Dalhousie Library was established by order of the University Senate on 24 April 1867. The library, first housed in the “new” Dalhousie College (renamed the Forrest Building in 1919), was beset by financial difficulties during the early decades, especially after the Board’s 1890 decision to withdraw all library funding. During this period the collection grew only through sporadic donations, although 1894 witnessed both the advent of the class memorial book gifts and expanded hours of library service, increasing from two to seven hours per day, five days each week.

In 1916 the library was renamed and moved into the MacDonald Memorial Building, due to the generosity of Professor Charles MacDonald, who bequeathed $2000 to the library for books, a gesture that triggered an eponymous fundraising campaign. Despite several renovations and later additions, eventually the collection and its user population outgrew the space, and in 1971 the Killam Library was opened.

Currently the University Libraries encompass five distinct units, including the Sir James Dunn Law Library; the Kellogg Health Sciences Library; the Sexton Design & Technology Library; the MacRae Library, at the Faculty of Agriculture Campus in Truro; and the Killam Library, which remains the administrative heart of the Libraries and houses the office of the Dean of Libraries.

Each library has its own head librarian, who also serves as an associate university dean across service areas including Scholarly Communications, Access Services, Learning and Curriculum Support, Discovery, and Resources. These broad areas are reflected in various units, which have shifted and evolved in both name and purpose over time. However, much of the University Libraries’ work continues to be accomplished through committees and working groups created to deal with initiatives and issues pertaining to particular library functions.

Past university librarians include: Reverend Dr. William Lyell (1876-81); John Forrest (1881-85); Jacob Schurman (1885-86); William Alexander (1886-89); James Seth (1889-92); Walter Murray (1892-1902); Archibald MacMechan (1906-31); Ivy Prickler 1940-47; Dorothy MacKay (1947-51); Jean Carter (1951-52); Douglas G. Lochhead (1952-60); J.P. Wilkinson (1960-66); Louis G. Vagianos,(1966-79); William F. Birdsall (1981-97); William R. Maes (1998-2010); and Donna Bourne-Tyson (2010-2022).

In 1850, J. W. Dawson was appointed as the first superintendent of education for the province of Nova Scotia. During his tenure, Dawson encouraged the establishment of free schools. In 1855, Dawson’s successor, Alexander Forrester, established the Provincial Normal College in Truro, for the training of public school teachers and the standardization of school curriculum. The Free School Act of 1864, introduced by Premier Charles Tupper, created a system of free public schools throughout the province. The Education Act of 1864 assigned a school inspector to each of the 18 counties. The act also increased state funding and encouraged local taxation to support public schools, and standardized the classification and examination of students. Over the next hundred years, public school attendance registers fell under the authority of the Halifax-based office variously known as the Educational Department of Nova Scotia (-1894), the Education Department of Nova Scotia (1894-1929), the Nova Scotia Department of Education (1929-1967), and the Minister of Education (1967-). Today, the Nova Scotia Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, as it is known, is responsible for K-12 public school education throughout the province.

Robert Blackwood was born 29 September 1789 in Coldrain, Fossoway & Tullibole Parish, Kinross-shire, Scotland, the son of William Blackwood (1750-1812) and Janet Keltie (1761-?). He studied theology and graduated from Divinity Hall at the University of Edinburgh. In 1816 Blackwood married Ann Macara of Perth, Scotland, with whom he had nine children. That same year he and his wife left Scotland with the intention of settling in the state of Ohio. On his way to the United States, he stopped in Halifax, where he was persuaded to remain since there was a demand for Presbyterian ministers. In October 1816 he became pastor for the congregation of Nine Mile River, Gay's River and Shubenacadie, residing at Shubenacadie. In 1840 he left Shubenacadie to preach at Tatamagouche. Prior to his arrival in Nova Scotia, Blackwood had acquired some medical training and was known to occasionally treat members of his congregation. In 1852 Blackwood resigned his charge at Tatamagouche but continued to minister in New Annan, Nova Scotia at Willow Church. He died on 12 December 1857.

The gold mine in the Oldham district near Enfield, Nova Scotia was a business interest of the Brennan family of Prince Edward Island. It was started in 1903 by William A. Brennan under the name Oldham Sterling Gold Company Ltd (1903-ca1916). W.A. Brennan had purchased the land from J.E. Hardman of Oldham, NS and from Frederick Taylor of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States near the end of Nova Scotia’s second “gold rush” 1895 to 1903. He also established an ore crushing mill on the site for his use and the use of other miners in the area. Oldham Sterling Gold Co. enjoyed some early success mining gold 1907 to 1912. After W.A.’s death in 1916, the Oldham property was inherited by his 2 sons Arthur and Victor and wife Rosara. Lacking the financial means to actively mine the property themselves, the Brennans looked for investors. Their first investor was Charles Spearman, a mining engineer from Montreal, who mined the district under the name Acadia Gold Mines Ltd. (1926-ca1932). It may have also operated under the name Acadia Metals Ltd. for a short time. When Spearman was unable to meet expenses and payroll for the miners, the company went bankrupt and the property reverted back to the Brennans. After several attempts to attract new investors, Arthur Brennan sold it to George Reynolds of New York, United States, and another Montreal-based group of investors under the name Avon Gold Mines Ltd. in 1935 (1935-1955). This company was active until about 1943 when labour shortages and equipment restrictions brought on by the Second World War (1939-1945) made operating the mine unprofitable. It never recovered in the post-war era and ownership again reverted back to the Brennan family. By 1955, Arthur’s son William “Bill” Brennan sold off the remaining equipment and all mining operations ceased.

Clarissa Archibald Dennis was born 24 November 1881 in Truro, N.S. After attending Mount Allison College, Dalhousie University, and Halifax Business College, she worked for her father, Senator William Dennis, at the Halifax Herald office. As a reporter and author, she published numerous newspaper and magazine articles on topics including Nova Scotia history, prominent citizens, and Mi'kmaq folklore and customs. Her books include Down in Nova Scotia (1934), More about Nova Scotia (1937), and Cape Breton Over (1942). Clara Dennis died in Halifax on 16 February 1958.

The Nova Scotia Royal Commission Concerning Jails in the Province of Nova Scotia, also known as the Campbell Commission, was created on December 29, 1931. Alexander J. Campbell, senior lawyer in Truro, was appointed chairperson along with Reverend Charles F. Curran of Halifax, Dr. Samuel W. Williamson of Yarmouth, Justice A.D. Campbell of Sydney and Professor S.H. Prince of Halifax as co-commissioners. Its mandate was to investigate and make recommendations for improvement of the conditions of all jails and their administration in the province. The Royal Commission held 40 public and private meetings attended by 1000 citizens, received evidence from over 200 witnesses, and consulted with municipal officials, supreme court judges, police, and leading world experts. They conducted visits of inspection to all jails, and many lock-ups and police stations in 24 towns across Nova Scotia. They visited other jails, reformatories and penal institutions in Ontario and Quebec, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The Commission found that generally existing accommodations in jails were unfit for human habitation, and among their recommendations suggested the establishment of a central provincial institution based on a prison farm model, not sending women to male facilities, and better community support for released inmates. The Royal Commission submitted its report to Government in 1933 and then disbanded.

The Nova Scotia Commission of Inquiry Appointed to Investigate Matters Concerning the Expropriation of Lands of Lewis Miller & Co. Ltd. by the Nova Scotia Power Commission, a government agency, was created by Order in Council on March 3, 1933. It was created in order to resolve the disagreement between the company and the Power Commission on a fair compensation amount to be paid. Justice William F. Carroll, judge on the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, was appointed chairperson along with A. Handfield Whitman, merchant in Halifax, and Daniel J. Purtill, lumberman of Halifax as co-commissioners. Its mandate was to determine the amount of compensation owed by the Nova Scotia Government to Lewis Miller & Co. Ltd, lumber mill, for the expropriation of their land at Saint Margaret’s Bay in 1921-1927. The Commission of Inquiry reviewed documentary evidence and held 5 days of hearings in Halifax from April 11 to 25, 1933. The commissioners could not agree on a final amount. Judge Carroll and Mr. Purtill submitted their report to Government on June 14, 1933. Mr. Whitman submitted his contrary opinion on June 12, 1933. The Government accepted the majority opinion and passed an Order in Council on July 7, 1933 authorizing payment to Lewis Miller & Company Ltd.

The second Nova Scotia Royal Commission Respecting the Coal Mines of Nova Scotia was created by Order in Council on January 25, 1932. This time it was precipitated by the financial insolvency of Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation (DOSCO) and their contract request for a 12.3% wage reduction. Sir Andrew Rae Duncan, British expert in coal industry regulation, was again appointed chairperson, and was joined again by Reverend Hugh P. MacPherson, President of Saint Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, NS as co-commissioner. The third commissioner was new, Professor John W. MacMillan, a Presbyterian minister, Chair of Christian Sociology at University of Toronto’s Victoria College and active in the Christian social gospel movement. The Commission’s mandate was broader than the first royal commission of 1925, as it was to investigate any and all matters relevant to the coal mining industry in the province in addition to the miners’ living and working conditions and the factors affecting costs of production, transportation, distribution, and marketing of coal and its by-products. The Royal Commission held hearings in Sydney, Springhill, New Glasgow, Halifax and in Montreal, PQ where 85 witnesses presented their views. As in the 1925 commission, they focused their attention on the main operator of coal mines in Nova Scotia, the Dominion Steel & Coal Corporation. They looked at the efficiency of different mines (in terms of geology and extractability) and made suggestions for amalgamations and closures to make the industry more cost-effective. It submitted its final report to Government on February 18, 1932 and then disbanded.

The national Royal Commission on Maritime Claims, also referred to as the Duncan Commission, was created by Prime Minister Mackenzie King by Privy Council Order on April 7, 1926 (P.C. 505). It was established in response to the claims of the Maritime Rights movement. Sir Andrew Rae Duncan, British expert on coal industry regulation, was appointed Chairperson along with Hon. William Bernard Wallace, Justice of the County Court of District One in Nova Scotia, and English Professor Cyrus Macmillan from Prince Edward Island, working at McGill University in Montreal, as co-commissioners. (Professor Macmillan would later become federal Fisheries Minister.) The Royal Commission’s mandate was 1) to examine and make recommendations to address the Maritimes’ grievances against higher costs for transporting goods by the Canadian National Railway (freight rates), formerly called the Intercolonial Railway, as compared with other parts of Canada; 2) the lack of overseas shipping of Canadian trade goods through Maritime ports; and 3) the lack of action on economic policies promised at the time of Confederation. Public hearings were held in Halifax NS, Saint John NB, Charlottetown PE, Sydney NS, Amherst NS, Yarmouth NS, and in Montreal PQ from July 21 to August 31, 1926. In addition, many informal visitations to local Boards of Trade in the 3 provinces were made, along with a visit to Winnipeg to investigate the transport of grain, and private meetings held in Montreal and Ottawa ON. Evidence was received from over one hundred witnesses, including representatives from Government, trade, commerce, railway administration, and private citizens. The final report, submitted on September 23, 1926, recommended freight rate reductions, an increase in federal payments to the provinces (equalization payments), and new port management for Halifax and Saint John New Brunswick. After fulfilling its duties, the Commission ended.