Mabou, Nova Scotia

Mabou (Màbu; An Drochaid; ) is an unincorporated settlement in the Municipality of the County of Inverness on the west coast of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. The population in 2011 was 1,207 residents. It is the site of The Red Shoe pub, Beinn Mhàbu, the An Drochaid Museum, and Glenora Distillers.

History


The name Mabou is thought to derive from Mi'kmaq name Malabo, shortened from Malabokek, meaning "place where two rivers meet" (the Mabou and Southwest Mabou rivers). It is also thought to mean "Shining Waters" or "Sparkling Waters". In Canadian Gaelic it is called An Drochaid, meaning "The Bridge".

In 1841, the first resident Roman Catholic priest, Maighstir Alasdair Mòr (Fr. Alexander MacDonald, 1801-1865) was assigned to Mabou, where he was seen as, "a veritable chieftain and patron of poets." Fr. MacDonald was also a very near kinsman to many local Gaelic-speaking pioneers, as he was 8th in descent from Iain Dubh MacDhòmhnaill, the 1st Tacksman of Bohuntine for Clan MacDonald of Keppoch.

In 1846, a series of bad harvests caused by the same blight as the Great Irish and Highland potato famines caused an exodus of Gaels from Mabou to Antigonish County (Siorramachd Antaiginis).

According to Marcus Tanner, "The Catholic clergy in rural west Cape Breton [also] included notorious enemies of the fiddle, such as Father Kenneth MacDonald, who conducted a local war with the music-makers in the 1860s and the 1870s. His campaign met with little success, however, and Cape Breton never saw the ceremonial burning of fiddles and bagpipes, as happened in Skye under the instigation of the famous blind catechist Donald Munro."

During the last quarter of the 19th century, according to historian Fr. Vincent Yzermans, the town of Holdingford, Minnesota was founded by Catholic Canadian Gaelic-speaking immigrants from Sight Point near Mabou. For this reason, Holdingford was originally called, "The Scotch Settlement", but now proudly describes itself as, "The Gateway to Lake Wobegon", after the fictional Central Minnesota town created by novelist and former radio host Garrison Keillor.

During the late 19th century and the first half of the 20th century Mabou's primary economic activity centered around a coal mine with several collieries located in the surrounding area. The Inverness and Richmond Railway opened in 1901 to connect the mines in Mabou and Inverness to wharves in Mabou and Port Hastings.

Mining activity ceased following World War II and the railway was abandoned during the late 1980s and is now a snowmobile and ATV trail.

Today Mabou is primarily a fishing port for a small fleet of lobster boats. It also hosts a high school serving central Inverness County.

In 2021, Mabou became important to the ongoing language revival efforts for Canadian Gaelic when (Taigh Sgoile na Drochaide) (lit. 'Bridge Schoolhouse') (fig. Mabou Schoolhouse) opened there as the first Gaelic-medium primary school in North America.

Geography
The community is located at the head of an inlet off the Gulf of St. Lawrence named "Mabou Harbour" and is surrounded by low mountains which are part of the Creignish Hills.

Famous residents

 * Robert Frank, world renowned filmmaker and street photographer.
 * Kate Beaton (born 1983), cartoonist and creator of the webcomic Hark! A Vagrant and Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands
 * Allan The Ridge MacDonald (1794-1868) local pioneer, Seanchaidh, and poet. Highly important figure in both Scottish Gaelic literature and in that of Canadian Gaelic.
 * Morgan Murray, author of Dirty Birds (2018).
 * The Rankin Family, professional performers of Cape Breton-style Scottish traditional music.
 * Molly Rankin, lead singer and lyricist of indie pop group Alvvays (and daughter of Rankin Family band member John Morris Rankin).
 * John Allan Cameron, was a Canadian folk singer, "The Godfather of Celtic Music" in Canada.[1] Noted for performing traditional music on his twelve string guitar.