Dartmouth is a large community within the Halifax Regional Municipality in Nova Scotia. It lies on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour, opposite the community of Halifax. Important employers in and near Dartmouth include Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Halifax, a naval base; companies related to the aerospace industry; and a petroleum refinery.
Mi’kmaq Indians once used the area as a seasonal campsite. British settlers began to occupy it in 1750. They named their settlement after Dartmouth, England. Between 1826 and 1860, workers built the Shubenacadie Canal from Dartmouth to the Bay of Fundy on Nova Scotia’s west coast. The canal increased commerce in the city. In the 1870’s, railroads became commercially more important than the canal.
A harbor explosion in 1917 destroyed much of Dartmouth’s industry (see Halifax explosion). Beginning in the early 1940’s, the growth of military establishments in the area helped the economy. The construction of a harbor bridge between Dartmouth and Halifax in 1955 and a second one in 1970 drew business. In 1996, Dartmouth became part of the Regional Municipality of Halifax. The regional municipality combined the cities of Dartmouth and Halifax, the town of Bedford, and the rest of Halifax County under a single regional government.
