Pictou is a small a historic Town in Pictou County located along the west side of Pictou Harbour. The name is believed to be derived from the Mi’kmaq word “Piktook” meaning a large explosion, and references the noise made by large waves. It is also believed that it could be a corruption of Poictou, an old province in France. The town was laid out in 1788 and the first house was built about 1790.
Loch Broom is a rural community located directly between the Middle River and the West River. It was first settled by Alexander Cameron (who came on the ship Hector) in 1773 and named for its harbour’s approach resembling Loch Broom in Inverness-shire, Scotland. It is believed that one of the first churches in Pictou County was built here in 1787.
The 1879 Green Hill Map (Section 8) highlights basic topographic features of the community along with with cadastral data of prominent land owners, locations of buildings and many other details. It also featured the communities of Durham and Loch Broom.
Browns Point, is located just west of the north end of the Pictou Causeway. It was once the location of the end of a large railway crossing that crossed from Loch Broom over to Pictou. The bridge was eventually destroyed in a fire in 1993.