Category: Planters and Pioneers

Categories: Nova Scotia, Immigrants

The term Planters and Pioneers refers to the early settlers of Nova Scotia as a British colony, who largely arrived between 1759 and 1775.

Nova Scotia formally passed from the French to Britain in 1713, however the territory remained contentious, and there were few English settlers. In 1745, the English captured Fort Louisbourg, but it was returned to the French by European treaty. In 1749, prior to evacuating Louisbourg, Britain sent General Edward Cornwallis with 13 transports and a sloop of war to the harbour called Chebucto, to establish Halifax.

1,176 English pioneer families were aboard the Cornwallis ships
The inhabitants of Louisbourg, soldiers and civilians, who were evacuated to Halifax are among the pioneers of Nova Scotia
Frustrated by their lack of success attracting sufficient settlers to Halifax, the British recruited Europeans along the Rhine River. From 1750-1752, a mixed group of over 2000 settlers from France, Germany and Switzerland arrived. Collectively referred to as the Foreign Protestants, most of them left Halifax and became the pioneer settlers of Lunenburg
In 1758, Nova Scotia became the first British colony with an independent legislature, and the vote. This experiment in democracy was designed to attract settlers from New England. It did not draw a large number of civilians until peace fell, in 1759.
In 1759, the fall of Québec marked the beginning of a period of peace. To stabilize the region, the British offered land grants to the army officers and soldiers who were no longer needed, and they are also included among the pioneers. Some of these are also counted among the New England Planters, and among the Scottish settlers.
From 1759 to 1775, roughly 2000 families arrived from New England. These New England Planters established the first thirteen townships, and then expanded to 20 before the Revolutionary War.
From 1762 to 1840, many Scottish families who were forced to leave their ancestral homes came to the New World. In 1773, the passengers of the Hector became the pioneer founders of Pictou, Nova Scotia
Starting in the early 1770's, a wave of immigrants from Yorkshire, England arrived. A large group came to the Chignecto area around 1775. The migration stopped during the war but chain migration continued for decades.