At the Ocean's Edge: A History of Nova Scotia to Confederation

by Margaret Conrad

At the Ocean’s Edge offers a vibrant account of Nova Scotia’s colonial history, situating it in an early and dramatic chapter in the expansion of Europe. Between 1450 and 1850, various processes – sometimes violent, often judicial, rarely conclusive – transferred power first from Indigenous societies to the French and British empires, and then to European settlers and their descendants who claimed the land as their own. This book not only brings Nova Scotia’s struggles into sharp focus but also unpacks the intellectual and social values that took root in the region. By the time that Nova Scotia became a province of the Dominion of Canada in 1867, its multicultural peoples, including Mi’kmaq, Acadian, African, and British, had come to a grudging, unequal, and often contested accommodation among themselves. Written in accessible and spirited prose, the narrative follows larger trends through the experiences of colourful individuals who grappled with expulsion, genocide, and war to establish the institutions, relationships, and values that still shape Nova Scotia’s identity.

Genres: History

456 pages, Hardcover

Published July 25, 2020

About the author

A specialist in the fields of Atlantic Canada and Women's history, Margaret Rose Conrad held the Canada Research Chair in Atlantic Canada Studies at the University of New Brunswick before retiring in 2009.

Reviews

[Adam McPhee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweeping history of Nova Scotia. Manages to cover more ground and answer more questions than what I remembered of high school history. Also manages a broader scope, including Nova Scotia's prehistory, the idea of a Greater Nova Scotia and the area's role in the wider region, and a larger focus on Acadians, Blacks, the Mi'kmaq, and a sectarian breakdown of settlers. That said, just as in high school history, the Mi'kmaq tend to disappear from the narrative once Nova Scotia becomes decidedly British in terms of demographics, with just a few remarks about their increasing isolation, poverty, etc. The stuff on Confederation is boring, with too many capsule biographies, but it's hard to fault the author for that (that drunken brawl in Ottawa did sound interesting).

I appreciated the way the author broke down different groups of settlers by their demographics and when they arrived. Most histories tend to elide these things but there was a world of difference in the experiences people had in coming to Nova Scotia. Some groups were supported, some weren't, and it's not always the ones you would think. There's a good look at Nova Scotia's history of and with slavery, something that until recently has been completely ignored. And something that really surprised was the look at the creation of Nova Scotia's school system, something people take for granted today. But the author really manages to convey what a progressive idea it was at the time and also how petty sectarian squabbling managed to continually sabotage the project.

There's a nice afterword that left me longing for a second volume, looking at Nova Scotia's role in Canada. We got ripped off federally, it's true, and our capitalist class sold us out and turned Nova Scotia into a 'branch plant economy,' but the briefest of counterfactual exercises suggests the province would probably be in the same position today whether it had joined the United States, formed a Maritime Union, or stayed dependant on Britain.

The author does tend to make sweeping statements that left me wondering how she could justify certain claims, particularly in the early chapter on Mi'kma'ki before European arrival. But then, this is a sweeping history and there's not a whole lot of space to dive into things. A couple of minor errors bothered me: 'the sixteenth century' is used once to refer to the 1600s, and the author claims that Sydney, Nova Scotia, is 'named, like the capital of Australia, after Lord Sydney,' except that Canberra is the capital of Australia, not Sydney. But don't get me wrong, this is a well-researched book and not one of those cheap things you sometimes see put out by regional presses.

[Jared Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very expansive history of Nova Scotia until Confederation. Primarily a political history, the author covers a lot of ground and the writing is quite readable.