Exploring Cape Breton Island (Part-2)
Cheticamp
This vibrant town is the largest Acadian community in Nova Scotia. Its beautiful Saint Pierre Church is visible from miles out at sea. The Acadians of Cape Breton are skilled craftspeople, and the town’s seven cooperatives produce pottery and hooked rugs. Cheticamp’s best-known rug hooker was Elizabeth Le-Fort, whose large and intricate works depicting prominent moments in history have hung in the Vatican and in the White
House. Several of her finest rugs are on display at the Dr. Elizabeth LeFort Museum at Les Trois Pignons. Cheticamp is also a popular whale-watching destination; tours are available for seeing many varieties of whale.
Attractions:
Dr. Elizabeth LeFort Museum
15584 Main St.
Tel: (902) 224 2642.
Sydney
The only city on Cape Breton Island, Sydney is the thirdlargest town in Nova Scotia.
Boasting the biggest steel plant in North America, the town is the region’s industrial center. Despite this, Sydney has a small, attractive historic district around the Esplanade, with several restored buildings, such as Cossit House and Jost House, both dating from the 1870s. Downtown, boutiques, stores, and restaurants can be found along the town’s main drag, Charlotte Street.
Attractions:
Sydney
Tel: (902) 539 9876.
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was born in 1847 in Scotland. Bell’s mother was deaf, and, as a child, he became fascinated by speech and communication. In 1870, Bell and his family moved to Ontario.
His work involved transmitting the voice electronically, and he began experimenting with variations of the technology used by the telegraph. In 1876 he transmitted the world’s first telephone message, “Watson, come here, I want you.” With the patenting of his invention, Bell secured his role as one of the men who changed the world. In 1877, Bell married Mabel Hubbard, one of his deaf students. In 1885, the couple visited Cape Breton, where Bell later built his beautiful estate, Beinn Bhreagh, by Bras d’Or Lake. There he lived and worked each summer until he died in 1922. In Baddeck, the Alexander Graham Bell Museum focuses on his life and varied work.
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