Northwest Arm

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For the arm in Newfoundland, see North West Arm.

For the community in Newfoundland, see Northwest Arm, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Northwest Arm of Halifax Harbour near sunset, showing the landmark Dingle Tower on the right.

The Northwest Arm, originally named Sandwich River^[1], is an inlet in eastern Canada off the Atlantic Ocean in Nova Scotia's Halifax Regional Municipality.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Shoreline development
4 References

[edit] Geography

Part of Halifax Harbour, it measures approximately 3.5 km in length and 0.5 km in width and defines the western side of the Halifax Peninsula. The waterway is oriented along a bearing of 135º (southeast) and 315º (northwest).

The Northwest Arm contains several small islands including Melville Island, home of the Armdale Yacht Club, and Deadman's Island, at the northwestern end near Armdale.

[edit] History

The Mi'kmaq Nation called this water body "Waygwalteech" which translates to "salt water all the way up". Early English settlers called it the "Sandwich River" and also the "Hawkes River".

It was officially named the North West Arm on 1 March 1921 and it was changed to Northwest Arm on 4 April 1933.

[edit] Shoreline development

Much of the shoreline of the Northwest Arm, referred to locally as "the Arm," is fronted by private residences.

The Northwest Arm is the location of several parks, notably Point Pleasant Park at the southern entrance to the Arm on the Halifax Peninsula. Sir Sandford Fleming Park on the western shoreline contains the Dingle Tower which commemorates the 150th anniversary in 1908 of the establishment of responsible government in Nova Scotia; the first location in the British Empire to do so. Deadman's Island Park commemorates American soldiers who died while imprisoned on the island during the War of 1812.

The Atlantic School of Theology also maintains its campus along the southern part of the arm.

The Northwest Arm is the location of four marinas: