Nova Scotia’s capital is a busy spot. Nearly half of the province lives within the borders of Halifax’s municipality. Over a quarter of Nova Scotians live in the urban core of Kjipuktuk/ Halifax.
Within the paved streets, brick buildings and glass towers lies the Halifax Public Gardens. It’s a shared backyard for Haligonians. It holds generations of stories. My father proposed to my mother in the Public Gardens (without a ring! Imagine!) And like so many things in the city, it’s a work in progress for almost 200 years.
There’s a lovely book that has been released to bookshelves about the Public Gardens. The Halifax Public Gardens: The creation, destruction and restoration of North America’s Finest Victorian Public Gardens.
The book is both pictorial and historical. It tells the story of the Halifax Public Gardens from its origin to today. It does not sugarcoat history. It acknowledges and mentions Mi’kmaq participation and histories with dignity. It maintains and carries itself as something to become part of the Gardens' history. But as anything from Nova Scotia, it has its moment of amusing relief.
I spoke with Robert Pace, one of the authors of the book. He described the book as a collaborative and collective effort.
Pace and authors, Robert Salah and Peter Twohig, sifted through public archives for historically significant records on the Gardens. Historical facts paired with personal experience led to the creation of the book. Like many other creators, the COVID-19 pandemic allowed time for thought and reflection on what they had while the world stood still.
Though the pandemic allowed them time to reflect on creating the book, it was another reflection that gave the book its meaning, the future.
“A lot of us reflected on the state of the Gardens after Hurricane Juan. And what was missing was a significant masterplan,” said Pace. The 2003 hurricane devastated much of Halifax and the gardens were not spared.
Pace explained before Hurricane Juan, there wasn't a master plan for the Gardens. There were no maps of drainage or wiring. The restoration, though unfortunate through circumstance, allowed them to fix that. An important step going forward. But Pace says the master plan is not complete. The Public Gardens is missing a vital piece.
Pace’s book begins with the Halifax Public Gardens in its infancy. It starts with Joseph Howe writing in his Novascotian how the park was needed and later what the park would need and deserved.
“The big, big missing piece for us is, if you cross the street to Sackville Street. Those greenhouses that are 56 years old, we thought this is a great time to build a Victorian Era greenhouse that would be open to the public and accessible to the public. An interpretation centre for the Gardens and attach it to the Powers House.”
The Power House is now home to a youth centre. A safe space with drop-in opportunities for youth to gather and socialize.
“That triangle that starts at the epic of Sackville Street. The Power house was the residence office and facilities of the original superintendent, Mister Power. The city did a fabulous job of restoring that. The copper roof, the brickwork and the masonry work. When you look at the rest of it, it’s a combination of trucks, mowers, seed containers, and greenhouses that are in very poor condition. The concept was to put a state of the art modern greenhouse together that would be open to the public and put all of the mowers, trimmers, trucks and that underneath the building. Clean up that whole site to make it more community-inviting.”
Pace estimates the project would cost about eight million dollars. The federal government is willing to contribute two and a half million to the project. The provincial government has been willing to contribute the same. They’re in talks now to have the city contribute the same as the other levels of government. Pace and his colleagues project they could fundraise some gaps.
“We shouldn’t be too proud of what's there now. But we could be very proud of what we could build,” stated Pace.
In the summertime, someone, or some group attacked the Halifax Public Gardens. Not only did they try to kill trees in the gardens, but they did so in a way where Halifax would have to watch them die. In a time when accessibility and community access are at the forefront, preserving history and nature is important. A space that extends our city's communal backyard seems, not only excellent, but essential.
I recommend you pick up The Halifax Public Gardens book. It is a delight packed with factoids that will guide you around the park in an even better way. I even like the weight of it and how the pages fall with ease.
The book is available at your local bookstores as well as online overlords. All royalties from the book will be paid to the Friends of Public Gardens society.
