Best Web Design in Halifax, NS (2026)

Web Design for Halifax, Nova Scotia

Halifax is the capital of Nova Scotia and the economic heart of Atlantic Canada, built around one of the world's great natural harbours and guarded by the star-shaped fortress on Citadel Hill. Founded as a British military town in 1749, it survived the catastrophic 1917 Halifax Explosion and served as the mainland base for recovering Titanic victims in 1912. Its residents, called Haligonians, mix deep naval history with a lively music scene, a working waterfront boardwalk and a fierce loyalty to the donair.

AppWT works with Halifax, NS businesses from Livonia, Michigan, mostly online and travelling as needed.

About Halifax

Also known as. Warden of the North. Hali. City of Trees / Tree City of the World.

History. The Halifax area was inhabited seasonally by the Mi'kmaq before European arrival; the site was visited by Samuel de Champlain around 1605. The British founded a fortified town in 1749 when Edward Cornwallis arrived with about 2,500 settlers, as a counterbalance to the French fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton. In the 1790s Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, commanded Nova Scotia and shaped the city's defences, leaving landmarks such as the Town Clock on Citadel Hill and St. George's Round Church. On 6 December 1917 the munitions ship SS Mont-Blanc collided with the SS Imo in the harbour and detonated, devastating the city's Richmond district; at least 1,782 people were killed and about 9,000 injured, in what was the largest human-made explosion before the atomic age. In 1912 Halifax was the base for recovering victims of the Titanic; 121 victims are buried at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, and the body-identification system was later echoed after the 1917 explosion. The historically Black community of Africville was forcibly relocated and demolished in the 1960s, a decision later recognized as a violation of human rights. On 1 April 1996 the city amalgamated with neighbouring municipalities to form the Halifax Regional Municipality.

Local economy. Halifax is the economic centre of Atlantic Canada, concentrating government offices and private companies. Major employers include the Department of National Defence (CFB Halifax / Royal Canadian Navy east-coast base), Dalhousie University, the Nova Scotia Health Authority, Saint Mary's University, the Halifax Shipyard and the Port of Halifax. The Port of Halifax is among Canada's top container ports, handling major international trade volumes. Tourism has become an increasingly significant part of the economy, centred on the harbour and historic downtown.

Culture and community. The donair - a spicy-sweet, Middle-East-inspired wrap - was named the official food of the Halifax Regional Municipality in 2015, making Halifax the only Canadian city with an official food. Alexander Keith's brewery on the waterfront has operated for more than 200 years and is one of the oldest operating breweries in North America. Halifax has a strong indie-rock heritage: Sloan formed there in 1991 and Joel Plaskett's earlier band Thrush Hermit formed in 1992, and the city hosts the Halifax Pop Explosion music festival. The Halifax International Busker Festival runs each August around the Natal Day long weekend on the waterfront. Hockey superstar Sidney Crosby was born in Halifax and grew up in nearby Cole Harbour.

What makes Halifax distinct. Halifax is the only city in Canada to have declared an official food (the donair). The 1917 Halifax Explosion was the largest human-made explosion in history until the atomic bomb. Each year Nova Scotia sends a large Christmas tree to Boston as a thank-you for the relief Boston rushed north after the 1917 explosion. The nickname 'Warden of the North' comes from Citadel Hill and the harbour fortifications that made Halifax the Royal Navy's key strategic base in eastern North America; it is also the title of Thomas Raddall's book about the city. Halifax has been recognized as a 'Tree City of the World' by the UN's FAO and the Arbor Day Foundation for several consecutive years. Residents are known as Haligonians.

Halifax Landmarks and Local Life

• Halifax Citadel (Fort George) on Citadel Hill - with the Old Town Clock built under the Duke of Kent
• The Halifax waterfront boardwalk - roughly four kilometres long and among the longest in the world, with views of Georges Island and the working port
• Halifax Public Gardens - established in 1836, one of North America's finest surviving Victorian-era gardens
• Halifax Common - Canada's oldest urban park, on land King George III gifted 'for the use of the inhabitants... forever' in 1763
• The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 - the historic gateway for immigrants to Canada
• Fairview Lawn Cemetery - resting place of 121 Titanic victims