Prince Edward Island has been known by many names throughout history, including the Million Acre Farm, the Garden of the Gulf, the Land of Anne, Spud Island, and the Cradle of Confederation. Each of these names points to a specific aspect of the Island’s rich cultural, agricultural, and political history.
In Prince Edward Island: An Illustrated History, Douglas Baldwin takes the reader on a journey through the incidents and events that have shaped the province and its inhabitants throughout their development, from the first Aboriginal presence over eleven thousand years ago to the arrival of the European settlers in the early eighteenth century to the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 to the opening of the Confederation Bridge in 1997. Along the way, he peppers the narrative with stories of the many people and places that have played a role in making PEI both a tightly knit rural community and an immensely popular tourist destination. Illustrated throughout with over one hundred spectacular historical photos and illustrations, Prince Edward Island: An Illustrated History is a must-read for anyone who has fallen in love with Canada’s smallest province.
Douglas Baldwin has written six books and a dozen articles on Island history, including the award-winning Abegweit: Land of the Red Soil. He has taught at UPEI and Acadia University. He is now retired and lives in Toronto, ON.