Springfield,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native En ...

is located between Middleton (in the

Annapolis Valley The Annapolis Valley is a valley and region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It is located in the western part of the Nova Scotia peninsula, formed by a trough between two parallel mountain ranges along the shore of the Bay of Fundy. St ...

) and Bridgewater (on the South Shore). Springfield is in the centre of western Nova Scotia located on Trunk 10, 140 km west of Halifax. Springfield lies within the

Atlantic Upland The Atlantic Upland, which is cut by lowlands, stretches over most of southern Nova Scotia, Canada. The surface of the Atlantic Upland rises from sea level on the Atlantic shore to about 180 to 200 metres (about 600 to 700 feet) at the southern s ...

. Springfield's economic development has been shaped largely by the

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

industry, but farming has also been an important occupation in this area. Most of the forests are privately owned, and many can best be called

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used ...

woodlots, or

Balsam fir ''Abies balsamea'' or balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada ( Newfoundland west to central Alberta) and the northeastern United States (Minnesota east to Maine, and south in the Appalachian Mountains to ...

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern G ...

farms. Many of the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

trees are shipped to other eastern

Canadian provinces Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British Nort ...

or to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. The largest

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

in Nova Scotia once was located in nearby

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west a ...

. The mill was started in 1902 and began operating under the name the Davison Lumber Company in 1903.Mike Parker, ''Buried in the Woods: Sawmill Ghost Towns of Nova Scotia'', Pottersfield Press, 2010, pp. 119-156 They built numerous

railway line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...

s in the area to haul logs which were connected to the

Halifax and South Western Railway The Halifax and South Western Railway was a historic Canadian railway operating in the province of Nova Scotia. The legal name of this railway was the Halifax & South Western Railway, as is defined in various Acts of the Nova Scotia Legislature ...

running between Bridgewater and Middleton. One rail line connected with Lake Pleasant and to the remote mill area of Crossburn, and as far east as South river Lake near Lake George. evidence of the old rail lines can still be found today. In 1905, the company built 30 houses, a large three-story cookhouse, an office, and a

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compu ...

. In 1914, Hastings, (the mill site was named after owner John M. Hastings of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

) continued to boom with more houses, a

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities, ...

, a store, a doctor's office, and a large clubhouse (which contained a

bowling alley A bowling alley (also known as a bowling center, bowling lounge, bowling arena, or historically bowling club) is a facility where the sport of bowling is played. It can be a dedicated facility or part of another, such as a clubhouse or dwelling ...

, two pool tables, a dressing room and a dance hall). The mill went bankrupt in the 1920s and a fire destroyed the mill in 1928. The fire consumed all the mill buildings and 35 of the remaining 55 houses. On September 10, 2005, a history book was launched in Springfield and a monument at the old lumber mill site was unveiled. Today, Springfield has a

Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (french: Société canadienne des postes), trading as Canada Post (french: Postes Canada), is a Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation that functions as the primary Postal administration, postal operator in Canada ...

Office, a general store, a fire hall, garages, a small number of forest related businesses,

s, a large armed forces campground on Lake Pleasant, a ball field and picnic park on Springfield Lake, and a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christianity, Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe ...

Church. Local shopping and schools are in New Germany (16 km away) and many people commute to Bridgewater for employment and larger stores. There, the largest employer is the

Michelin Michelin (; ; full name: ) is a French multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Clermont-Ferrand in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes '' région'' of France. It is the second largest tyre manufacturer in the world behind Bridgestone and ...

Tire Plant. Lake Pleasant and Springfield Lake are located in the community; both lakes are popular cottage and camping areas that offer

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-sa ...

and

salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

, boating, swimming, and year-round hiking. Pleasant Lake is the site of the Lake Pleasant Campers Club, under the auspices of the 14 Wing Greenwood recreation director. It features campsites, canoe rentals and other amenities. Membership is open to serving members and reservists of the Canadian military.

Climate

References

{{Coord, 44.633, N, 64.850, W, display=title, type:city_region:CA_source:GNS-enwiki Communities in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia