Remember This? Downtown Dartmouth’s Historic Sullivan’s Pond (3 photos)

By David Jones

Historic and beautiful Sullivan’s Pond, located in downtown Dartmouth between Crichton Avenue and Prince Albert Road, was created by damming the Sawmill River during the first phase of Shubenacadie Canal construction (which started in 1826). 

John Martin, late Town Historian of Dartmouth, on page 182 of The Story of Dartmouth, writes “The ‘new’ road to Preston, mentioned as crossing the millstream … was interrupted by this time (1831), as a consequence of the construction of the Circular Dam, which resulted in forming Sullivan's Pond for a storage basin. The Canal Company then laid out the present Prince Albert Road down past the Starr Works, and also cut Canal Street to the Cove. The whole stretch from the shore to the Town limits on no. 7 Highway got to be called Canal Street. As a shorter route to the Steam Boat wharf, they opened the road down the present Nowlan Street to cross a bridge at Lock no. 6 (the Channel), where it continued down the west side of the Canal to meet the old road at the Great Dam.” 

When visiting Sullivan’s Pond, many people are curious about the origins of two large stone cairns protruding from the water near Hawthorne Street. 

“Circular stone markers built in Sullivan’s Pond by Scottish and Irish workers about 1831 indicate the entrance to the first lock in the canal system, located at the head of Lake Banook,” according to local historian Harry Chapman on page 85 of In the Wake of the Alderney.

Since roughly 1831, Sullivan’s Pond has been a feature of the Sawmill River, which runs from Lake Banook to Dartmouth Cove, forming a part of the historic Shubenacadie Canal system.

After Hurricane Beth wreaked havoc to Downtown Dartmouth in the August of 1971, the Sawmill River, which had flooded terribly, was sentenced to life underground in a steel pipe.

Now, after decades of being hidden and culverted, the Sawmill River (between Sullivan’s Pond and the Starr site) is once again seeing the light of day, through updates facilitated by DFO and Halifax Water and eagerly supported by community groups such the Ecology Action Centre and the Sackville Rivers Association.

Today, the public park at Sullivan’s Pond is a popular venue for walking, running, biking, birding and racing remote controlled sail boats. 

Although for many years a popular activity, feeding stale bread to the Sullivan’s Pond geese and ducks is highly discouraged due to animal and public health concerns.

Every November 11th, the recently-restored Cenotaph at Sullivan’s Pond is the focal point of the Downtown Dartmouth Remembrance Day ceremony. 

The land around the Cenotaph used to be the town dump and several years ago during trenching for underground wiring associated with nearby Christmas tree lighting, many old glass bottles were uncovered. 

The island, with the West Coast Totem Pole (gifted to Dartmouth from British Columbia) and model light house, in the middle of Sullivan’s Pond was known as either John Martin’s or Akerley Island, according to a photo caption in the collection of the Dartmouth Heritage Museum. 

Dr. John P. Martin was Town Historian of Dartmouth while I. W. Akerley was a former Mayor of Dartmouth.

Within the last week, the new footbridge at Sullivan’s Pond, a highlight of the recent daylighting of portions of the Sawmill River, was unofficially opened to the public. 

People are flocking to the bridge to observe the new modifications to the pond. Hopefully, while enjoying the new features, you take a minute to reflect on the water-based history of Sullivan’s Pond and downtown Dartmouth.

David Jones is an archaeologist and historian from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Thursdays at Noon, he has a weekly thirty minute history segment on The Rick Howe Show, NEWS 95.7. David Jones grew up next to Sullivan's Pond, affectionately known as the Duck Pond, in downtown Dartmouth.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today