Hantspire

Hantspire (also known as: Hantspire County) is a small community in Nova Scotia and was formerly classified as a Village until 1991. It is now considered an unincorporated area of the municipal district of East Hants. There is no local governing body for this community at this time.

History

19th Century

The earliest records for settlers in this area show that 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. One vaguely reported case from 1895 describes four businessmen who were looking for a place to establish a town that go missing after exploring the area. Locals at the time assumed they had gone home but records from Halifax indicate they never returned. Interestingly, once information spread about these cases, it 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.

Hantspire Village

• Main article: Hantspire (Village)

Hantspire Village was established in 1899 by Lord Hantspire's advisor. Not many records have survived from this time period but it is believed that the advisor became the first council member for the village. Later the village council would have up to 12 members at any given time. They oversaw the development of the village as population rose to accommodate the growing number of farmers. Later they would help manage the village during the boom caused by the Bishop Park Research Centre.