Halifax Peninsula Old Halifax | |
|---|---|
 From top right, pictures are Town Clock, Hydrostone Shops, HUGA Trail, Saunders Park, and the Halifax Central Library. | |
 Location of Halifax Peninsula in municipal Halifax. | |
  Halifax Peninsula Location of Halifax Peninsula in Nova Scotia | |
| Coordinates:44°38′52.0″N63°34′27.4″W / 44.647778°N 63.574278°W /44.647778; -63.574278 | |
| Country |  Canada |
| Province |  Nova Scotia |
| Municipality | Halifax |
| Community | Halifax |
| Municipal Districts | District 7 (Halifax South Downtown),District 8 (Halifax Peninsula North),District 9 (Halifax West Armdale) |
| Founded | 1749 |
| Neighborhoods | Downtown,Hydrostone,North End,Quinpool,South End,Spring Garden,West End |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipal Council |
| Area | |
• Total | 18.949 km2 (7.316 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• Total | 72,169 |
| • Density | 3,808/km2 (9,860/sq mi) |
| • Change 2016-2021 |  14.1 |
| Time zone | UTC−4 (AST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−3 (ADT) |
| Postal code span | B3H, B3J, B3K, B3L |
| Area code(s) | 782,902 |
Part of a series aboutPlaces in Nova Scotia | |
TheHalifax Peninsula is a peninsula within theurban area of theMunicipality of Halifax,Nova Scotia.
The town of Halifax was founded by theBritish government under the direction of theBoard of Trade and Plantations under the command ofGovernorEdward Cornwallis in 1749.[3] The founding of the town sparkedFather Le Loutre's War. The original settlement was clustered in the southeastern part of the peninsula along The Narrows, between a series of forts (Fort Needham to the north,Fort George (Citadel Hill) in the middle, and Fort Massey to the south) and the harbour. With time, the settlement expanded beyond its walls and gradually encroached over the entire peninsula, creating residential neighbourhoods defined by the peninsula's geography.
From 1749 until 1841, Halifax was atown. After a protracted struggle between residents and the Executive Council, the town was incorporated into acity in 1841. From 1841 until 1969, the entire Peninsula was home to theformer City of Halifax.
In 1789, theUniversity of King's College was founded. Roughly thirteen years later,Saint Mary's University was founded in 1802. Subsequently,Dalhousie University was founded 1818.NSCAD University was founded in 1867.
In 1867, theHalifax Public Gardens andVictoria Park, Halifax were created, with many Victorian Era monuments. Builders such asGeorge Lang created many landmark buildings.
During 1916–1919 a mega construction project was undertaken byCanadian Government Railways (laterCanadian National Railway) along the peninsula's Northwest Arm shoreline which saw a 4 km (2.5 mi) long rock cut blasted up to 30 m (98 ft) deep for a railway line running from Fairview Cove to serve the new Halifax Ocean Terminals which were built at the southeastern end; the rock from blasting work in the cut being used as infill for a portion of The Narrows.
Rudyard Kipling paid homage to Halifax in his poemThe Song of Cities:
Into the mist my guardian prows put forth,
Behind the mist my virgin ramparts lie,
The Warden of the Honour of the North,
Sleepless and veiled am I!
In 1969, adjacent rural areas withinthe former County of Halifax (that at this time were beginning to urbanize) west of the isthmus were annexed into the city. The city annexedArmdale,Clayton Park,Fairview,Rockingham andSpryfield.
On 1 April 1996, Halifax County was dissolved and all of its places (cities, suburbs, towns, and villages) were turned into communities of a single-tier municipality namedHalifax Regional Municipality. Subsequently, the Halifax Peninsula was included in the newcommunity of Halifax, within the new Municipality ofHalifax.
Today, the Peninsula is the bustling region of the community ofHalifax.
The bedrock of this peninsula isPrecambrianslate. Glaciers during thePleistocene era converted the rock surface to an olive-colored loamytill. Glaciation also removed reddish till from sedimentary rock to the north and redeposited it as a drumlin to form Citadel Hill. The stony loam to sandy loam soils are mapped as Bridgewater series on olive till and Wolfville series on the Citadel Hill drumlin.[4]
According to the2021 Census, the Halifax Peninsula covers approximately 1,894.9 hectares (18.949 km2).[5]
Peninsular Halifax extends from the western shore ofHalifax Harbour, and is connected to the much largerChebucto Peninsula by anisthmus measuring 2.6 km (1.6 mi), defined by Fairview Cove and theBedford Basin to the north and theNorthwest Arm to the southwest. Down the length of this isthmus is Joseph Howe Drive, generally considered to be the boundary betweenmainland Halifax and peninsular Halifax. The Halifax Peninsula createsThe Narrows, a constriction of Halifax Harbour to its east.
The peninsula measures approximately 3.3 km (2.1 mi) at its widest and approximately 7.5 km (4.7 mi) at its longest, the peninsula's topography is relatively flat near theisthmus where Chebucto Field, anaerodrome that precededHalifax Stanfield International Airport was located. The northern part of the peninsula rises to approximately 60 m (200 ft) abovesea level as aglacial drumlin at Fort Needham, with the central area of the peninsula being a plateau roughly 40–50 m (130–160 ft). in elevation. Another drumlin approximately 60 m (200 ft) above sea level is located atCitadel Hill and immediately offshore to the east atGeorges Island.
Arenas
Art Galleries
Community Centres
Libraries
Museums
Parks
Pools
Trails
The Peninsula's population grew to a high of 92,511 in 1961--and decreased thereafter. However, in recent years, the population has increased. In2016, the population was 63,210 people. By2021, the population increased to 72,169 people--an increase of 14.1% from 2016.
| Census Tract | Land area (km2) | Population (2021)[6] | Population (2016)[7] | Population Density (people per km2) (2021) | Population Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2050003.00 | 2.365 | 2,885 | 2,955 | 1,219 |  2.4 |
| 2050004.01 | 0.481 | 4,045 | 3,466 | 8,402 | 16.7 |
| 2050004.02 | 0.482 | 5,466 | 4,771 | 11,340 | 14.6 |
| 2050005.00 | 0.769 | 1,813 | 1,808 | 2,358 | 0.3 |
| 2050006.00 | 1.054 | 3,553 | 3,129 | 3,371 | 13.6 |
| 2050007.00 | 1.16 | 1,947 | 1,859 | 1,677 | 4.7 |
| 2050008.00 | 0.504 | 5,203 | 2,778 | 10,325 | 87.3 |
| 2050009.00 | 0.635 | 2,875 | 2,357 | 4,528 | 22 |
| 2050010.00 | 0.834 | 6,019 | 5,036 | 7,213 | 19.5 |
| 2050011.00 | 0.808 | 6,013 | 5,631 | 7,446 | 6.8 |
| 2050012.00 | 0.518 | 2,901 | 2,482 | 5,598 | 16.9 |
| 2050013.00 | 0.805 | 2,630 | 2,561 | 3,267 | 2.7 |
| 2050018.00 | 1.397 | 3,758 | 3,544 | 2,690 | 6 |
| 2050019.00 | 0.891 | 5,126 | 5,062 | 5,755 | 1.3 |
| 2050020.00 | 0.999 | 3,602 | 2,562 | 3,607 | 40.6 |
| 2050021.00 | 0.877 | 3,544 | 3,314 | 4,041 | 6.9 |
| 2050022.00 | 2.833 | 5,581 | 5,301 | 1,969 | 5.3 |
| 2050023.00 | 1.537 | 5,208 | 4,594 | 3,388 | 13.4 |
| Peninsula | 18.949 | 72,169 | 63,210 | 3,808 | 14.1 |
Being a very populated area, the peninsula hosts many businesses, government services, hospitals, post-secondary institutions, and more.
The Halifax Station is operated byVia Rail, and is the easternmost station forthe Ocean.The Ocean travels fromHalifax toMontreal once per week.
There are many kilometres of avenues, lanes, roads, and streets that criss-cross throughout the Peninsula. The main thoroughfare is Robie Street. Robie Street runs approximately 4 km (2.5 mi), then continues on asMassachusetts Avenue.
Source:[8]
Halifax Transit provides many transit routes that traverse the peninsula. There are two terminals located within the area; theScotia Square Terminal in theSouth End; and theMumford Terminal in theWest End.
Wheelchair – Uses Accessible Low Floor (ALF) buses only.
Rush Hour Service Only
Designated Bike Route
MetroLink Service
MetroX Service
| Route number | Route name | Features | Inner terminal | Outer terminal | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spring Garden | | Mumford | Bridge | |
| 2 | Fairview | | Water Street | Lacewood | |
| 3 | Crosstown | | Mumford | Bridge; Highfield; Lacewood | |
| 4 | Universities | Dalhousie University,Saint Mary's University | Lacewood | ||
| 5 | Portland | | Scotia Square | Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | |
| 7 (7ᴀ/7ʙ) | Peninsula | | Scotia Square | 7ᴀ runs in a clockwise direction, and7ʙ runs in a counter-clockwise direction. | |
| 8 | Sackville | | Scotia Square | Bayers Road Centre; Cobequid; Sackville | |
| 9 (9ᴀ/9ʙ) | Greystone (9ᴀ);Herring Cove (9ʙ) | Scotia Square | Mumford | ||
| 10 | Dalhousie | | Scotia Square | Bridge; M District | |
| 21 | Timberlea | | Lacewood | ||
| 22 | Armdale | | Mumford | ||
| 24 | Leiblin Park | | Mumford | ||
| 25 | Governors Brook | | Mumford | ||
| 26 | Springvale | | Mumford | ||
| 28 | Bayers Lake | | Mumford | Bayers Road; Lacewood | |
| 29 | Barrington | | Scotia Square; Water Street | Bayers Road; Mumford | |
| 50 | Dockyard-Shipyard | | Bridge | ||
| 84 | Glendale | Scotia Square | Cobequid; Sackville | ||
| 90 | Larry Uteck | | Water Street | ||
| 91 | Hemlock Ravine | | Mumford | Bayers Road Centre | |
| 93 | Bedford Highway | Scotia Square | Cobequid | ||
| 123 | Timberlea Express | Scotia Square | |||
| 127 | Cowie Hill Express | | Scotia Square | ||
| 135 | Flamingo Express | Scotia Square | Lacewood | ||
| 136 | Farnham Gate Express | Scotia Square | Lacewood | ||
| 137 | Clayton Park Express | Scotia Square | Lacewood | ||
| 138 | Parkland Express | Scotia Square | Lacewood | ||
| 158 | Woodlawn Express | | Scotia Square | Alderney; Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | |
| 159 | Colby Express | | Scotia Square | Alderney; Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | |
| 161 | North Preston Express | | Scotia Square | Alderney; Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | |
| 165 | Caldwell Express | | Scotia Square | Alderney; Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | |
| 168 (168ᴀ/168ʙ) | Cherry Brook Express:Auburn (168ᴀ);Cherry Brook (168ʙ) | | Scotia Square | Alderney; Bridge; Penhorn; Portland Hills | 168ᴀ starts/ends on Hillsboro Drive near Barbara Drive. |
| 183 | Springfield Express | Scotia Square | |||
| 185 | Millwood Express | Scotia Square | |||
| 186 | Beaver Bank Express | Scotia Square | |||
| 194 | West Bedford Express | | Scotia Square | ||
| 196 | Basinview Express | Scotia Square | |||
| 330 | Tantallon Regional Express | | |||
| 370 | Porters Lake Regional Express | | Scotia Square | Bridge | |
| 415 | Purcells Cove | | Mumford |
There is aferry service that runs fromDowntown Halifax.[9] It is located at theHalifax Ferry Terminal inDowntown. It connects to either theAlderney Terminal inDowntown Dartmouth, or theWoodside Terminal inWoodside.
| Route number | Route name | Features | Inner terminal | Outer terminal | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alderney | | Halifax | Alderney | TheAlderney travels from the Halifax terminal inDowntown Halifax to the Alderney terminal inDowntown Dartmouth, and conversely. | |
| Woodside | | Halifax | Woodside | TheWoodside travels from the Halifax terminal inDowntown Halifax to the Woodside terminal inWoodside, and conversely. |
There are many colleges, private-and-public schools, and universities on the peninsula.
Colleges
Inclusive Education
The Halifax School for the Blind is administered by the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority (APSEA).[10]
Private Schools
Public Schools
All public schools on the peninsula are administered by theHalifax Regional Centre for Education.
Universities
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