Springhill

Springhill, Cumberland County — This town is situated on a hill, and has excellent natural water springs, which gives the reason for the name.

The earliest settlers were families named Hunter, Gilroy, Anderson, Boss, Mills and others.

Coal was discovered here in 1834 by a man named Lodovick Hunter.
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Kentville

Kentville, Kings County — Settled by the English in 1760. Named in honor of Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent, the father of Queen Victoria. This place was previously known as "Horton Corner". Incorporated as a town in the year 1887.

The Mi’kmaq name for this place was "Penooek" meaning Pineo's place. Kentville was one of the four Township divisions of Kings County.

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Halifax

Halifax, Halifax County — The Mi’kmaq name was "Chebookt" meaning "Chief Harbor", or "Great Long Harbor". Halifax was known as "Chebucto" up to the year 1749. On the 18th day of July of that year it was called "Halifax" in Honor of the Earl of Halifax, then President of the English Board of Trade, whose title was from the English city of that name. His name was George Dunk Montague. He died in 1772. It is said that Lord Halifax, having no family and wishing to immortalize his name, sent Edward Cornwallis as Governor of Nova Scotia. Cornwallis arrived with 2576 immigrants in July 1749, and it was he who changed the name Chebucto to Halifax in Honor of his patron.

It is interesting to note the probable derivation of the word "Halifax". The word means "Holy Hair" the name being accounted for by the fact that the head of a virgin who had been murdered was suspended from a tree in the neighbourhood of the English city "Halifax".

Lord Halifax was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in 1761.

Halifax was declared a free port in 1817 and was incorporated in the year 1841. It became the capital of Nova Scotia in the year 1749, when the Provincial Headquarters were removed from Annapolis, which was capital or Provincial Headquarters from 1710
to 1749.

Halifax County was divided into four townships, namely: Halifax, Dartmouth, Lawrencetown and Preston.

The north end of Halifax City in the early days was known as "Dutchtown" and the south and suburbs as "Irishtown".

In Halifax is Dalhousie College, named in honor of George Ramsay the ninth Viscount Dalhousie, who was Lt. Governor of Nova Scotia 1816 and Governor of Canada 1820-28. The Earl was the founder of the college in the year 1818. Its Act of Incorporation was passed in 1821. University powers were created in 1841. Closed for some years, but was re-opened and re-organized in 1863.

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Folly Lake

Folly Lake (Folly Mountain), Colchester County — This word applied to the name of a place found on, and described as, "an unfortunate location". In this case, it expresses the opinion of neighbours toward one of the founders whose name was Flemming. At first it was known as "Flemming Folly" and then later as "The Folly". It then became "Fawleig" and also was once on the railway time tables as "Folleigh".
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Economy

Economy, Colchester County — Village and River. The Mi’kmaq name was "Kenomee", which means "Sandy Point" or "a long point jutting out into the sea". This name is found in old church records and tokens spelled "Oeconomy". Later it was found spelled "Conomy" and at present "Economy", which suggests a meaning altogether different, and less appropriate, than the original "Kenomee".

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Amherst

Amherst, Cumberland County - was named after Lord Jeffrey Amherst (1717-1797) who, in co-operation with Admiral Boscawen, captured Louisburg in 1758. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief and Governor General in America in 1761. Previous to 1759, it was called by the French "Les Planches".

The Mi’kmaq name was "Nemaloos Kudaagun" and "Nemcheboogwek", the latter meaning going up rising ground. One of the three original township divisions of Cumberland County is called Amherst.
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Acadia

Acadia - Acadia, sometimes Cadie or Kaddy, is the Mi’kmaq equivalent of region, field, ground, land or place, the place of; and when joined to an adjective, it denotes that the place referred to is the appropriate or special place of the object expressed by the noun or noun-adjective. In the Mi’kmaq language adjectives of this kind are formed by suffixing "a" or "wa" to the noun.

As an example: Segubbun is the Mi’kmaq name for ground nut. Segubbuna, of or relating to ground nuts. SegubbunaKaddy, is the place or region of ground nuts. This gives us the place name of "Shubenacadie".

The Wolastoqiyik Aboriginals used the word "quoddy" for "Kaddy" as it occurs in the place name "Passamaquoddy".

Acadia included the greater part of Maine, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and was known as "the Duke's territory" and later as "the King's territory", it was also sometimes called "the province of Sagadahock".
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