Norris Whiston has lived on the summit overlooking Earltown for several decades. Although not from the area, he has dedicated thousands of hours to researching the natural and social history of North Colchester. In addition to combing through records at various archives, he has ran, not walked, countless abandoned roads and logging trails. There are very few acres within the bounds of Earltown that he has not explored.

Norris has generously provided a copy of his unpublished research into the land grants of North Colchester and neighbouring communities. On the following pages, you will find an index to the grants with references for future research. Also included are notes that identify the properties and the grantees. The latter comes from various sources, including interviews with various individuals familiar with the area.

First, a bit of background on the land grant process. Immigrants would land in Pictou – some migrating independently and others coming over from Scotland as part of a group recruited for settlement. An agent of the crown in Pictou, usually Hugh Denoon, would give the family a ticket of location. After 1815, it was difficult to find suitable land in West Pictou so the uplands of Colchester and the far reaches of East Pictou became the focus of new settlement. The ticket was later followed with petition for land in which the hopeful grantee provided particulars about his family and requested land in a specific area, likely the land on the location ticket or a lot nearby that wasn’t claimed. The land requested in the petition didn’t always correspond to the eventual grant. In the case of a widow, the eldest son might apply for land. However the colony seemed more progressive than the homeland as the widow was often the one who received title.

Not all grantees were immigrants; second-generation Nova Scotians in Pictou County and Central Colchester were granted land, often along the water courses. Very few of these grantees ever lived in the area. Those immigrants from Scotland who had money, often purchased these lots rather than settle for steep, back country land. By 1832, most of the arrivals purchased land from the Truro or Pictou grantees, sometimes on credit in which case title didn’t transfer for a decade or more after settlement. Those arriving without capital had to settle for remote uplands of questionable farming value.