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Pictou County is a county in the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. It was established in 1835, and was formerly a part of Halifax County from 1759 to 1835. It had a population of 43,657 people in 2021, a decline of 0.2 percent from 2016. Furthermore, its 2016 population is only 88.11% of the census population in 1991. It is the sixth most populous county in Nova Scotia.
In the early 1600s France claimed the area as a part of Acadia. By the 1760s, small French settlements existed along the coast in the eastern part of the county near the mouth of the French River. The largest of these was on the Big Island at Merigomish. By the conclusion of the French and Indian War in 1763, and the Expulsion of the Acadians, these had been abandoned.
Pictou came under the control of Britain in 1763 after the French and Indian War. In 1765 the first British land grants were issued, including a grant to the Philadelphia Company. A number of families from that company left Philadelphia aboard the Hope in May 1767, and arrived at Pictou Harbour in June. In 1770 there were 120 settlers living in Pictou, of whom 93 were American, 18 were Irish, five were Acadian, and two each were Scottish and English.
Pictou was a receiving point for many Scottish people immigrants moving to a new home in northern Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island following the Highland Clearances of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Consequently, the town's slogan is "The Birthplace of Nova Scotia"; the first wave of immigrants from Scotland is acknowledged to have arrived on September 15, 1773, on the Hector.
Coal was first discovered in Pictou County in 1798. A number of different individuals and companies were involved in the nascent coal industry; however, in 1825 the majority of mining rights in Nova Scotia was obtained by the General Mining Association. After surveying mines in Nova Scotia, they chose to start at the East River of Pictou and in the summer of 1827 they began operations there. By the end of the year the first steam engine in Nova Scotia was operating at Albion Mines.
In 1839 the first locomotive in Canada to run on iron rails, the Samson, was put into service at Albion Mines. It is the oldest surviving locomotive in Canada.
Forming the majority of the Pictou County census division, the Municipality of Pictou County, including its Subdivisions A, B, and C, had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of −0.1% from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Population trend Censuses 1871–1941Statistics Canada: 1996, 2001, 2006 census
| 2021 | 43,657 | 0.2% |
| 2016 | 43,748 | 4.2% |
| 2011 | 45,643 | 1.9% |
| 2006 | 46,513 | 1.0% |
| 2001 | 46,965 | 3.6% |
| 1996 | 48,718 | 1.9% |
| 1991 | 49,649 | 0.2% |
| 1986 | 49,772 | 1.2% |
| 1981 | 50,350 | N/A |
| 1941 | 40,789 | |
| 1931 | 39,018 | |
| 1921 | 40,851 | |
| 1911 | 35,858 | |
| 1901 | 33,459 | |
| 1891 | 34,541 | |
| 1881 | 35,535 | |
| 1871 | 32,114 | N/A |
Mother tongue (2011)Statistics Canada: 2011 census
| English only | 43,580 | 96.93% |
| French only | 445 | 0.99% |
| Non-official languages | 765 | 1.70% |
| Multiple responses | 165 | 0.37% |
Ethnic Groups (2006) 2006 Statistics Canada Census Ethnocultural Portrait of Canada: Pictou County, Nova Scotia
| Scottish | 22,975 | 50.1% |
| Canadians | 17,800 | 38.8% |
| English Canadian | 12,270 | 26.8% |
| Irish Canadian | 9,535 | 20.8% |
| French Canadian | 7,480 | 16.3% |
| German | 3,115 | 6.8% |
| North American Indian | 1,585 | 3.5% |
| Dutch (Netherlands) | 1,555 | 3.4% |
Pictou County is divided into three provincial electoral districts, namely Pictou Centre, Pictou East and Pictou West. All three are currently held by PC MLAs in the Nova Scotia Legislature.
The towns of New Glasgow, Stellarton, Pictou, Westville and Trenton each have their own town councils. The Municipality of Pictou County serves the remaining rural areas, including Pictou Island. Amalgamation of these six municipal units is occasionally considered. Pictou County District Planning Commission provides planning, development and waste disposal services to all the communities in the county.
Pictou Landing First Nation has reserves at Pictou Landing, Fisher's Grant and Merigomish Harbour.
The Pictou County Chamber of Commerce is a business advocacy group that speaks as a united voice on behalf of the business community.
The Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway is a freight line connecting Truro to Sydney, with spurs at Stellarton and Trenton serving local industries such as Trenton Generating Station. Via Rail Canada abandoned passenger rail service in the county on January 15, 1990, following nationwide budget cuts.
Maritime Bus provide motor bus service to New Glasgow.
Northumberland Ferries Limited operates a seasonal passenger-vehicle ferry service from Caribou, Nova Scotia, to Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island. A separate passenger-only ferry service is also operated seasonally from Caribou to Pictou Island.
Trenton Aerodrome is a private commercial airport owned and operated by Sobeys.
Many of the towns and villages host their own parades and events throughout the year. Read By The Sea is an annual literary festival held in the village of River John. The New Scotland Days Festival in Pictou each September is a celebration of the county's Scottish heritage. Pictou also hosts the Lobster Carnival every July since 1934. It was voted the best festival in Canada. New Glasgow's Art at Night is an annual one night art event in downtown New Glasgow. Eventide Art Hub in New Glasgow hosts an Art Gallery, Artist Studios, and a retail space for artists and musicians to sell their work.
Museums include the Northumberland Fisheries Museum, the Hector Heritage Quay, and the McCulloch House Museum in Pictou, the Pictou County Military Museum in Westville, the Carmichael House in New Glasgow, and the Museum of Industry in Stellarton.
Pictou County is also known for the regional pizza variant known as Pictou County Pizza, which can be shipped to former residents living across Canada through UPS, and is available in frozen pizzas throughout the Maritimes.
There are claims by a Johnston family of Pictou, that the Mad Trapper of Rat River was Owen Albert Johnston from Pictou County.Interview, Information Morning, CBC Radio 1, Halifax Nova Scotia, 6:20am 15 January 2009
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