History Of The Port Joli School/Community Hall
The building that is presently owned by the Port Joli Community Association and is now operated as the Port Joli Community Hall has a long and varied history.
Back in 1867, Canada was plunged into confederation. After confederation, the concept of mandatory education for children was being introduced throughout the provinces. Nova Scotia, being part of the newly formed country, began preparing by encouraging the construction of public schools. Prior to this, some communities managed to find the funds to hire a teacher, held class in a private home and lodged the teacher nearby.
Through public records at the Nova Scotia Archives, it seems a public school for Port Joli was constructed in 1868 for Upper Port Joli serving students on Robertson Hill and around the head of the harbour. See photo: Upper Port Joli School.
A separate smaller school was constructed in Lower Port Joli to serve children living in St. Catherine’s area. See photo: Lower Port Joli School.
Sometimes young women who came to teach in the community would find a husband and settle here. Such was the case with Ada’s mother, Agnes(Feoner) MacAdams as well as Cora/Kay (Smith) Robertson and Mary (Page) Robertson. This photo from the late 1940’s, shows many students who still live in the area today. There was an amalgamation of all the little one room schools and the school in Port Joli closed in 1961 with students moving to the Port Mouton Consolidated School.
The school in Port Joli was always housed on the lower level of the building. We must now go back to the 1800’s and discuss the doings in the upper level of the building. The temperance movement was very popular across North America in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. Heavy alcohol use by men was taking a significant toll on society and families in a time when there were little to no safety nets in place. Women and children left without the necessities of life due to alcohol abuse led to a rise in the organized opposition to « the evils of liquor » in the form of temperance movement and the Temperance Act of 1878 gave rise to the total prohibition of alcohol in some areas during some years. In response, communities established their own temperance societies with organized meetings and too s or buildings to conduct business.
The upper level of the Schoolhouse in Port Joli was used for the local temperance society for a number of years. Part of the protocol for the meetings was to ensure that no one attended who had been consuming alcohol. Thus, a « breathalyzer » door was constructed at the meeting hall entrance. Someone would be posted inside the room to request a breath sample from a prospective attendant who would be requested to « blow in the hole ». If alcohol was detected, admission would be denied. The door exists upstairs to this day.
See photos: Temperance Membership Certificate, 1894; The Breathalyzer Door, 2026.
After the fall in the temperance movement in the early decades of the 1900’s, the upper floor of the school house began to be used as a community hall with many different functions from suppers and pie aids to elections and dances. It was a regular meeting place for the Station No.4 of the Port Jolie (and Port L’Hebert) Fishermen’s Union, apparently organized in 1905 and existed for some time. It was a busy building.
See photo: Fishermens Union 1905
For many years, countless baby showers, birthday parties, meetings and functions occurred in the community hall. For decades and generations this building was the hub of the community, however, at the last turn of the last century, interest in the community hall began to wane, workers were aging and growing tired. The building was in poor repair and the main highway was becoming increasingly busy and dangerous on the sharp corner.
There was even a movement to have the building torn down. Thankfully, in 2007 a determined few decided to fight to keep the building standing and restore it and rejuvenate the community association. It took many years, thousands of fund raising dollars along with countless volunteer hours, but the building was fully restored and the official reopening happened in 20?? In 2011 the building was granted municipal heritage designation by the Region of Queens. The Association became also became a registered charity in 2008.
After a shaky start, the membership has grown significantly in the last 5 years, events are more frequent and the building is taking on its former role as the hub of the community once again. Still strong after over 150 years.
