Nearby: Kentville
This area along the famous Bay of Fundy was initially settled by the Mi'Kmaq Indians who were the first settlers in Canada, centuries before Europeans settlement.
The Mi'Kmaq referred to this area as Penook meaning "fording place for its location at the bend in the Cornwallis River, a natural crossing point. The first European settlers were French Acadians at the beginning of the 17th century. The Acadian French cultivated our rich lands and developed the area into a prosperous agricultural hub. In 1755 the British expelled thousands of Acadians from all over Nova Scotia. Then, between 1760 and 1800, the lands were won over by the British in 13 townships established in the northwestern portion of the province.
These lands were settled by Loyalists who left after the American Revolution and well into the 1800's.
The town was named Kentville in 1826 in honour of Prince Albert, the Duke of Kent (he was Queen Elizabeth's grandfather), who had visited the area in 1794. The community thrived when the 1868 Windsor - Annapolis railway (later Dominion Atlantic) established its headquarters to ship Annapolis Valley apples to England. The British fruit market collapsed with WWI, and later on trucking replaced rail transport, but Kentville survived as the area's economic hub.
Official web site: http://www.town.kentville.ns.ca/home.html
Apple Capital Museum Society
{171 Commercial Street}
Box 730, Berwick NS B0P 1E0
(902) 538-9229
The Apple Capital Museum Society was formed in 1999 to ensure the area's history and heritage, mostly based on a booming apple industry in the early 1900s, would be preserved. Volunteers have been working to plan for the museum's future, and have started a number of small projects to gain community awareness and interest. Throughout the summer, the society hosts monthly historical evenings with local speakers and memorabilia. Operated by: Apple Capital Museum Society. Open Summer daily 9:00 am-5:00 pm. Admission free, donations welcome
Charles MacDonald Concrete House Of Centreville
19 Saxon Street, Centreville
(north of Kentville, on the road to Hall's Harbour)
(902)678-3177
Known as "the cement house with the animals", this unique property is surrounded by cement lawn sculptures of deer, mushrooms, and other figures and furniture. Inside, the house is as it was built: every surface lovingly fashioned from cement and finished smooth with paint. From mantle to newel post, from chimney to dovecote, the impression is of a magical cottage. Open June 15 to September 1
George And Mary Lynch Heritage Museum
{113 Parrish Road (turn north at Central Kings High School, Cambridge, approx. 4km, turn right approx. 1km, turn left 0.5km, first house on left}
Box 383, Berwick, NS B0P 1E0
(902) 678-3915
Collections of 19th and early 20th century carriages and sleighs, together with accessories such as sleigh bells, lanterns, rugs and other implements, books, magazines of the period. Operated by: George & Mary Lynch Heritage Museum Society. Open by appointment Admission free, donations welcome
Hall's Harbour Interpretive Centre
Old Schoolhouse next to Fire Hall and Fish House, Hall's Harbour Wharf (about 15 km west of Kentville)
RR 3 Centreville, NS B0P 1J0
(902) 679-0426
Hall's Harbour Historical Society's Interpretive Centre houses fishing gear from the past, old pictures describing how fishing was done before modernization. The Interpretive Centre also acts as an informal tourist guide, selling coffee and muffins as well. The Old Schoolhouse has a collection of school items on the first floor with a Cap Site and business centre on the second floor. Open mid-June-September Wed-Sun 10:00 am-6:00 pm. Admission free, donations welcome Operated by: Hall's Harbour Historical Society
Kentville Agricultural Centre and Blair House Museum
Route 1, Kentville
902-678-1093
This is a joint federal/provincial food and horticulture research centre. The beautiful grounds are decorated with azaleas, rhododendrons, lovely pond, and in the summer you can get a guided tours in summer by prior arrangement. Blair House Museum has photos and historic artifacts relating to the history of the Kentville Research Station and the fruit-growing industry in Nova Scotia. The Kentville Ravine Trail begins at picnic area, and the Centre & the Museum are wheelchair-accessible. Allow one hour. Free admission. Open daily June 1 to Sept 1 from 8:30 to 4 pm
Old Kings County Courthouse Museum
37 Cornwallis Street, Kentville
902-678-6237
In the former Kings County Courthouse, which was the seat of justice and municipal government from 1903-1980. See a collection of cultural and natural history artifacts, archives of Kings County history and genealogy, and a Parks Canada National Commemorative Exhibit to the New England Planters. The main floor is wheelchair-accessible. Admission free and by donation. Open year-round: July-August Mon-Fri 9:30 - 4:30 and Sat 11:30 - 4:30May-June Mon-Fri 9:30 - 4:30, and remainder of year Tues-Fri 9 - 4:30.
Community Map
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