The End of It All

As Bill Naftel describes in his background article elsewhere on this website,

"It all ended with, literally, a bang. The long-expected allied victory in Europe was declared on 8 May 1945. Focusing on the need for thoughtful celebrations to commemorate the great sacrifices of the last six years, civic and military authorities in Halifax were caught by surprise when it rapidly became apparent that a substantial number of residents had other ideas. Spearheaded by thousands of naval ratings, the centre of Halifax succumbed to twenty-four hours of mob rule and looting.

By and large, the ratings focused on booze and the civilians on shoes and clothing. Although there were three deaths, some definite nastiness and much wanton destruction, by the standards of later years only the downtown merchants and the provincial Liquor Commission seem not to have had what generally passed for 'a good time'. The damage, however, was immense — both economic and political."

After cleaning up from the Riots, however, there was still one more last big bang to come. The Naval Magazine, on the shores of Bedford Basin, caught fire in the late afternoon of 18 July 1945. For the next twelve hours the air and ground trembled to the sound of exploding ammunition, and the north ends of both Dartmouth and Halifax emptied as citizens waited in fear for the 'Big One' which would repeat the catastrophe of December 1917. Good luck prevailed, however, and the efforts of local firemen and RCN personnel meant that by dawn the next day, the thud of exploding shells and charges had died away to nothing.

The virtual exhibit presented here features never-before-seen photographs of the VE-Day Riots and the Magazine Explosion, then moves on to show Canada's 'East Coast Port' returning to normal — whatever that was going to be. Troop ships brought thousands of soldiers and sailors home, heroes visited, naval vessels still crowded the harbour. Six years after the beginning of war, some parts of Halifax looked very different, while others showed battle fatigue. The city seemed perched on the cusp of becoming something else, not yet quite defined. Perhaps the best signal for the unknown future that lay ahead was the happy arrival of the War Brides, bringing their infants and small children. Life, after all, does go on — even after war.