Bishop Park
Bishop Park was Established in 1902 by conservationist Samuel Bishop. The park is approximately 10 square kilometres in size and is located near Hantspire, Nova Scotia. The park is known for its rich biodiversity and soil that is ideal for crop growing. It has been the site of research stations and conservation efforts for over a hundred years since its inception. There have been three conservation laboratories and outposts since 1902 with the most recent station, the Hantspire Environmental Research Station, set to close in late 2020. The park was protected by federal and provincial governments environmental protection bodies until 2015.
History
19th Century
Before becoming a park, the area was sparsely populated by farmers. For those who made their way inland this far, they were rewarded with bountiful crops from the rich soil. Due to being far from major villages and cities, there is little known about the early history of the area that would become Hantspire and Bishop Park. Those who lived in the area often did not leave any records of their lives except what remains of their houses and farmland. It wasn't until Lord Hantspire built his home in what would later become the Village of Hantspire that the area became more well known.
The village became briefly infamous due to a string of disappearances near what would one day be Bishop Park. Between 1892 and 1900 over 12 people went missing which created a stir in the nearby communities as word spread. Interestingly, this spread of information led to an influx of settlers to the area, likely due to hearing about the rich land. Most accounts of this time period have concluded that the missing peoples were probably lost to the forest by either animal attack or by falling into streams while fetching water. No bodies were recovered at the time, and no remains have been found even today.
Early 20th Century
- See also: Samuel Bishop Outpost and Samuel Bishop
Samuel Bishop moved into the area in 1901 as part of his royal duties. Allegedly, Queen Victoria herself wanted to know more about her colony after hearing about the rich plant and animal life that resided there. He purchased a plot of land outside of Hantspire Village and built a small cabin to conduct research from. As his research progressed he began to send his findings back home but it wasn't until King Edward VII granted him funding for research outpost that he gained any recognition. In 1902, using the funds provided by King Edward VII, Bishop established Bishop Park and hired more researchers to help with his investigations.
Over the next 17 years Bishop and his team would make numerous discoveries regarding the plant and animal life in the park and surrounding areas. One thing that they noticed was that many creatures thought to be unique to certain parts of the province, could all be found within the park. As well, there were many species which were exclusively found within the park and nowhere else in Nova Scotia. Bishop speculated that this was due to the incredibly rich environment in which they developed which allowed various species which would perish elsewhere to survive and reproduce.
Research into the park abruptly ended when Bishop went missing in the forest and was assumed dead in December of 1919. The local government at the time recovered Bishop's research and shuttered the outpost. At this point the park started to be developed as a public space for the local residents, and a few roads were cut into the forest. However, due to the number of animals living in the forest it was not popular at first as there were fears of dangerous animals such as coyotes. Some people had reported aggressive animals around this time, although there is little confirming this.
Second World War
During the Second World War many residents of Hantspire enlisted to go fight overseas, and many did not come back. At the time, Bishop Park became a popular place to lay the memories of the lost to rest. Sometimes keepsakes or other objects would be left in the forest to say goodbye to loved ones. In later years when conservation efforts started again many of these objects were rediscovered and turned over to the locals for relocation.
Bishop Park Research Centre
- Main article: Bishop Park Research Centre
Following the Second World War and Newfoundland joining the confederation, the newly invigorated Canadian Government took a new interest in the rich ecosystem of the park and established the Bishop Park Research Centre. The research centre was operational from November 4th 1946 until it burned down due to a gas leak explosion on September 17th 1980. Not much is known about the research that the centre was responsible for as many of its projects were never made public. One notable study from this time period resulted in the development of a new photovoltaic power generation system based on the photosynthesis processes of local flora.
Late 20th Century
During the time between the destruction of the Research Centre and the construction of the Hantspire Environmental Research Station there was little done with the park. The park began to reclaim the land that used to be the outpost and research centre. The park's popularity as a pleasant place to go for a walk or animal watching grew more than before, although the population in the area began to dwindle due to the effect the centre had on the local economy. Many footpaths were created by the remaining visitors over the next decade which lead to various hotspots within the forest such as the Black Pond.
The HERS Station
- Main article: Hantspire Environmental Research Station
After the destruction of the previous research station, the Canadian Government was hesitant to pour more funding into the area. The previous station had reportedly drained its entire research budget before going up in flames and the government was not immediately interested in rebuilding. This had a huge impact on the local economy which relied on the centre for business and traffic. In 1980 the population of Hantspire was around 2000 with hundreds more commuting from nearby villages and towns, but by 1994 the population was just under 500.
In October of 1993, after a petition from locals, the premier of Nova Scotia, John Savage, announced plans to build a new conservation laboratory in Bishop Park. The lab was going to be state of the art and had an estimated budget of $1.2 million ($1.9 million adjusted for inflation). Construction of the lab began in April of 1994 and was completed on November 7th of the same year just before the ground began to freeze as winter set in. The station first began operation on November 21st with a staff of 40 which included 30 researchers.
By 2010 the funding for the station and the staff had been greatly reduced. From this time until now the station has seen very little progress be made in any field or area of research. As a result in February of 2019 the provincial government decided to cut funding for the facility and shutter its doors as soon as September 2020.
Present Day
Bishop Park is all but forgotten now. It sees less than a hundred visitors each year according to Facebook Check-In statistics and many Nova Scotians only vaguely recall the name. The area is still just as lush and rich as it was in the past with no reported cases of extinction or environmental disaster. Amazingly, the fire at the Research Centre left minimal scarring on the local area with little to no evidence remaining. As the park was removed from environmental protections by the Canadian Government, it is no longer regularly monitored by conservation officers or the RCMP. The only ones paying attention are local residents and the staff at The HERS Station. Locals park enthusiasts have long given up trying to convince the government to continue funding research in the area, with some taking it upon themselves to research and teach about the area.
This Wiki
This Wiki was started with the intention of preserving the rich history of the park for future generations. As well, I hope for it to become a place to share new events and facts about the surrounding area. Even though the town is shrinking and soon the park will be without any protections, I think it is important for us to remember the history here and keep the ecosystem safe. Over the next few years I hope to find out more by going through old documents, research, and files from around the town. Perhaps with the closure of the HERS Station we will see a further release of research by the government.