Mount Hanley, Nova Scotia
Encyclopedia
Mount Hanley is a Canadian
rural community in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia
. It is the birthplace of the famous mariner Joshua Slocum
.
. Mount Hanley occupies the north slope of the North Mountain
facing the Bay of Fundy
at an elevation of 150 metres above sea level.
and is thought to be named after Rev. Thomas Hanley Chipman, a leader of the surrounding Wilmot Township. The name is recorded in various sources as Handely, Hanly, and Handly. In the 19th century the community’s farms and sawmills prospered, finding ready markets for their goods shipping from the nearby harbours on the Bay of Fundy at Cottage Cove and Port George. The community at one time boasted sawmills, blacksmiths, a grist mill, a cheese factory, blacksmiths, post office and general store. Some agriculture and forestry remain today although most residents work at jobs in the Annapolis Valley
or are retired.
. A Baptist church built in 1861 still sees seasonal services. Mount Hanley shares close links with the adjacent North Mountain communities of Outram, Port George and Moshers Corner and the four communities share a Recreational Centre at Port George.
, the famous mariner who was the first to sail solo around the world and wrote the classic book Sailing Alone Around the World
. Slocum learned to read and write at Mount Hanley School where today his origins are commemorated by a plaque and displays at the Mount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum
. While at Mount Hanley, Slocum had his first experiences on the water on short schooner voyages from the near-by coves of Cottage Cove and Port George. He left Mount Hanley when he was eight years old when his family moved to Brier Island
. Mount Hanley is also the birthplace of Clara Belle Marshall, the first woman to graduate from Acadia University
in 1879.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
rural community in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
. It is the birthplace of the famous mariner Joshua Slocum
Joshua Slocum
Joshua Slocum was the first man to sail single-handedly around the world. He was a Canadian born, naturalised American seaman and adventurer, and a noted writer. In 1900 he told the story of this in Sailing Alone Around the World...
.
Geography
Mount Hanley is located about nine kilometers northwest of the town of MiddletonMiddleton, Nova Scotia
Middleton is a Canadian town in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia.It is situated on the north bank of the Annapolis River. Incorporated in 1909, it is located near the centre of the Annapolis Valley, from which it gets its nickname, "The Heart of the Valley".-Economy:Founded by New England Planters,...
. Mount Hanley occupies the north slope of the North Mountain
North Mountain (Nova Scotia)
North Mountain is a narrow southwest-northeast trending volcanic mountain range on the mainland portion of southwestern Nova Scotia, stretching from Brier Island to Cape Split...
facing the Bay of Fundy
Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine...
at an elevation of 150 metres above sea level.
History
The community was settled about 1784 mostly by United Empire LoyalistsUnited Empire Loyalists
The name United Empire Loyalists is an honorific given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other British Colonies as an act of fealty to King George III after the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War and prior to the Treaty of Paris...
and is thought to be named after Rev. Thomas Hanley Chipman, a leader of the surrounding Wilmot Township. The name is recorded in various sources as Handely, Hanly, and Handly. In the 19th century the community’s farms and sawmills prospered, finding ready markets for their goods shipping from the nearby harbours on the Bay of Fundy at Cottage Cove and Port George. The community at one time boasted sawmills, blacksmiths, a grist mill, a cheese factory, blacksmiths, post office and general store. Some agriculture and forestry remain today although most residents work at jobs in the Annapolis Valley
Annapolis Valley
The Annapolis Valley is a valley and region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It is located in the western part of the Nova Scotia peninsula, formed by a trough between two parallel mountain ranges along the shore of the Bay of Fundy.-Geography:...
or are retired.
Landmarks
An original log school built in 1784 was replaced in 1850 and served until 1963 when rural schools were consolidated. The school is now the Mount Hanley Schoolhouse MuseumMount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum
The Mount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum is a community museum located in a historic one-room school in Mount Hanley, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia. The Museum focuses on the history of Mount Hanley and surrounding communities as well as rural school life and the famous mariner Joshua Slocum who...
. A Baptist church built in 1861 still sees seasonal services. Mount Hanley shares close links with the adjacent North Mountain communities of Outram, Port George and Moshers Corner and the four communities share a Recreational Centre at Port George.
Notable residents
Mount Hanley was the birthplace on February 20, 1844 of Joshua SlocumJoshua Slocum
Joshua Slocum was the first man to sail single-handedly around the world. He was a Canadian born, naturalised American seaman and adventurer, and a noted writer. In 1900 he told the story of this in Sailing Alone Around the World...
, the famous mariner who was the first to sail solo around the world and wrote the classic book Sailing Alone Around the World
Sailing Alone Around the World
Sailing Alone Around the World is a sailing memoir by Joshua Slocum about his single-handed global circumnavigation aboard the sloop Spray. Slocum was the first person to sail around the world alone...
. Slocum learned to read and write at Mount Hanley School where today his origins are commemorated by a plaque and displays at the Mount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum
Mount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum
The Mount Hanley Schoolhouse Museum is a community museum located in a historic one-room school in Mount Hanley, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia. The Museum focuses on the history of Mount Hanley and surrounding communities as well as rural school life and the famous mariner Joshua Slocum who...
. While at Mount Hanley, Slocum had his first experiences on the water on short schooner voyages from the near-by coves of Cottage Cove and Port George. He left Mount Hanley when he was eight years old when his family moved to Brier Island
Brier Island
Brier Island is an island in the Bay of Fundy in Digby County, Nova Scotia.-Geography:The island is the western-most part of Nova Scotia and the southern end of the North Mountain ridge with Long Island lying immediately northeast; both islands constitute part of the Digby Neck...
. Mount Hanley is also the birthplace of Clara Belle Marshall, the first woman to graduate from Acadia University
Acadia University
Acadia University is a predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level...
in 1879.