'Colchester County' is a
county in the
Canadian province of
Nova Scotia.
The appellation Colchester was applied in 1780 to the
district previously called "Cobequid," and was derived from the town of
Colchester in
Essex. The old name Cobequid was derived from the
Mi'kmaq word "Wagobagitk" meaning "the bay runs far up", in reference to the area surrounding the easternmost inlet of the
Minas Basin, a
body of water called
Cobequid Bay.
The District of Colchester, which was at first part of
Halifax County, was established as county in its own right in 1835. In 1838 a distinct line of division between
Cumberland County and Colchester County was established. Two years later, in 1840, the
Township of Parrsboro was divided and part of it annexed to Colchester County. In 1871, the
boundaries between the Counties of
Hants and Colchester and between the Counties of Halifax and Colchester were established. In 1880 the boundary between the Counties of Halifax and Colchester was revised. Eventually in 1897 a portion of the boundary between the Counties of Colchester and Cumberland was fixed and defined.
The question of the boundary between Colchester and Cumberland Counties was the subject of a
Commission of Inquiry established in 1946. The report was filed in the office of the
Provincial Secretary and in the office of the
Department of Lands and Forests in January 1959. Certified copies of it were sent to the Registrars of Deeds for the Counties of Colchester, Cumberland and
Kings.
Millbrook is the location of a
Mi'kmaq First Nations reserve.
Towns in Colchester County are
Stewiacke and
Truro. Each has its own local governing
council.
All other communities in the county are located within one of eleven geographically determined
districts, each of which provides a representative that along with a warden form the
Municipal government of the county.
Other Communities
For a list of communities in Colchester County, see
List of Communities.
See Also
★
Central Nova Tourist Association — Tourism Association Representing Colchester County.
External link
★
Photographs of historic monuments in Colchester County