Prince Edward Island is a tiny, crescent shaped island, measuring 224 kilometers from tip to tip. It's gently rolling land runs between sea level to it's highest elevation of 450 feet. Summer day time temperatures range from 20 to 32 degrees C. (70 to 90 degrees F) Low humidity and a cool breeze makes perfect shirt sleeve weather. Winter temperatures range from -3 to -11 degrees C. (26 to 11 degrees F) Perfect conditions for a variety of winter sports. The Provincial Motto is: Parva Sub Ingenti (The small under the protection of the great). Canada's smallest province has a rich and wonderful history that has molded the culture we share today.
The Mi'kmaq were the first people to inhabit Prince Edward Island. They were a peaceful tribe, belonging to the Algonkian group. Not having permanent villages, they camped and fished along the shores during the summer. In the winter, they retreated into the forest where there was shelter, and hunted animals for food and clothing. The Mi'kmaq first called the Island Minegoo, and later changed the name to Abegweit, meaning "cradled on the waves." According to Mi'kmaq legend, Glooscap (the Indian God) wanted a cheerful place to go for his holidays, so he painted the rocks and earth of Abegweit a bright and cheerful red and set it among the brilliant blue waves of the Northumberland Strait.
The first white men to visit the Island were the Norsemen. These Vikings were a bold and hardy race of men who made daring sea-voyages in ships that stood high out of the water, bow and stern ending in the head and tail of some strange animal. Tales have been handed down from one generation to the next of their settlements along the coast of North America. However, these settlements were not permanent and eventually the Norsemen stopped coming, leaving America to remain uncolonized until it was rediscovered some five hundred years later.
Fishermen from France, Spain, Portugal, and England visited the shores to dry their fish and to hunt for fresh food. They did not keep written records of their experiences. Jacques Cartier was the first explorer to document his travels here. In 1534, he claimed the Island for the King of France. Eventually, they named the Island, Ile Saint Jean. It was almost 200 years before the first Acadian and French settlers colonized the Island, only to have the British claim the Island in 1758 and change its name to St. John's Island. In 1799, Britain renamed this small colony, Prince Edward Island. The three counties became Prince, Queens and Kings. Soon, Scottish, Irish, English and Loyalist settlers began colonization, bringing with them their skills of shipbuilding, fishing, agriculture and the lumber trade.
In 1864, Prince Edward Island hosted delegates from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Canada to the first of three conferences that led to the creation of an independent Canada. In 1873, Prince Edward Island accepted the terms of the new federation and become a Canadian Province, thus, adding to our list of names, The Cradle of Confederation and The Birthplace of Canada.
Today, additional names of endearment are: Million Acre Farm, Garden of the Gulf, Spud Island, Kentucky of Canada, The Home of Anne and Fair Island of the Sea. Tourism now plays a large roll in our Island's economy. Our breath-taking landscapes, rich soil and bountiful waters still support a thriving economy, based on the traditions of agriculture, tourism and fishing.
Traveling to Prince Edward Island has not always been easy. The Mi'kmaq first braved crossing the Strait in their canoes. During the 1500's, sailing ships began making use of our natural ports and harbours. As colonization grew, sailing vessels traveled across the strait, delivering supplies, mail and passengers on a regular basis. However, during the winters, the only way to reach the Island when the ice was thick was by ice boats, which were rowed where the water was open and towed or pushed by man power over the ice floes.
It was 1917 that the first car ferry crossed the Strait. It could carry 750 people and a dozen rail cars. Ice breakers soon made year round use of ferries possible. In 1997, the Confederation Bridge spanned across the 9 mile strait, replacing the ferry service between Borden, Prince Edward Island and Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick, linking the two provinces to accommodate traffic 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. A car ferry service still runs between Caribou, P.E.I. and Pictou, N.S. between the months of May and December.
The Provincial Emblems are: Flower - Lady's Slipper, Bird - Blue Jay, Tree - Red Oak.
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