Nova Scotia archives show how women 'adapted to the war in Halifax'

The Nova Scotia Archives contain an immense amount of military history, including records of the roles women played when Halifax was the port-of-call for a nation at war.

John MacLeod is the manager at the Nova Scotia archives. He said the population of the Halifax peninsula was around 65,000 when the Second World War started in 1939. The population nearly doubled to 113,000 during the war.

“There was already quite a network of women’s organizations in town so when the war started they quickly realized there was a need for services to those serving and also to the families of those serving,” MacLeod said.

One of the archives’ treasures from the period is Edith Girouard’s scrapbook. Girouard was the chair of the Halifax Women’s Voluntary Services organized through the Department of National Defence. Her scrapbook shows women working across industries during the war.

The archive contains a brochure for the Canadian Women’s Army Corps, encouraging women to enlist. MacLeod said in Halifax, the Women’s Navy Corps had a larger presence.

“As we approach Remembrance Day I think it’s important to remember that war affected everybody in the community,” MacLeod said. “We have many records here at the archives that show how women adapted to the war in Halifax.”

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