West Isles Parish, New Brunswick
Parish in Canada
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
West Isles is a geographic parish in Charlotte County, New Brunswick, Canada.[5]
West Isles
Deer Island | |
|---|---|
Location within Charlotte County. | |
| Country | |
| Province | |
| County | Charlotte County |
| Erected | 1786 |
| Area | |
| • Land | 38.32 km2 (14.80 sq mi) |
| Population (2021)[2] | |
• Total | 718 |
| • Density | 18.7/km2 (48/sq mi) |
| • Change 2016-2021 | |
| • Dwellings | 475 |
| Time zone | UTC-4 (AST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-3 (ADT) |
For governance purposes, it is part of the Southwest rural district,[6] which is a member of the Southwest New Brunswick Service Commission.[7]
Prior to the 2023 governance reform, it comprised a single local service district (LSD), which was a member of the Southwest New Brunswick Service Commission (SNBSC).[8]
The parish comprises dozens of offshore islands but only the largest, Deer Island, is inhabited. There are no bridges and only Deer Island has ferry service.
Historian William Francis Ganong considered the name to come from the islands' position.[9]
History
West Isles was erected in 1786 as one of the original parishes of the county,[10] including Deer Island, Campobello, and Grand Manan, and islands in Cobscook Bay.[11]
In 1822, eight Justices of the Peace in Charlotte County brought complaint about "conduct derogatory to the character of Magistrates" against two West Isles justices, Warren Hatheway and Gilbert Ruggles.[12]
Boundaries
West Isles Parish is bounded:[3][13][14]
- on the northeast by the Letete Passage and the Bay of Fundy;
- on the east by the Bay of Fundy;
- on the southeast by Head Harbour Passage;
- on the southwest and west by the international border, running through the Western Passage and Passamaquoddy Bay.
Evolution of boundaries
West Isles was originally defined[10] "to contain Deer Island, Campo Bello Island, Grand Manan Island, Moose Island, Frederick Island and Dudley Island, with all the lesser islands contiguous to them, not included in the towns before-mentioned",[a] a description that included any islands more than 2 miles (3.2 km) offshore except The Wolves in Pennfield Parish.
In 1803 Campobello was erected as its own parish, including nearby minor islands;[15] Campobello inherited West Isles' claims to Cobscook Bay.
In 1816 Grand Manan and was erected as its own parish, including nearby minor islands.[16]
In 1877 the parish's boundary were clarified: Campobello Parish's boundary running through Head Harbour Passage, Saint George Parish's through Letete Passage rather than two miles from the mainland,[17] transferring several islands from Saint George to West Isles.
Local service district
The local service district of the parish of West Isles comprised the entire parish.[18]
The LSD was established in 1970 to assess for fire protection.[19] First aid and ambulance services were added in 1982,[20] recreational facilities in 1987.[21]
In 2022, the LSD assessed community & recreation services as well as the basic LSD services of fire protection, police services, land use planning, emergency measures, and dog control.[22] The taxing authority is 517.00 West Isles.
Communities
Bodies of water
Bodies of water[b] at least partly within the parish.[13][14][23] italics indicate a name no longer in official use
- Deans Creek[c]
- Mill Creek
- Welch Creek[c]
- Bay of Fundy
- Passamaquoddy Bay
- Fish Harbour
- Leonardville Harbour
- Northern Harbour (North Harbour)
- Northwest Harbour
- Ship Harbour
- Leonards Lake
- Doyles Passage (False Passage, Pendleton Passage)
- Faux Passage
- Head Harbour Passage
- Indian River[d]
- Irish Channel
- Letete Passage
- Little Letete Passage
- Quoddy River[d]
- The Notch
- Western Passage
Islands
Islands at least partly within the parish.[13][14][23] italics indicate a name no longer in official use
- Adam's Island (New Brunswick)
- Bar Island
- Barnes Island
- Beans Island
- Casco Bay Island
- Cherry Island
- Crow Island
- Deer Island
- Dinner Island (New Brunswick)
- English Island (New Brunswick)
- Fish Island (New Brunswick)
- Green Island (New Brunswick)
- Hardwood Island
- Hospital Island (Also called Little Hardwood Island, Quarantine Island)[24]
- Indian Island
- Jameson Island
- Little Island
- Macs Island (McMaster Island)
- Marble Island (Rouen Islet)
- Mink Island
- Mohawk Island
- Mowat Island
- New Ireland Island (New Brunswick)
- Nub Island
- Nubble Island
- Parker Island
- Partridge Island
- Pendleton Island
- Pope's Folly Island, historically disputed ownership between Canada/USA
- St. Helena Island
- Sandy Island
- Simpson Island (New Brunswick)
- Spectacle Islands (Spectacle Island, The Specs)
- Spruce Island, red conglomerate rock[25] As of 1839, the island was one of four belonging to the Campobello Mill and Manufacturing Company.[26]
- The Pup
- Thumb Cap Island (Thrumcap Island), coarse brown/red conglomerate[25]
- Tinkers Island
- White Horse Island
- White Island
Other notable places
Demographics
Population
| 2016 | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 797 (+9.0% from 2011) | 731 (-11.3% from 2006) |
| Land area | 38.35 km2 (14.81 sq mi) | 38.01 km2 (14.68 sq mi) |
| Population density | 20.8/km2 (54/sq mi) | 19.2/km2 (50/sq mi) |
| Median age | 48.4 (M: 49.0, F: 46.8) | 47.5 (M: 46.5, F: 48.4) |
| Private dwellings | 467 (total) | 485 (total) |
| Median household income | $56,736 | $.N/A |
Language
| Canada Census Mother Tongue - West Isles Parish, New Brunswick[30] | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Total | English |
French |
English & French |
Other | |||||||||||||
| Year | Responses | Count | Trend | Pop % | Count | Trend | Pop % | Count | Trend | Pop % | Count | Trend | Pop % | |||||
2011 |
730 |
710 | 97.26% | 15 | 2.05% | 5 | 0.69% | 0 | 0.00% | |||||||||
2006 |
820 |
820 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% | |||||||||
2001 |
850 |
830 | 97.65% | 10 | 1.18% | 0 | 0.00% | 10 | 1.18% | |||||||||
1996 |
850 |
850 | n/a | 100.00% | 0 | n/a | 0.00% | 0 | n/a | 0.00% | 0 | n/a | 0.00% | |||||
Access Routes
Highways and numbered routes that run through the parish, including external routes that start or finish at the parish limits:[32]
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