Welcome to the Village of Waverley

Virtual Tour

Today, the Village of Waverley is a part of the Halifax Regional Municipality. It is a thriving community, nestled in a natural setting of lakes and forests. It features several community organizations and facilities. With Bedford and Sackville only 10 minutes away, Waverley offers a convenient escape from the city.

Come on a Virtual Tour of Waverley and see for yourself!

This tour begins at what was once a central point for Waverley, the old St. John the Baptist Anglican Church, or Waverley Heritage Museum as it's known today.

Located at 1319 Rocky Lake Drive, the Waverley Heritage Museum which a variety of artifacts and information about the area's history. The museum is open daily during July and August and during Gold Rush Days in September. During the off-season, it can be visited by appointment. For more information, please see the Heritage Society and Museum's page.

Just up past the museum, following School Street, we can see the first of the two schools in Waverley; Waverley Memorial Elementary School. Partnered with Memorial is L.C. Skerry School, and together they have a population of approximately three hundred students ranging from primary to grade six. L.C. Skerry is just to the west over the hill, and can be accessed from Rocky Lake Drive. Turning left back onto Rocky Lake Drive, we can continue the tour.

Looking down the railroad tracks that cross Rocky Lake Drive, one can see the past site of an old railway station, sidings and freight shed on the right side of the road. The buildings are no longer there but there are photos of these structures at the museum.

Moving over the train tracks and up the hill takes you to the Royal Canadian Legion: Dieppe Branch Number 90. This is a favorite meeting place for many residents, and there are always special events taking place. See the legion news page for event information.

Driving on down the road, you will come across a park to the right, but before we go into the park, take a second to look at the large house on the left. The land that this house is built on once belonged to the Acadia Powder Mill Company and the spot where the house now stands had the Manager's house on it.

Now onto the Powder Mill Park. This park is named after the Acadia Powder Mill Company that once owned many acres of land at this spot. The Powder Mill manufactured explosives until a large explosion occurred in 1873. The explosion occurred in a drying house containing 3 to 4 tons of powder, and the sound was heard all the way to Halifax! This park is a nice place to swim or to have a picnic.

Further along Rocky Lake Drive, near Rocky Lake, was Waverley's access to the railroad, before we received our own station. First class fare to Halifax in 1871 was 32 cents. Also located here was an ice-house, from which ice was exported to the United States.

Turning around, we head back to the museum to begin the next part of our journey, Cobequid Road.

Directly across from the museum is the site of the old Waverley General Store and Post Office which, along with the church, made this a very central location. The old store has since been rebuilt into an office building, and is now the site of EnviroSeal Engineering Products Ltd.

Along the Cobequid Road we can see many of the old homes of Waverley's early gold mining days. Cobequid Road was once called "the road to the diggings" because this was the road that once lead to some of the mines. Mines were located on American Hill (to the right), and across the road were the German Mines. The German Mines location was also at one time a fuse factory.

Of particular interest is the big yellow house on the left-hand side, opposite American Hill Road. This house was once a mine manager's home.

Moving just a bit further down the road, we can enter the Charles L. McDonald Sportspark. The park provides beautiful walking trails and picnic areas, all on the edge of beautiful Lake Thomas. Please feel free to come as a guest but if you would like to continue using the park please obtain an application form for a free pass from Bob McDonald: (902) 861-2482.

This ends our trip down Cobequid Road. Returning to the museum, we can continue our tour down the Rocky Lake Drive to what is now the center of the Village, and then down Waverley Road.

Our first stop is the large yellow house on the left-hand side, across from the post office. This home is now the Rosehip Bed and Breakfast, but was originally the Waverley Gold Mining Company mine manager's home and office.

Moving just a little further down the road we come across a large house set back from the road on the left-hand side. This house was once the home of Charles P. Allen and his family. C.P. Allen is responsible for the naming of Waverley, and one of the first gold finds was made on his land. Presently, the home is being used as a Bed and Breakfast. For more information please see the Waverley History page and in particular the section on C.P. Allen.

Just before the end of Rocky Lake Drive there is a bridge that separates Lakes Thomas (left) and William (right). This bridge and the lakes are part of the historic Shubenacadie Canal System. The canal was used for shipping in the 1800s. The bridge over the canal was once a drawbridge that lifted to let canal traffic through. For more information see our Shubenacadie Canal page.

After crossing the bridge, to your right is the Waverley Irving Mainway (a gas station and convenience store). This site used to be the Waverley Hotel; the gas station was opposite on Waverley Road. The Waverley Hotel had a barber shop and an ice cream parlor in the basement. Hotel Eldora, and others, were located in this area as well. Hotel Eldora was built into the side of a hill near Crosby Road, and goats grazing on the hill would often walk down over the roof.

Across from the Irving station is the Village Green. The Green is used for various activities, such as childrens's sports and our Gold Rush Days festival in September. The Waverley Volunteer Fire Department, whose hall is also used for village activities, is located at the other end of the field. There used to be a large house on the Village Green. It was torn down when the traffic through Waverley got heavier, because its door opened right onto the road!

Turning south at the stop sign at the end of Rocky Lake Drive will take us to the next and final leg of our journey. The first point of interest is the hill on the eastern side of the road. This hill is called Laidlaw hill and was the second site of Gold Mining in Waverley.

Along the Waverley Road we can see Frame Subdivision and the Department of Natural Resources. DNR provides a boat launch used to access Lake William. Further along the Waverley Road we come across Silversides Subdivision and Silversides Beach. Silversides Beach is a private beach owned and operated by Silversides Subdivision's residents.

Our last stop is the other end of Lake William. When the Shubenacadie Canal was in operation there was a trolley-like series of rollers that enabled vessels to be portaged between Lake William and Lake Charles. At the Lake William end of the portage there was an inclined plane, equipped with rollers, used to facilitate bringing the vessels in and out of the water. Today all that remains is the outline of the plane and the cleared land.

This concludes our virtual tour of the Village of Waverley. To see more of our beautiful village, please come visit us. We'd love to see you!