Looking back at Shelburne County history

FROM 1983

Among the many activities planned as part of Shelburne’s bicentennial year celebrations of 1983 was a late-summer performance by the Snowbirds, but, according to a story in the Coast Guard newspaper, the event “almost didn’t get off the ground.” In the spring, Shelburne’s Kinsmen Club had agreed to sponsor a number of bicentennial year events, including the RCMP Musical Ride, a Loyalist dinner and the Snowbirds. Due to a number of factors, the Kinsmen found they couldn’t support the Snowbirds without some help. Fortunately, thanks to assistance from the bicentennial committee, the Snowbirds’ Shelburne appearance remained on the schedule.

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Although two major fishprocessing companies had announced the closure of plants across the Atlantic provinces, a spokesman for National Sea Products in Lockeport said no layoffs were expected at their Lockeport facility. Reduced stocks and marginal profits were cited as reasons for the closing of 10 plants in the Atlantic region, a move that reportedly would leave more than 2,300 people out of work. The Lockeport plant employed about 300 people when operating at full capacity.

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Shelburne County students would have to pay more for their lunch. At a recent meeting, the local school board had passed a motion to increase lunch prices in two school cafeterias and two school kitchens. While the schools had been raising prices a little each year, the increases hadn’t kept pace with the rising cost of food, resulting in a deficit. The school board, which covered cafeteria costs, had experienced a net loss of almost $7,000 on food in 1982-’83, according a newspaper story.

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What sort of lobster trap tag regulations would be in place for the upcoming lobster fishery in southwestern Nova Scotia? A decision had yet to be made. At a recent meeting with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, 18 delegates representing almost 1,000 licensed lobster fishermen had voted in favour of changing the old 375trap limit to a system of 350 in the fall and 480 in the spring. The consensus was short-lived, however, as some fishermen expressed concern about stock depletion. Another meeting was planned to discuss the matter.

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A program sponsored by the Department of Agriculture was turning rough, rocky, barren land in Shelburne County into productive blueberry fields. Agricultural reps from Shelburne and Yarmouth counties said by using the latest technology, the department was having great success converting previously unworkable land into a profitable venture.

FROM 1996

There was talk of having a comprehensive waterfront development plan for Shelburne, but apparently there was some debate as to who should co-ordinate the effort: the Town of Shelburne’s business acquisition committee or the Shelburne and Area Chamber of Commerce? While there were differences of opinion, there also were indications both groups were prepared to work together. “They (the chamber) are not in competition with us,” said one town councillor. Said a chamber spokesperson, “I don’t think any one organization should dictate to the rest of the group. Everybody has to buy into the concept.”

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It was back to school for students in Shelburne County, where total enrolment (in three high schools and eight elementary schools) at the start of the 1996-’97 academic year was 2,996, an increase of 69 over enrolment at the end of the previous school year. Among individual schools, the biggest enrolment difference was at Shelburne Regional High School, which had 44 more students heading into the new year.

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With one community kitchen up and running in Clark’s Harbour and another in the planning stages for the Lockeport area, the concept was said to be growing in Shelburne County. The idea was to get three to five adults together once a month to prepare low-cost meals, “with each participant going home with four or five main-course meals,” according to a newspaper item.

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In sports, Shelburne County teams won provincial baseball titles over the Labour Day weekend in 1996. Barrington was triumphant in the mosquito D tournament, which was held locally, while a team from Clark’s Harbour won the bantam D championship in Dartmouth.