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Late in the evening on Saturday, 18 April 2020, a 51-year-old man assaulted his common-law wife in Portapique, Nova Scotia. He then began a 13-hour rampage in which he committed multiple shootings and set fire to several homes in 16 locations. Using a vehicle disguised as an RCMP police cruiser and wearing an old RCMP uniform for much of the time, the killer murdered 22 people and injured six others. He was shot and killed by two RCMP officers at a gas station south of Enfield, Nova Scotia, 100 km from where the violence began. It is the worst mass killing in modern Canadian history.

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Nova Scotia is part of the Appalachian region, one of Canada seven physiographic regions. The province is primarily a peninsula extending from the country’s mainland. At its northeastern end is Cape Breton Island. Surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, Nova Scotia is separated from Prince Edward Island by the Northumberland Strait and from New Brunswick by the Bay of Fundy.

Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, population centre, 17,556 (2016 census), 18,475 (2011 census). Glace Bay is a community located on the east coast of Cape Breton Island. On 1 August 1995 Glace Bay lost its status as a town when it was combined with the city of Sydney and five other towns in the area. Together, these municipalities formed the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Facing into the sun and the Atlantic Ocean, the location was known to the Mi’kmaq as Wasokusegwom (“bright home”). The French, who mined coal for Louisbourg from the cliffs, called the location “Baie de Glace.” The name was a reference to annual drift ice from the Gulf of St. Lawrence (see also Gulf).

Stephen McNeil, business owner, politician, 28th premier of Nova Scotia, 2013–21 (born 10 November 1964 in Halifax, NS). Few observers expected much from refrigerator repairman Stephen McNeil when he was first elected to the Nova Scotia legislature in 2003. But he surprised pundits when he became leader of the Liberal Party, and was twice elected premier, winning majority governments in 2013 and 2017.

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, metropolitan area, population (including Cole Harbour) 92,301 (2016 census), 91,212 (2011 census). Dartmouth is located on the eastern side of Halifax Harbour in the Halifax Regional Municipality (incorporated in 1996).

Environmental racism is the disproportionate proximity and greater exposure of Indigenous, Black and other racialized communities to polluting industries and environmentally hazardous activities. In Canada, Indigenous and African Nova Scotian communities have been the most impacted by environmental racism. Examples of environmental racism in Nova Scotia include an open dump in Africville, landfills in Shelburne and Lincolnville, a pulp and paper mill in Pictou Landing First Nation, and a pipeline in Sipekne’katik First Nation. A pipeline also runs through Wet'suwet'en First Nation in British Columbia, while in Ontario there is mercury contamination in Grassy Narrows First Nation and over 60 petrochemical facilities surrounding Aamjiwnaang First Nation.

The 1917 Halifax Explosion is well-known as the biggest human-made explosion in the pre-atomic era, but it was also the largest mass-blinding in Canadian history and played a crucial role in the founding of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB).

Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, incorporated as a town in 1888, population 2,263 (2016 census), 2,313 (2011 census). The town of Lunenburg, the seat of Lunenburg County, is located on Lunenburg Bay, 90 km southwest of Halifax.

William Pearly Oliver, CM, minister, army chaplain and community organizer (born 11 February 1912 in Wolfville, Nova Scotia; died 26 May 1989 in Lucasville). Oliver was a social activist, educator and minister. He cofounded the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NSAACP) and the Black United Front (BUF). He was also instrumental in the creation of the Black Cultural Society and the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia.

The Amherst internment camp in Nova Scotia was the largest such camp in Canada during the First World War, with a maximum capacity of about 850 men. In total, there were 24 internment camps and receiving stations across the country. While most camps housed “enemy aliens,” the majority of internees at Amherst were German prisoners of war. This included hundreds of German sailors from the SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, which was sunk by a British cruiser in 1915. Its most famous internee, however, was Russian socialist Leon Trotsky, who was held prisoner at Amherst in April 1917.

Though often considered Anglo-Canadians, the Scots have always regarded themselves as a separate people. The Scots have immigrated to Canada in steady and substantial numbers for over 200 years, with the connection between Scotland and Canada stretching farther — to the 17th century. Scots have been involved in every aspect of Canada's development as explorers, educators, businessmen, politicians, writers and artists. The Scots are among the first Europeans to establish themselves in Canada and are the third largest ethnic group in the country. In the 2016 Census of Canada, a total of 4,799,005 Canadians, or 14 per cent of the population, listed themselves as being of Scottish origin (single and multiple responses).

Nova Scotia is Canada’s second-smallest province (following Prince Edward Island) and is located on the southeastern coast of the country. The province includes Cape Breton, a large island northeast of the mainland. The name Nova Scotia is Latin for “New Scotland,” reflecting the origins of some of the early settlers. Given its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, Nova Scotia’s economy is largely influenced by the sea, and its harbours have served as military bases during many wars.

F. Wayne Adams, CM, ONS, politician, activist, journalist, entrepreneur (born 1943 in Halifax, NS). Wayne Adams has been an entrepreneur, a broadcast journalist, a municipal and provincial politician, and an environmental activist. He was the first Black Canadian elected to the Nova Scotia legislature and to serve in its cabinet. He was made a Member of the Order of Canada and has received the Order of Nova Scotia.