New Halifax Explosion Records Now Available on Archives' Website

Nova Scotians can now find newly discovered information about victims of the 1917 Halifax Explosion online. The Nova Scotia Archives launched the new online resource, to mark the 88th anniversary of the explosion on Tuesday, Dec. 6.

"Every year there are fewer survivors left to recall the terrible event," said provincial archivist Brian Speirs. "Though we will never know the exact number of people killed and their identities, this new resource will provide the most accurate, up-to-date record."

Within days of the 1917 disaster, the provincial government began a ledger book to record by hand the names and details of the dead, including those who died immediately and those who succumbed to injuries and disaster-related illnesses in the weeks and months following the explosion. When the register was closed, in December 1918, there were 1,631 entries.

Over the years, the register was kept in the Nova Scotia Vital Statistics Office. In 2004, it was transferred to Nova Scotia Archives and Records Management.

The archives has added the 1,631 names from the ledger to its existing online resource, The Halifax Explosion Remembrance Book: A List of Those Who Died. All 272 pages of the ledger have also been digitized. These images form part of the revised website, linked directly to individual names in the electronic database.

The revised database contains the names of 1,950 victims, as well as more than 300 small corrections made to previous data.

Nova Scotia Archives and Records Management acquires, preserves and makes available the province's documentary heritage. The updated Halifax Explosion resource is available on the archives' website at www.gov.ns.ca/nsarm/virtual/remembrance/ .