HALIFAX, a city and seaport of British North America, on the S.E. coast of Nova Scotia, of which it is the capital. It stands on the declivity of a hill about 250 feet in height, and rises gradually from the S.W. side of a deep inlet of the sea, called Halifax Harbour. It is about two miles in length
by nearly a mile in breadth, and consists mostly of wide and regular streets. "The appearance of Halifax from the water, or from the opposite shore, is prepossessing and animated. The front of the town is lined by wharfs, alongside which vessels of all sizes, and variously rigged, are incessantly loading or discharging their cargoes. Warehouses rise over the wharfs, as well as in different parts of the town; and dwelling-houses and public buildings rear their heads over each other as they stretch along and up the sides of the hill. The spires of different churches, the building above the town in which the town-clock is fixed, a rotunda-built church, the signal-posts of Citadel Hill, the different batteries, the variety of style in which the houses are built, some of which are painted white, some blue, and some red; rows of trees showing themselves in different parts of the town; the ships moored opposite the dockyard; the establishments and tall sheers of the latter; the merchant vessels under sail, at anchor, or alongside the wharfs; the wooded and rocky scenery of the background; with the islands, and the small town of Dartmouth, on the E. shore,—are all objects which strike most forcibly on the view of a stranger." (M'Gregor's Brit. America, i. 325.) The houses are mostly of wood plastered or stuccoed, and have, in many cases, an imposing and elegant appearance; but a number of the private houses and the public buildings are of stone. The government house is a solid, sombre-looking structure at the south end of the town, and the admiral's house is a plain stone building at the north end. The province building, near the centre of the town, is a magnificent structure, 140 feet long by 70 broad and 45 high, with a fine Ionic colonnade. It comprises chambers for the council and legislative assembly, the supreme court, and the various provincial offices. The dockyard is one of the largest and best stored in the British colonies, and covers an area of 14 acres. The harbour extends inland from the Atlantic for 15 miles, terminating in a beautiful land-locked expanse of water called the Bedford Basin, and capable of accommodating the whole British navy. The entrance to Halifax harbour is well lighted, and buoys are placed upon all the shoals. A fine deep channel stretches up behind Halifax, called the Northwest Arm, which renders the site of the city a peninsula. On the west side of the entrance to the harbour, on a small island off Sambro Cape, is Sambro Lighthouse, with a fixed light 210 feet high. A detachment of artillery, with two 24-pounders, is stationed here for firing at regular intervals during the dense fogs which are prevalent on this coast. After passing Sambro light, the course for large vessels is between the mainland on the W. and Macnab's Island on the E.; on a point projecting from the latter a lighthouse has recently been constructed. Opposite the town the harbour is rather more than a mile in width, whence it gradually narrows to about one-fourth of that width, and then suddenly expands into a magnificent basin. The harbour is accessible at all times, and is rarely impeded by ice. It is defended by forts and batteries. Halifax is the seat of a considerable fishery. Its principal trade is with Great Britain, the British colonies, and the United States. In 1852 the total exports from Halifax valued £588,206, of which £20,167 went to Britain, £144,480 to British West Indies, £234,842 to British North America, £119,385 to United States, and £69,332 to other countries; the total imports during that period valued £939,864, of which £399,277 came from Britain, £111,496 from British West Indies, £162,955 from British North America, £218,817 from United States, and £147,319 from other countries. The imports are chiefly British manufactures and native products of the West Indies and United States; the exports, dried and pickled fish, timber, cattle, agricultural and dairy produce, fur, whale and seal oil, &c. Mail-steamers run every alternate week between Liverpool, Halifax, and Boston, and there is regular communication, by steamers
Halifax
Hall.
and sailing vessels, with all the great ports of the United States, British America, and the West Indies. A canal has been cut across the country from Halifax to the basin of Minas at the bottom of the Bay of Fundy. In 1790 Halifax contained only 700 houses and 4000 inhabitants. In 1817 it was declared a free port, and had then 1200 houses. In 1844 it had 22,000 inhabitants, and in 1852, 26,000.