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Prince Edward Island

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Prince Edward Island province (2001 pop. 135,294), 2,184 sq mi (5,657 sq km), E Canada, off N.B. and N.S.

Geography

One of the Maritime Provinces , Prince Edward Island lies in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and is separated on the S from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick by the Northumberland Strait , which is crossed by the Confederation Bridge (1997). It is Canada's smallest province but also has Canada's highest population density. The generally low, level island is c.140 mi (225 km) long and 5 to 35 mi (8–56 km) wide. Sandy beaches line the deeply indented north shore, and much of this popular resort spot is now Prince Edward Island National Park (est. 1937). Low red sandstone cliffs rim the south shores, and the tides reach to the headwaters of the island's short rivers.

With its fertile and distinctive red soil and its agreeable climate, the island has become known as the Garden of the Gulf. About 90% of the land is arable. The capital is Charlottetown .

Economy and Higher Education

Agriculture and fishing have long dominated the economy. Since earliest settlement, fishing has been important, yielding an abundance of lobsters, oysters, halibut, mackerel, and herring. Livestock, fruit, and vegetables are produced, and potatoes are exported.

Because of the lack of raw materials and cheap sources of power, manufacturing is largely limited to food processing, such as the making of butter and cheese and the canning of pork and lobsters. There has been little diversification of the economy, but the tourist industry has grown. Sites and events associated with Anne of Green Gables, the story by islander Lucy Maud Montgomery , draw many visitors, and the Confederation Bridge is expected to greatly increase tourism.

The Univ. of Prince Edward Island is at Charlottetown.

History and Politics

The Micmac lived on the island before Europeans arrived. Jacques Cartier wrote enthusiastically about it after landing there in 1534. Samuel de Champlain named it Île St. Jean in 1603, and it was known by that name (or Isle St. John) until 1799, when it was renamed after Edward, duke of Kent, who later fathered Queen Victoria . The first permanent settlement was made by the French in 1719 near present-day Charlottetown, but the British gained control under the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Many French settlers were deported by the British (see Acadia ), but others remained; their descendants still live here. In 1803, Lord Selkirk's first colony of impoverished Scots settled here; persons of Scottish extraction now constitute about one third of the inhabitants.

In 1763, Prince Edward Island was annexed to Nova Scotia, but it became a separate colony in 1769. Responsible, or cabinet, government was granted in 1851. In 1864 delegates from the Maritime Provinces met in Charlottetown to discuss union—the first step toward forming the Canadian confederation, which was achieved in 1867. However, Prince Edward Island did not join the confederation until 1873. Throughout the 20th cent. the island's economy was relatively stable, although lack of energy and technology caused it to lag behind the rest of Canada.

The Progressive Conservatives (or Conservatives) and the Liberals are the only parties to have formed provincial governments since 1873. In 1993, Catherine Callbeck, who led the Liberals to a sweep, became Canada's first female provincial premier. Progressive Conservative Patrick Binns became premier in 1996 and was returned to office in 2000 and 2003. In 2007 the Liberals won a majority, and Robert Ghiz became premier; they remained in power after the 2011 vote. The province sends 4 senators and 4 representatives to the national parliament.

Bibliography

See A. H. Clark, Three Centuries and the Island (1957); D. C. Harvey, The French Regime in Prince Edward Island (1926, repr. 1970); J. M. Bumsted, Land, Settlement, and Politics on Eighteenth-Century Prince Edward Island (1987).

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Prince Edward Island

Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names | 2005 | | Copyright

Prince Edward Island, Canada, South Africa 1. Canada: a province called by the Micmacs Abegweit ‘Cradled on the Waves’. The first Europeans to visit the island in 1534 are believed to have been the French and they called it Île Saint‐Jean ‘St John Island’. They took possession of it in 1603 and colonized it in 1720. At the end of the Seven Years' War (1756–63) it was annexed by the British, becoming a separate colony in 1769. In 1799 they renamed it after Prince Edward (1767–1820), Duke of Kent, who was then the commander of British forces in North America. It joined the Confederation in 1873.2. South Africa: an island in the Indian Ocean and the smaller of a pair called the Prince Edward Islands. Discovered by the French in 1772 they were called the Îles des Froids ‘Islands of Cold’. Captain James Cook^† sighted them in 1776 and, unaware of the French discovery, named them after Prince Edward (1767–1820). When he learnt that Marion du Fresne had already come upon them, he named the larger island ‘Marion Island’. Both islands were annexed by South Africa, Marion in 1947 and Prince Edward Island in 1948.

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Prince Edward Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Prince Edward Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-PrinceEdwardIsland.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Prince Edward Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-PrinceEdwardIsland.html

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Prince Edward Island

The Oxford Companion to British History | 2002 | | Copyright

Prince Edward Island was ceded by France in 1763, becoming a separate colony in 1769. The island was granted to absentee proprietors in 1767. It was called St John's Island until 1799. Most settlers came direct from the British Isles, bringing sectarian conflict. Attempts by tenants to dispossess landlords provided models for land legislation in Ireland. Although the dominion of Canada was planned at a conference in Charlottetown, the island's capital, in 1864, Prince Edward Island remained aloof until 1873. L. M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables (1908) was set on ‘the only island there is’.

Ged Martin

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JOHN CANNON. "Prince Edward Island." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN CANNON. "Prince Edward Island." The Oxford Companion to British History. 2002. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O110-PrinceEdwardIsland.html

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Prince Edward Island

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Copyright

Prince Edward Island Province in e Canada, an island in the Gulf of St Lawrence off the coast of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia; the capital is Charlottetown. The island was discovered by Jacques Cartier in 1534. In the early 18th century, it was colonized by French settlers as the Ile St Jean. Ceded to Britain in 1763, it was renamed in 1799 and became a province of Canada in 1873. Fishing and agriculture are the most important economic activities. Area: 5657sq km (2184sq mi). Pop. (2001) 135,294.

http://www.gov.pe.ca

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Prince Edward Island

A Dictionary of British History | 2004 | | Copyright

Prince Edward Island was ceded by France in 1763, becoming a separate colony in 1769. It was called St John's Island until 1799. Although the dominion of Canada was planned at a conference in Charlottetown, the island's capital, in 1864, Prince Edward Island remained aloof until 1873.

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PEI

The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English | 2009 | Copyright

PEI • abbr. Prince Edward Island.

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Pei

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Pei river, China: see Bei .

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Pei

Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes | 2007 | Copyright

Pei •affray, agley, aka, allay, Angers, A-OK, appellation contrôlée, array, assay, astray, au fait, auto-da-fé, away, aweigh, aye, bay, belay, betray, bey, Bombay, Bordet, boulevardier, bouquet, brae, bray, café au lait, Carné, cassoulet, Cathay, chassé, chevet, chez, chiné, clay, convey, Cray, crème brûlée, crudités, cuvée, cy-pres, day, decay, deejay, dégagé, distinguée, downplay, dray, Dufay, Dushanbe, eh, embay, engagé, essay, everyday, faraway, fay, fey, flay, fray, Frey, fromage frais, gainsay, gay, Gaye, Genet, gilet, glissé, gray, grey, halfway, hay, heigh, hey, hooray, Hubei, Hué, hurray, inveigh, jay, jeunesse dorée, José, Kay, Kaye, Klee, Kray, Lae, lay, lei, Littré, Lough Neagh, lwei, Mae, maguey, Malay, Mallarmé, Mandalay, Marseilles, may, midday, midway, mislay, misplay, Monterrey, Na-Dene, nay, né, née, neigh, Ney, noway, obey, O'Dea, okay, olé, outlay, outplay, outstay, outweigh, oyez, part-way, pay, Pei, per se, pince-nez, play, portray, pray, prey, purvey, qua, Quai d'Orsay, Rae, rangé, ray, re, reflet, relevé, roman-à-clef, Santa Fé, say, sei, Shar Pei, shay, slay, sleigh, sley, spae, spay, Spey, splay, spray, stay, straightaway, straightway, strathspey, stray, Sui, survey, sway, Taipei, Tay, they, today, tokay, Torbay, Tournai, trait, tray, trey, two-way, ukiyo-e, underlay, way, waylay, Wei, weigh, wey, Whangarei, whey, yea

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PEI

PEI (Canada) Prince Edward Island

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FRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH. "PEI." The Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

FRAN ALEXANDER , PETER BLAIR , JOHN DAINTITH , ALICE GRANDISON , VALERIE ILLINGWORTH , ELIZABETH MARTIN , ANNE STIBBS , JUDY PEARSALL , and SARA TULLOCH. "PEI." The Oxford Dictionary of Abbreviations. 1998. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O25-PEI.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	The Prince Edward Island Lands Protection Act: the art of the possible. Magazine article from: University of New Brunswick Law Journal; 1/1/2008
	South Africa--joining the global frenzy to find new reserves, the republic is... Newspaper article from: Petroleum Intelligence Weekly; 10/3/2005
	Abundance and Species Richness of Shrews within Forested Habitats on Prince... Magazine article from: The American Midland Naturalist; 4/1/2004