Louisdale, Nova Scotia
| Louisdale | |
|---|---|
| Community | |
| Nickname(s): The Heart of Richmond County | |
 Louisdale
|
|
| Coordinates: 45°36′39.49″N 61°3′53.64″W / 45.6109694°N 61.0649000°WCoordinates: 45°36′39.49″N 61°3′53.64″W / 45.6109694°N 61.0649000°W | |
| Country |
 Canada
|
| Province |
 Nova Scotia
|
| Municipality | Richmond County |
| Area | |
| • Land | 102 km2 (39 sq mi) |
| Population (2006) | |
| • Total | 1,770 |
| • Density | 17/km2 (40/sq mi) |
| Time zone | AST (UTC-4) |
| Area code(s) | 902 |
| Part of a series about Places in Nova Scotia | |
Louisdale (pronounced Lewisdale) is a Canadian rural community in Richmond County, Nova Scotia. The community is located on Cape Breton Island at the centre of a French-Acadian region. Founded mainly by families from nearby Petit-de-Grat, its early settlers were primarily of Acadian and, from the early 19th century, Scottish descent. It has 2 schools, park areas, and places to eat catering to tourists and residents.
Early 19th century migrants to Richmond were mainly Scottish settlers, with fishing and farming important parts of the economy. The Louisdale area was formerly known as "Barachois St. Louis" or "The Barachois", according to archival documents. To distinguish it from other communities, the name was statutorily changed by the provincial legislature on April 7, 1905. A barachois, is a term used in Atlantic Canada to describe a coastal lagoon separated from the ocean by a sand bar. The term comes from a Basque word, "barratxoa", meaning "little bar". The popular derivation from the French or Acadian French "barachois is without historical merit.
In 1871 there were four census districts spanning the three Roman Catholic parishes around Isle Madame. One of these districts, Petit de Grat, became a separate parish after the turn of the 20th century. Prior to that, it was part of the Arichat parish. The Louisdale region, whose founders were primarily from the Little Anse area of Petit de Grat, also came under the Arichat Notre Dame de L'Assomption parish.
The various parishes came within the diocese of Arichat. On its establishment in 1844, it was part of the Halifax diocese, which itself formed 2 years earlier (it became an archdiocese in 1852). The seat of the diocese was Notre Dame de L'Assomption, until transferred to Antigonish, its current name, on August 23, 1886. The community's religious heritage remains visible to the present day, with Louisdale one of two communities in Richmond home to a Catholic shrine.
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