For example, the distribution of lands was often re-organized by Planters upon arrival in Nova Scotia, in order to support a more convenient familial relationship. Looking closely at the family histories of the Planters, it is apparent that family was of high importance in Planter settlements. Sarah’s two remaining children married shortly after their arrival. She immigrated with her six children, four of whom were already married with young families of their own. Sarah Foster, a New England Planter, came to settle Granville Township in the Annapolis Valley with her multi-generational family unit. The migration to Nova Scotia saw the continuation of the multi-generational family unit, which was a key structure of New England society. ![]() Families were often large and multi-generational, ranging in age from newborns to individuals in their mid-eighties. Planters also came to Nova Scotia with extended family networks it was rare for single men of marriageable age to come by themselves. The British government issued two different proclamations inviting New England Planters to settle in Nova Scotia. This chart shows various townships surveyed for occupation by incoming New England Planters.Ĭredit: Nova Scotia Archives Map Collection: 3.5.3 1761 Nova Scotia (scan 201001026) Did You Know? “Chart of the Peninsula of Nova Scotia,” drawn in 1761 by Charles Morris, the colony’s Surveyor General. Although they were physically separated from family members left behind in New England, many maintained close ties through letters and occasional visits. Regardless of these issues, the “Planters” emigrated and adjusted to the new circumstances that presented themselves in Nova Scotia, implementing a societal structure similar to that in New England. The devastation of Acadian farms arising from the war between the British and the French made much of the offered land initially unusable. Unfortunately the promises and expectations of the settlers were initially not fully realized. Others were excited about the prospect of being close to the Grand Banks, which had a seemingly unlimited supply of fish. The promise of over a hundred acres of land in Nova Scotia was enticing. For many generations, fathers had split up their lands to give to their sons, which meant they had very little land to farm themselves. In the mid-eighteenth century, most New Englanders were desperately poor. As Governor of Nova Scotia, General Charles Lawrence (1709-1760) pursued an aggressive policy of resettling lands vacated by the deported Acadians.Ĭredit: Library and Archives Canada, Acc. Lawrence’s offer made available a vast amount of quality farmland at a time when there was virtually no free land left in New England, due to a massive population increase to the area. Grantees would have to improve one-third of their land every ten years, until all was cultivated. The land would be free of charge for ten years, after which a small rent would be charged. ![]() Under the terms of Lawrence’s Proclamations, every head of family was entitled to one hundred acres of wild land and another fifty acres for each member of his household, up to one thousand acres. Land was the most influential reason for this emigration from New England, and the primary incentive for the move to Nova Scotia. Lawrence sent a second Proclamation on 11 January, 1759 stating that in addition to land, Protestants would be given religious freedom, and a system of government similar to that in New England would be in place in the Nova Scotia settlements. The agriculturally fertile land in Nova Scotia would be a driving force in enticing the emigrants, but the New England colonists were wary. The first move towards settling the newly vacated lands after the Acadian Deportation was made via the Proclamation by General Charles Lawrence to the Boston Gazette on 12 October 1758, inviting settlers in New England to immigrate to Nova Scotia. ![]() Did You Know?Ĩ,000 New Englanders came to present-day Nova Scotia and New Brunswick from 1759 to 1768. They left a legacy that can be found in the social, religious, and political life of Atlantic Canada. John River Valley of present-day New Brunswick, between 17. Roughly eight thousand men and women from New England came to settle in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, and in the Upper St. In the wake of the deportation of the Acadians in 1755, newly cultivated lands opened up in Nova Scotia, which needed to be populated. The migration of the New England Planters was the first significant migration to the Atlantic colonies in British North America. By Western University's MA Public History Program Students
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