Toney River, Pictou County
Toney River, Nova Scotia
Toney River Geography
- Official Name: Toney River
- Mi’kmaq Name: Booktowtāgun – meaning a flint; that when strikes makes fire
- Geographic Feature Type Category: Populated Place
- Geographic Feature Type: Community
- Postal Code: B0K 1No
- Latitude / Longitude: 45.772191, -62.895923
Toney River Maps
- 1:50k Topographic NTS Map: 011E15
- 1:250k Topographic NTS Map: 011E
- 1879 Pictou County Atlas Map: Section 3
- Nova Scotia Land Grant Map: NS Land Grant map 85
- Nova Scotia 1:10k Topographic Maps: 1045750062900 (Seafoam), 1045750062800 (Caribou River)
About Toney River
Toney River is located along the Northumberland Strait, between Seafoam and Caribou River, at the mouth of the Toney River. Fishing, farming and lumbering were carried on as the main industries dating back to the early 1800s.
Both the river and the community are said to be named in honor of Captain Toney, a French Acadian trader who adopted the Mi’kmaw way of living and came to be regarded as a chief. He sailed along the coast from Quebec to New England exchanging furs he received from the Mi’kmaq for food and other manufactured goods. The Mi’kmaq sheltered Captain Toney as a member of their tribe so he might avoid the Acadian Expulsion. Captain Toney is reported to have been involved in the signing of the Halifax Treaties in 1761.
The Mi’kmaq name for Toney River is “Booktowtāgun”, meaning the place where flint stone is found.
James Milnes, an Englishman, applied for license to occupy several thousand acres around the year 1803. By December of 1808, he had erected saw mills, several houses and barns, and had hired mechanics from England. He received a grant of the land in 1810 and began shipping timber back to England.
About 1803 George Macivor and Allan Munroe settled on the back shore between, Toney River and Cape John and Norman McLeod settled at Toney River. Alexander McRae erected a grist mill and an oat kiln in 1855-56.
St. David’s Presbyterian Church was built about 1834, then burned down in 1852. A new church to replace it was completed in 1854.
The first school-house at Upper Toney River was opened on May 1, 1876. A new school was latter built in 1887.
A postal way office was established in 1860 at Toney River.
At Toney Mills a post office was established in March, 1892, with William Fraser as postmaster.
Population in 1956 was 192.
Using the crowd sourced Find a Grave app, you can search the Toney River Cemetery and find names, details and photos
[Source: Nova Scotia Place Names – T. Brown / Places of Nova Scotia – C. Bruce Fergusson ]
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