Pier 21: An Illustrated History of Canada's Gateway

Kathy E. Zimon is a fine arts librarian (emerita) at the University of
Calgary. She is the author of Alberta Society of Artists: The First 70
Years and coeditor of Art Documentation Bulletin of the Art Libraries
Society of North America.

In 1999, Pier 21 in Halifax became a high-tech interpretive centre
telling the story of the place where many thousands of immigrants first
set foot in Canada. The cavernous shed adjacent to the storied pier now
houses an exhibition hall, a school program, and a library and resource
centre where individuals can research their connections to Pier 21.
Until air travel in the 1960s overtook travel by ocean liner, Pier 21
(and its predecessor, Pier 2) flourished due to its deepwater port
location and convenient rail connections. Consequently, the most
consulted resource of the centre is the ship database that lists, by
name, almost all the vessels that docked at Pier 21 from its opening in
1928 to its closing in 1971. Halifax became the preferred port of entry
in the 18th century due to the garrison at the Citadel, and, by the turn
of the 19th century, the enhanced fortifications that ringed the harbor.
The heavily illustrated chapters describe the various categories of
immigrants, the voluntary organizations that supported them, and the
impact of two world wars on both piers. The 19th century saw the arrival
of those fleeing poverty and famine, and of pioneers/homesteaders who
were looking for a better life. The world wars saw troops departing to,
and arriving from, wars overseas; war brides and war orphans, mostly
from Britain; and masses of refugees and displaced persons from Europe,
who came before and after 1945 until the late 1950s. The most touching
passages are the firsthand accounts by immigrants of the hardships
endured on their odyssey to Canada, and their bemused first impressions
of Pier 21 and their new country. Just one example: a breakfast of corn
flakes was a novel experience for many (a first encounter this reviewer
also remembers). The last chapter directs the reader to further
resources, including a Web site: www.pier21.ns.ca. Recommended for
everyone as an introduction to the subject of immigrants and
immigration, but especially for the “one in five Canadians” with
“a direct connection with Pier 21.”