County was settled by Ulster Scots.
Settlement took place in what was then merely an unnamed parcel of theTownship of Londonderry, an area centred on the present-day community ofLondonderry. Prior toBritish settlement, it is believed that Acadian families lived in what are now the neighbouring communities ofEconomy and Portapique (or Portaupique), places whose names were most likely derived fromAcadian French language.Mi'kmaqIndigenous Peoples /First Nations peoples are thought to havehunted and gathered in Colchester County for several hundred years prior to British control and settlement.
Bass River was once known for its woodenfurniture manufacturing, woodenship-building, andtimber exports. The furnituremanufacturer,Dominion Chair Company, employed 40 to 70 workers at any one time from the late 19th century to February 1989, when fire destroyed most of the company's operating facilities. Shipbuilding took place in two locales. At Saint's Rest, site of the former villagelighthouse, thebrig 'Jos. Howe' was constructed in 1867. Between 1884 and 1918, a further seven wooden ships (Hemeon, 1987) were built in Little Bass River. Bass River timber was famously also used to build staging used in construction of theEmpire State Building.
Other former industry includedgrist mill operations,shadfishing, andsilicamining. In the early 20th century, there was abank and ahotel located in the village. The population then was two or three times what it is now.
Bass River is located along an approximate 4-kilometre (2.5 mi) stretch ofCobequid Bay northshoreline, from the bordering communities ofUpper Economy to the west,Porta(u)pique to the east, andCastlereagh in theCobequid Hills to the north. The community is centred at approximately 45°24'North, 63°46'West. Most of its residents live along or just off of theTrunk 2, theGlooscap Trail. Bass River's jurisdiction is thought locally to extend north from the bay approximately 5 km to include Upper Bass River and Hoeg(')s Corner, east to incorporateLittle Bass River (which includes the areas Edgewood and Saint's Rest), and south to include Birch Hill and King's Rest.
Bass River has a population of approximately 300 permanent residents. The number of residents increases in summertime by 20 to 40 percent with the influx of those withcottages in the area.
The region suffers fromout-migration. More than half of those who grow up in Bass River leave the area to live, withHalifax,Ontario,Alberta and its petroleum products industry,British Columbia, and theCanadian Forces being common destinations.
Present-day economic activity includes a fewcommercialfarms (cultivatedstrawberries,dairy, andsheep),pulp wood,fire wood, andtimber harvesting,lowbush blueberry andChristmas tree production, andclam mollusc harvesting (i.e. "clam digging").
Most present-day residents however commute to assorted work done outside the community. Most commuters go toTruro and its surrounding area.
West Colchester Consolidated is located on Mines Road in Bass River, and teaches grades primary to 9. AChignecto-Central Regional School Board proposal to close the Bass River Elementary school was acted upon in 2013. Prior to this, West Colchester Consolidated students in grades primary to 4 attended Bass River Elementary, located on the same road.
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