Stellarton is one of the five Pictou County Towns, it is located along the East River south of the Town of New Glasgow.  It was named after a bed of coal known as “stellar” or “oil” coal. The original name for the area was Albion Mines, the name given by the General Mining Association to their collieries in 1827. At a public meeting held in 1870, the place was renamed to “Stellarton” to represent the high-oil content coal known as Stella coal that was abundance in this area.

Stellarton has a rich history in coal mining and is the hometown of Sobeys, a Canadian Grocery icon.