Half-Day Historical Tour of Halifax

What's included

What you'll see and do

1. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21

   Your Guide will tell you all about Pier 21 the Gateway to Canada

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2. Harbourside Market

   The Halifax Farmers Market was created by Royal Proclamation in June of 1750, a year after the founding of Halifax. The Governor and Council designated a site for the Market – the present day Bank of Montreal building. For 50 years this flesh, meat or cattle market, as it was known, sold produce as well as livestock delivered from Acadian farms in the Annapolis Valley and from local farm production. In 1848 the City of Halifax was incorporated and the original City Charter conveyed the Country Market property to the city “for the public and common benefit and use of the City of Halifax according to the true interest and meaning of the original grant.” The Market has operated in several locations across the city since its inception in 1750, but moved to the Halifax Seaport in 2010 where it is now known as the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market – the longest continuously running Market in North America and proudly hosting over 250 vendors!

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3. The Emigrant Statue

   This is a masterpiece done by Armando Barbon who emigrated to Canada from Italy in 1951 and is a gift to Canada...It depicts Armando stepping on to a ship and his Beautiful wife Yole with the Kids in the Family Tree...His wife and two small children followed 5 months later...Inscription reads : The pain of separation he overcame, with faith and hope his heart aflame...

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4. Samuel Cunard Statue

   Sir Samuel Cunard, was a British-Canadian shipping magnate, born in Halifax, a as the locals say a Haligonian, who founded the Cunard Line. He was the son of a master carpenter and timber merchant who had fled the American Revolution and settled in Halifax.

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5. Halifax Waterfront Boardwalk

   It is said to be the longest Downtown Boardwalk in the World along side of the Worlds Second Largest Natural Harbour

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6. Georges Island National Historic Site

   Occupied by British military forces in 1750, Georges Island’s strategic position in the middle of Halifax Harbour catapulted it to the heart of seaward defences for one of the principal naval stations in the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries. The island came under the command of Prince Edward in 1794 amidst tensions between the United Kingdom and the United States. Home to Fort Charlotte and later its two powerful seaward-facing batteries and underground tunnel complex, the island is also the site of one of Canada’s first fully automated lighthouses. Georges Island was also used as a prison in the early years. Between 1755 and 1763, during the deportation of the Acadians, known as Le Grand Dérangement (The Great Upheaval), the island became a holding area for large numbers of Acadians. Thanks to its complex of subterranean passages and tunnels, this mysterious island has been the subject of local folklore for generations.

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7. Alexander Keith's Brewery

   You will hear about its history and about its Founder Alexander Keith... Alexander Keith’s Nova Scotia Brewery first opened its doors almost 200 years ago. Today, the same brewery serves as a popular destination for visitors and beer fans alike. One of the oldest working breweries in North America, the brewery is dedicated to crafting small batch brews, inspired by local Nova Scotian culture and Keith’s heritage.

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8. HMCS Sackville

   HMCS Sackville is the only one of 269 Allied corvettes from the Second World War that remains and continues to serve as Canada’s Naval Memorial..HMCS Sackville was one of 123 corvettes built in Canada and is a National Historic Site.

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9. Maritime Museum of the Atlantic

   This Museum we highly recommend you visit before or after Halifax History Tour. Located in the heart of Halifax’s historic waterfront, there’s no better place to get immersed in Nova Scotia’s rich maritime heritage than the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. From the stories of the World War convoys, the Days of Sail to the Age of Steam plus Titanic and Halifax Explosion exhibits.

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10. Art Gallery of Nova Scotia

    You will hear about Maud Lewis a Famous Nova Scotia Folk Artist

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11. Historic Properties

    A designated National Historic Site in the heart of downtown Halifax, Historic Properties is the first restoration project of its kind in Canada, featuring three city blocks of Canada’s oldest surviving group of waterfront warehouses and some of North America’s finest Victorian-Italianate façades dating back to the late 1700s and early 1800s.

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12. Saint George's Round Church

    You will hear about the sad history of this iconic Round Church...Built in 1800 to accommodate the growing population of the Little Dutch Church, Saint George's is a cylindrical, wooden church designed in the Palladian style thanks to the architectural taste of Edward, Duke of Kent.

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13. St. Paul's Anglican Church

    Founded in 1749, this was the first Anglican cathedral built outside of England and is the oldest building in Halifax. The “Ghost Window” and piece of wood embedded in an interior wall are relics of the 1917 Halifax Explosion.

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14. Halifax City Hall

    Halifax City Hall is the home of municipal government in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Designed by architect Edward Elliot and constructed for the City of Halifax between 1887 and 1890, it is one of the oldest and largest public buildings in Nova Scotia. The property was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1997

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15. Province House

    Opened in 1819, Province House is Canada’s oldest legislative building and is home to Canada’s first elected House of Assembly. As both a National and a Provincial Historic Site, the building has two distinct styles of architecture: Regency and Victorian. Visitors are welcome to explore history, art, and architecture during their visits.

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16. Government House

    Government House is the oldest official residence in Canada and has been the working residence of the Sovereign's representative in Nova Scotia for more than 200 years. This beautiful Georgian home and National Historic Site contains an impressive collection of art and antiques that reflect the province's history and heritage and is the home of the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia

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17. Old Burying Ground

    The Old Burying Ground National Historic Site of Canada in Halifax, Nova Scotia, contains more than 1,200 head and foot stones, constituting a unique Canadian concentration of gravestone art from the 18th and early 19th centuries. This early graveyard is a 0.91 hectare treed rectangle separated on all sides from its urban environment by a stone wall bearing a decorative iron fence. On its south end, a substantial monument to the Crimean War faces Barrington Street. The burying ground now serves as a significant urban green space.

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18. St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica

    Saint Mary's Cathedral Basilica is a National Historic Site boasting Gothic Revival architecture and design, located in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth.

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19. Halifax Court House

    The Halifax Court House is a historic building in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia. Its main section was completed in 1863, with the east wing, built in 1930, being the newest portion. The Italian renaissance style building was designed by William Thomas, a Toronto architect who built prominent structures across Canada, and built by George Lang. The building was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1969. It was also listed as a Provincially Registered Property under Nova Scotia's Heritage Property Act in 1983

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20. Halifax Central Library

    The design, said to resemble a stack of books, has garnered international attention and was featured by CNN as one of ten "eye-popping" new buildings of 2014.

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21. Fort Massey Cemetery

    Fort Massey Cemetery is a military cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia dating back to the 1750s, and is the resting place for British and Canadian soldiers, veterans and spouses. The cemetery is named after Major General Eyre Massey. The cemetery is maintained by Veteran's Affairs Canada.

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22. Holy Cross Cemetery

    Holy Cross Cemetery is a cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia, owned and operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth. It was constructed in 1843 under the direction of Archbishop William Walsh, on land provided by local authorities. Holy Cross Cemetery replaced the first Catholic cemetery in Halifax, the St. Peter's Cemetery located next to St. Mary's Basilica on Spring Garden Road. Since 1843, some 25,000 persons have been buried at Holy Cross, many of Irish descent, including Canada's fourth Prime Minister, Sir John Sparrow Thompson.

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23. In Holy Cross Cemetery is Our Lady of Sorrows Chapel. On August 31, 1843, over 1,800 people gathered to build this charming little chapel—and they did so in just one day! The French stained-glass windows date to the 16th and 17th centuries.

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24. Cathedral Anglican Church Of All Saints

    The Cathedral Church of All Saints, also known as All Saints Cathedral, is a cathedral church of the Anglican Church of Canada in Halifax, Nova Scotia. It is the cathedral for the Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and also the site of the first Titanic Funeral for Mr. William Henry Harrison who was Bruce Ismay's private secretary

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25. Camp Hill Cemetery

    In 1844, Camp Hill replaced the city's first cemetery, the Old Burying Ground, which had been established almost 100 years earlier in 1749...Notable interments: Viola Desmond, Alexander Keith, Joseph Howe, and Halifax native and Titanic Survivor Miss Hilda Mary Slayter also John Taylor Wood, Civil War Confederate Naval Officer, grandson of President Zachary Taylor, nephew of Confederate President Jefferson Davis

    10 minutes here

Where it starts and ends

Before you book

Cancellation

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Languages

en

Ticket

Mobile Only

Runs on

Every day

Group size

Up to 10 travelers per booking

Operated by

Halifax Titanic Historical Tours

Know before you go

• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels
• Tour Vehicle Ford Transit 350 XLT High Roof 15 Passenger Van
• Tour is Four Guests Minimum to Ten Guests Maximum
• Seating is the First Confirmed has the First Choice of Seats in Vehicle
• When booking a travel itinerary, it can be frustrating to have to fill out unnecessary information. By putting "N/A" in the boxes that relate to either not being on a cruise or not staying at a hotel, you can quickly and easily indicate that those options don't apply to you.

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