In Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, located on the eastern Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia, the forestry, fishing and subsistence farming industries were the usual employers of its inhabitants. One of the larger villages, Sherbrooke, located at the head of the tide on the St. Mary's River, had commercial interests: a saw mill, stores, including trade shops and a photography studio that made it a bustling centre of activity. Photography, in its infancy in late 19th century Canada, was widely practiced in the small towns of Atlantic Canada. Thankfully, some of the images captured by hobbyists and professionals have been saved to become part of this historical record of the county.

This is a wonderful collection of vintage photos that detail the county and the historic old villages that dot the coast and the interior of the region.

John N. Grant, a native of Guysborough, NS, is a graduate of St. Francis Xavier University, the University of New Brunswick, Dalhousie University and the University of Toronto. He taught in the public school system, was a Research Associate of the Atlantic Institute of Education, a professor at the Nova Scotia Teachers College, and retired from St. Francis Xavier University. He is a member of the Board of Historic Sherbrooke Village, the Little White Schoolhouse Museum, the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society, the Nova Scotia Teachers College Foundation, and was a member and later Chair of the Board of the Public Archives of Nova Scotia. He has published articles and books on African-Nova Scotian history, the history of academic costume in Nova Scotian universities, the history of education, and local history. He has been interested in the Mystery Fleet since he was first told the story by the then elderly Captain Byron Scott in Sherbrooke, NS, fifty years ago.

John Grant's profile page