Looking back at Shelburne County history

From 1982

Upset with the condition of their wharf -- and frustrated by a lack of action on the part of the federal government to improve the facility (including extending the wharf and doing some dredging) – Woods Harbour fishermen had planned a protest in Yarmouth, but a last-minute telex from Roméo LeBlanc, the federal fisheries minister at the time, prompted them to call it off. Over 40 fishing captains had intended to go to Yarmouth and block the arrival of ferries from the U.S. to draw attention to their long-held concerns about the wharf, which they said was, among other things, badly overcrowded. The day before their scheduled protest in Yarmouth, fishermen got word from the DFO minister that construction of a wharf extension would start in the spring of 1983.

Woodlot owners in Birchtown said they had been denied safe and reasonable access to Highway 103 by the province’s transportation department. The problem reportedly had begun when the province had cut off the access point previously used by the woodlot owners. They said a proposal made by the province would be unsafe. An alternative proposal presented to the province had been denied. Elmer Nickerson, the Shelburne municipal warden at the time, said he planned to request a meeting with the transportation minister in order to address the woodlot owners’ concerns.

Seven crew members – four from Lockeport, three from the Shelburne area – were said to be in good health after spending four-and-a-half hours in a life raft after their vessel had sunk. The 75-foot longliner, based in Lockeport, had been on its way to the Grand Banks and was about 80 miles east of Sable Island when a pipe broke in the engine room and the boat started filling up with water, the vessel’s captain said. The men were picked up by another Lockeport-based vessel.

It looked like the end of the road was coming for a provincial program to remove derelict vehicles and the Municipality of Shelburne was among those sorry to see it go. For 1982, the province had said it would help the municipality remove up to 600 vehicles, but, as of mid-August or so, only 100 cars had been collected. An official with the municipality acknowledged they had hoped to remove a much higher number by this time. The province had recently announced the program would end as of Dec. 31, 1982.

In preparation for 1983 – when Shelburne would mark its bicentennial – promotional material was being gathered to help spread the word about what was planned for the town’s 200th birthday. The province had set Sept. 8 as the deadline for submitting information to be included in the province’s tourism publication.

From 1995

About 350 people attended a public meeting to discuss the future of Roseway Hospital. In particular, local residents wanted restoration of surgery and obstetrics and the Shelburne facility. Whether that happened appeared to be in the hands of Ron Stewart, Nova Scotia’s health minister at the time, who did not attend the meeting, citing a previous commitment in Cape Breton. A spokesman for the transition team examining the hospital’s future said it had not been part of his mandate to address the matter of reinstating surgery and obstetrics. “But tonight,” he said, referring to the Aug. 22 public session, “it was well explained and passionately put forward by those who made their presentations.”

A spokesperson for a recently formed women’s group said they were concerned about the challenges facing fishermen and that the group wanted to help save the fishery. Pam Decker, chair of Shelburne County Women’s FishNet, said she felt Ottawa was looking to eliminate the small fisherman and leave the fishery in the hands of a few interests. User fees, increased licence fees and other financial burdens being passed on to individual fishermen by DFO would impact family budgets that already were shrinking, she said.

Construction of the Municipality of Barrington’s new arena was progressing and the anticipated opening date for the facility was Nov. 1. A major fundraising effort was expected to begin in earnest after Labour Day. The municipality was hoping to raise $350,000 towards the cost of the $1.8-million facility.