Digby, Nova Scotia

Digby
—  Town  —
Digby Harbour
Seal
Nickname(s): "The Scallop Capital of The World"
Digby Location of Digby, Nova Scotia
Coordinates: 44°37′20″N 65°45′38″W / 44.62222°N 65.76056°W / 44.62222; -65.76056
Country	Canada
Province	Nova Scotia
County	Digby
Founded	June 1783
Incorporated	February 28, 1890
Electoral Districts      Federal	West Nova
Provincial	Digby-Annapolis
Government
– Type	Town Council
– Mayor	Ben Cleveland
– Governing Body	Digby Town Council
– MLA	Harold Theriault (L)
– MP	Greg Kerr (C)
Area
– Total	3.15 km2 (1.2 sq mi)
Elevation	0 - 152 m (-499 ft)
Population (2006)[1]
– Total	2,092
– Density	667.0/km2 (1,727.5/sq mi)
– Change (2001-06)	0.9%
– Dwellings	1,070
Time zone	AST (UTC-4)
– Summer (DST)	ADT (UTC-3)
Canadian Postal code	B0V 1A0
Area code(s)	902
Telephone Exchange	245
Median Earnings*	28,551
NTS Map
GNBC Code
Website	http://www.townofdigby.ns.ca
*Median household income, 2005 (all households)

Digby (2006 pop.: 2,092) is a Canadian town in western Nova Scotia. It is the shiretown and largest population centre in Digby County.

The town is situated on the western shore of the Annapolis Basin near the entrance to the Digby Gut which connects the basin to the Bay of Fundy.

Named after Admiral Robert Digby, RN, the town is famous for its scallop fishing fleet and the Princess of Acadia ferry service connecting to Saint John, NB.

History

Digby, Nova Scotia in 1906.

The area was settled in June 1783 by the United Empire Loyalists under the leadership of Sir Robert Digby.

The town developed a sizable shipping fleet in the 19th century. One famous Digby vessel was the brigantine Dei Gratia, which discovered the famous mystery ship Mary Celeste in 1872. The town became an important regional transportation centre in the 1890s with the arrival of the Dominion Atlantic Railway. Trains connected with a series of steamships such as the City of Monticello and later the SS Princess Helene.

The town's history is preserved and interpreted by the Admiral Digby Museum, located in a historic home facing the harbour.

Tourism

Tourism has played an important role in Digby during the 20th century beginning with the establishment of railway and steamship links that opened the town and surrounding communities as an-easy-to-reach destination for larger urban centres in eastern North America. A landmark in this industry was the construction of the Digby Pines Resort on the town's outskirts. Built in 1905 and then purchased in 1917 by the Dominion Atlantic Railway, the resort provided a focal point to the local tourism industry with a large expansion in 1927. Expanded several times since, it was bought by the Government of Nova Scotia after the Dominion Atlantic sold its hotels. About 20 additional motels, Inns and Bed and Breakfast operations are based in Digby making tourism an important employer.^[2]

The annual Scallop Days Festival, held the first week of August annually, brings the fishing and tourism industries together to showcase the town’s history and heritage to the tourists. The festival offers a variety of themed activities for all ages, including scallop shucking contests, a parade, and an exhibition of local artists.^[3]

Since 2004, Digby has become the destination for a major regional motorcycle rally, the annual Wharf Rat Rally. It attracts many times the town's population, up to 17,000 motorcyclists, so many that schools and some roads have to close for the day due to crowds and motorcycle traffic.^[4] The Wharf Rat Rally event is generally held the week of Labour Day in September each year.

Fishing

Fishing has been an essential economic activity since the town's settlement. Digby's schooner fishery reached its peak in the early 1900s, documented by the famous Canadian historian and photographer Frederick William Wallace. In later years, trawlers, especially those harvesting scallops became the mainstay.

Transportation

Access to Digby is primarily by Highway 101 and by the M/V Princess of Acadia ferry service to Saint John, New Brunswick (operated by Bay Ferries Limited).

The Kings Transit public transit system has stops in Digby at the Atlantic Superstore/Walmart, Sobeys/Canadian Tire, and the Digby General Hospital, although the bus can be hailed to stop at any location along Hwy 303 between Atlantic Superstore and the hospital.^[5] Buses going east or west bound are only available every other hour. The fare covers if you are travelling from Weymouth, Nova Scotia or to Windsor, Nova Scotia.

Kings Transit Fares^[6]

Adults / Seniors (Age 60+)	Children (5-11)	Children (under 5)
$3.50	$1.75	FREE

There are three taxi companies that operate in Digby. They are Admiral Taxi, Basin Taxi, and Digby Cab. All three companies provide the same rates to riders.

Shopping and services

There are two groceries stores located in Digby, both Atlantic Superstore and Sobeys. There is also a Wal-mart and a Canadian Tire.

Restaurants include franchises such as two Tim Hortons locations, Dairy Queen, Subway, Pizza Delight, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and McDonald's along with several other locally owned restaurants filling the downtown Water Street area. Most of the locally owned restaurants serve seafood dishes with a high concentration on scallops. Many restaurants close during the winter months due to the slow tourism during that time.

Downtown also has locally owned shops.

Circle K, Ultramar, Shell, and Esso have gas stations located in Digby.

There is a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) station located on Victoria Street.^[7]

The Digby General Hospital, located on Warwick Street, provides basic medical care to the residents, including primary care, inpatient, restorative care, ambulatory, day surgery.^[8] Although they note on the website they provide emergency care, it is only available when a physician is available. Many patients are redirected to the hospital in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia or Yarmouth, Nova Scotia in the case of an emergency.^[9]

Demographics

Historical populations
Year	Pop.	±%
1981	2,558	—
1991	2,311	−9.7%
1996	2,199	−4.8%
2001	2,111	−4.0%
2006	2,092	−0.9%
[10]

• Digby
• 

  Main Street of Digby

• 

  Harbour of Digby

• 

  Balancing Rock near Digby

• 

  Tidal Boatworks, Digby. 2008.

• 

  Mist on Digby bay

Notable residents

• Pop Smith, major league baseball player

Public library

• Isaiah W. Wilson Memorial Library; Digby

References

1. ^ "2006 Community Profiles". Statistics Canada. Government of Canada. 2009-02-24. http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-591/index.cfm?Lang=E. Retrieved 9 March 2009. 
2. ^ Town of Digby Tourism - Where to Stay
3. ^ http://www.digbyscallopdays.com/
4. ^ Leanne Delong,"Wharf Rat Rally revving engines for fifth year", Digby Courier September 4, 2009
5. ^ http://www.kingstransit.ns.ca/schedules/weymouth-bridgetown.pdf
6. ^ http://www.kingstransit.ns.ca/
7. ^ http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ns/detach/index-eng.htm
8. ^ http://www.swndha.nshealth.ca/pages/DigbyGenHospMain.htm
9. ^ http://www.novanewsnow.com/article-297370-February-ER-closures-at-Digby-General-Hospital.html
10. ^ I:\ecstats\Agency\BRIAN\census2
11. ^ "2006 Community Profiles". Statistics Canada. Government of Canada. 2009-02-24. http://www12.statcan.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/prof/92-591/index.cfm?Lang=E. Retrieved 2009-02-24. 

External links

• Official website

Coordinates: 44°37′20″N 65°45′38″W / 44.62222°N 65.76056°W / 44.62222; -65.76056 (Digby)