Centre Acadien, Université Sainte-Anne

Shipbuilding – Once the first Acadian settlers started occupying their new land grants in Clare Township, they quickly adapted to their new surroundings and took advantage of the natural resources to establish new industries. With an ample supply of wood and a capable workforce, the lumber industry, as well as shipbuilding and ship-owning, soon dominated the regional economy. By the year of Confederation, Digby County dominated the region’s shipbuilding trade and neighbouring Yarmouth County owned one of the largest merchant fleets in Canada. A very large number of these vessels was built in Clare.

Shipyards could be seen in every village bordering Baie Sainte-Marie. The only requirement was a sloping beach and enough water to float the new vessel at high tide. Belliveau’s Cove, Grosses Coques, Church Point, Little Brook, Meteghan, Salmon River, and Beaver River were among the most productive building ports in this area during the last half of the 19th century.

Wooden vessels of all types continued to be constructed well into the 1900s and today the shipbuilding tradition continues in several small yards and especially in Meteghan River at the A. F. Theriault & Son Ltd. shipyard, where over 800 vessels have been built since 1938.

The photo featured here, taken by photographer Paul Yates, shows the construction of the schooner Nettie C., built in Saulnierville in 1919, and lost off the Nova Scotia coast in 1933. Her builder was François à Prospère Comeau. Her first master was Captain Arthur Doucet of Cape St. Mary and her first cargo was a load of lumber for the West Indies.

Topic: Commercial Enterprises and other livelihoods

Date: [ca. 1919]

Reference: Harold Robichaud Collection Centre Acadien Series A, photo 11

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