Bigelow family fonds

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

Bigelow family fonds

General material designation

  • Architectural drawing
  • Graphic material
  • Technical drawing
  • Textual record

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Level of description

Fonds

Reference code

MS-4-92

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Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

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Physical description area

Physical description

1.5 m of textual records

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Archival description area

Name of creator

Biographical history

The Bigelow family was involved in shipbuilding in the Kings County region of Nova Scotia for five generations. Amasa Bigelow (1755-1799) arrived in Cornwallis c. 1762 with his New England Planter father and became a ship’s carpenter, later operating a sawmill on Deep Hollows Mountain. He married Roxana Cone in 1775. The eldest of their eleven children, Ebenezer (1776-1860), established a shipyard at Oak Point, Kingsport, where he designed, built and sailed a variety of small vessels. He was married in 1804 to Nancy Rand, with whom he had six children.

Ebenezer Jr. (1815-1899) followed in his father’s footsteps and in 1838 established his own shipyard in Canning, Nova Scotia. Over the next fifty years he was the master builder on 67 ships, from 12-tonne sloops to the 1164-tonne Arbela, designed by his son Gideon.

Ebenezer, Jr. married Waite Sanford in 1834 and had 10 children, three of whom (John, Gideon and Samuel) joined him in the Bigelow Shipyard, eventually taking it over after his death in 1860. They in turn were joined by Ebenezer, Jr.’s grandsons, Scott and Halle, whose vessels included 4 tern schooners and one steamship, the Brunswick (1909). The last ship built in the Bigelow Shipyard was the Cape Blomidon, which was launched in 1919.

Custodial history

The records were held by members of the Bigelow family until they were received by Dalhousie University Archives and Special Collections in a number of accessions, dating between 1985 and 1999. Donors included John Robert Bigelow, his sister Laurabel Taylor, and his daughter Mary Skerrett.

Scope and content

Fonds contains the personal and professional records of four generations of the Bigelow family of Nova Scotia. It includes correspondence, legal and financial documents, diaries and memoirs, and photographs that document primarily the family's shipbuilding activities as well as the genealogical interests of John Robert Bigelow.

Notes area

Physical condition

Immediate source of acquisition

Arrangement

The fonds comprises six series, reflecting four generations of Bigelows:

Ebenezer Bigelow

Carrie Coalfleet

John Emerson Bigelow

Halle Bigelow

John Robert Bigelow

Photographs

Some series are further divided into sub-series. Arrangements were created and applied by the archivists.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

    Location of originals

    Availability of other formats

    Restrictions on access

    There are no access restrictions on these materials. All materials are open for research.

    Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

    Materials do not circulate and must be used in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. Materials may be under copyright. Contact departmental staff for guidance on reproduction.

    Finding aids

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    Accruals

    No further accruals expected.

    General note

    Preferred citation: [Identification of item], Bigelow family fonds, MS-4-92, Box [box number], Folder [folder number], Dalhousie University Archives and Special Collections, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

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    Sources

    This fonds description comes from the Dalhousie University Archives Catalog. The complete, original description is available there.

    Accession area