one of the three Maritime and one of the four Atlantic provinces of Canada, bounded on the N, E, and W by the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and on the S by Northumberland Strait (which separates it from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick).

Prince Edward Island became part of the Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1873, as the seventh province. Farming is the island's chief economic activity. The province is named for Edward Augustus, duke of Kent and Strathern (1767–1820), a son of George III of England. The province is also known as P.E.I. or The Island.

LAND AND RESOURCES

Prince Edward Island, with an area of 5660 sq km (2185 sq mi), is the smallest province of Canada. Its extreme length is about 195 km (about 120 mi), and its extreme width is about 65 km (about 40 mi). The province has a coastline of some 1260 km (some 783 mi), which is indented by many bodies of water, such as Bedeque, Egmont, Hillsborough, and Malpeque bays. Several inlets on the N coast have been largely closed off by sandbars. Some small islands, including Boughton, Lennox, and Saint Peters islands, are part of the province. Elevations range from sea level to 142 m (465 ft), near the community of Hunter River.

Physical Geography.

All of Prince Edward Island is part of the Maritime Plain, which also covers parts of nearby New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The island is situated almost entirely at a low elevation, and the landscape is generally level to gently undulating, with few steep hills. The province is covered with a thick, mostly stone-free mantle of glacial deposits. Iron in the underlying rock has given much of the fertile surface soil a reddish color. Nearly all the rivers of Prince Edward Island are tidal; the tidal Hillsborough R. almost bisects the province. No freshwater lakes of significant size occur.

Climate.

Prince Edward Island has a cool, changeable climate. The average July temperature at Charlottetown is about 18.4° C (about 65° F), and the average January temperature in the city is about –6.7° C (about 20° F). The recorded temperature has ranged from a low of –37.2° C (–35° F) in 1884, at Kilmahumaig in the NW, to a high of 36.7° C (98.1° F) in 1935, at Charlottetown. Northumberland Strait and its arms usually freeze over in winter, and the island is normally icebound for a few months each year. Spring is late; often snow is on the ground in the latter part of April. The growing season, however, extends into October and averages some 150 days, which is longer than in other parts of the Maritime provinces. The average annual precipitation of about 1120 mm (about 44 in) is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year; about one-fourth of the precipitation is in the form of snow.

Plants and Animals.

About one-half of Prince Edward Island is covered with forest, usually in the form of relatively small lots. The forest is mostly a mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees such as sugar maple, yellow birch, red spruce, balsam fir, hemlock, and white pine. The wildlife of the province is limited. Small numbers of white-tailed deer and black bear are among the few large mammals; fur-bearing animals such as beaver, muskrat, mink, otter, and red fox also inhabit the island. Many marine animals, notably lobster, oysters, clams, scallops, cod, and hake, live in coastal waters. A commercially valuable alga called Irish moss is harvested along the shoreline.

Mineral Resources.

Prince Edward Island has few known mineral resources aside from such basic materials as sand and gravel. Significant petroleum and natural-gas deposits may lie underneath coastal waters, however.        W.F.S., WILLIAM F. SUMMERS

POPULATION

According to the 2001 census, Prince Edward Island had 135,294 inhabitants. From 1991 to 1996 the population grew by 3.7%, but between 1996 and 2001 it increased by only 0.5%. The overall population density in 2001 was 24 persons per sq km (nearly 62 per sq mi). English was the sole mother tongue of about 94% of the people; about 4% had French as their lone first language. Approximately 1100 North American Indians, 230 Métis (persons of mixed aboriginal and European ancestry), and 20 Inuit lived in the province in 2001. The largest religious groups included Roman Catholics (63,240), members of the United Church of Canada (26,570), and Presbyterians (7885). Prince Edward Island is the least urbanized of Canada's provinces; only 44.8% of the people live in areas defined as urban and the rest live in rural areas. Charlottetown, the capital, and Summerside are the only cities in the province; Stratford and Cornwall are the largest towns.

EDUCATION AND CULTURAL ACTIVITY

Prince Edward Island has notable cultural and educational institutions as well as several points of historical interest.

Education.

The first schools in Prince Edward Island were established in the early 19th century, and a provincial board of education was formed in the 1870s. In 1972, school boards were consolidated into five regional divisions. In the early 1990s the province had 73 elementary and secondary schools with a combined annual enrollment of about 25,000 students. The only university in the province, the University of Prince Edward Island, situated in Charlottetown, was formed in 1969 by the merger of Prince of Wales College (1835) and Saint Dunstan's University (1855). It is attended by about 3500 students each year. Holland College (1969), with branches in Charlottetown, Summerside, and other towns, also offers postsecondary instruction.

Cultural Institutions.

The most important cultural institution in Prince Edward Island is the Confederation Centre of the Arts, opened in 1964 in Charlottetown, which contains a museum, theaters, the city's major library, and art galleries. Other museums in the province include the Musée Acadien, in Miscouche; the House of International Dolls, in Bonshaw; the Woodleigh Replicas, near Kensington, with large-scale models of famous buildings such as the York Minster of England; and the Basin Head Fisheries Museum, near Souris.

Historical Sites.

Fort Amherst National Historic Site, near Charlottetown, encompasses the sites of French and English fortifications of the 18th century. Some ruins are still visible. Province House National Historic Site (1847), in Charlottetown, is the meeting place of the provincial Legislative Assembly and contains the Confederation Room, used in 1864 for discussions that helped prepare the way for Canadian confederation in 1867. Also of historical interest are the birthplace, in New London, of the author Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874–1942), who wrote the popular novel Anne of Green Gables (1908), and the Micmac Indian Village, near Rocky Point, a re-creation of an 18th-century Indian community.

Sports and Recreation.

Prince Edward Island National Park, the provincial parks, and the province's many beaches offer ideal conditions for swimming, fishing, boating, camping, and golfing. The island also has facilities for skiing. Harness racing is a popular spectator sport, with important races in Charlottetown and Summerside. The Prince Edward Island Sports Hall of Fame is in Summerside.

Communications.

In the late 1980s Prince Edward Island was served by four commercial radio stations, three AM and one FM. The province had three daily newspapers—the Guardian and the Patriot, published in Charlottetown, and the Journal-Pioneer, published in Summerside—with a total daily circulation of about 35,200.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Prince Edward Island has a parliamentary form of government.

Executive.

The nominal chief executive of Prince Edward Island is a lieutenant governor, who is appointed by the Canadian governor-general in council to a term of five years. The lieutenant governor represents the British sovereign and holds a position that is largely honorary. The premier, most often the leader of the majority party in the provincial legislature, is the actual head of the provincial government and presides over the executive council (cabinet). In addition to the premier, the executive council is made up of eight ministers who head the departments of agriculture and forestry, community affairs (including the office of the attorney general), education, economic development and tourism, fisheries and environment, health and social services, provincial treasury, and transportation and public works.

Legislature.

The unicameral Prince Edward Island Legislative Assembly is made up of 27 members, including the premier and the rest of the executive council. Members of the legislature are popularly elected to terms of no more than five years.

Judiciary.

Prince Edward Island's highest tribunal, the supreme court, consists of three divisions: appellate, trial, and bankruptcy. Lesser matters are handled in the provincial courts. Judges of the supreme court are federally appointed; provincial court judges are appointed by the executive council.

Local Government.

Prince Edward Island is divided into three counties, which are mainly geographical divisions and have no government structure. The province has two cities and seven towns; most of the towns employ the mayor-council form of government.

National Representation.

Prince Edward Island is represented in the Canadian Parliament by four senators appointed by the Canadian governor-general in council and by four members of the House of Commons popularly elected to terms of up to five years.

Politics.

The Liberal party controlled the Prince Edward Island Legislative Assembly for most of the years from the mid-1930s through the late 1970s. The Progressive Conservative party was in power in the province from 1959 to 1966 and again from 1979 to 1986, when the Liberals regained a majority. The Conservatives were restored to power in 1996, expanded their majority in 2000, and retained 23 of 27 seats in the September 2003 balloting. Liberals have dominated federal politics in recent years, winning all four of Prince Edward Island's seats in the House of Commons in the elections of June 2004 and January 2006.

ECONOMY

Prince Edward Island has a mixed economy in which manufacturing, farming, and service industries all play a major role. Fishing and tourism are also significant sources of income.

Agriculture.

Prince Edward Island has much fertile soil, and more than one-quarter of its land area is used for crops. The province has about 2360 farms, which have the relatively small average size of 110 ha (271 acres). The annual value of farm production in the early 1990s was approximately Can.$216 million. Table and seed potatoes are the most valuable crop; considerable quantities of barley, hay, peas, beans, broccoli, brussels sprouts, tobacco, and such fruit as strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries also are produced. Cattle, poultry, and hogs are raised widely, and dairy products are an important source of income. More than one commodity is produced on almost all farms in the province.

Forestry and Fishing.

Compared with the other Canadian provinces, Prince Edward Island has a very small forest-products industry. Its total annual production in the late 1980s was only about 460,000 cu m (about 16.2 million cu ft).

The yearly value of the Prince Edward Island fish catch in the early 1990s was some Can.$60 million, with lobster accounting for the majority of the total. Other sources of income were landings of cod, crab, blue-fin tuna, and redfish. Irish moss, an alga used in food processing, is harvested along the shoreline.

Mining and Manufacturing.

Little commercial mining activity takes place on the island; annual mineral output (virtually all sand and gravel) was worth about Can.$2 million in the early 1990s.

Prince Edward Island has a small manufacturing sector compared with other Canadian provinces. The yearly value of shipments was approximately Can.$449 million in the early 1990s. Fish and agricultural products are the most important manufactures. Chemical products, printed materials, machinery, and wood products also are produced on the island. Most enterprises are small scale.

Tourism.

The tourist industry is important to Prince Edward Island's economy. Each year the province attracts approximately 560,000 visitors, who spend more than Can.$80 million. The province's major attractions include the lovely countryside, the opportunities for fishing and swimming, and Prince Edward Island National Park. The province maintains a system of about 30 parks, recreation areas, campgrounds, and roadside rest sites.

Transportation.

Prince Edward Island has about 5240 km (about 3255 mi) of highways and roads. The province has no mainline railroad service. Charlottetown is the main seaport of the island. The Confederation Bridge, the province's first fixed link with New Brunswick, opened in 1997; the structure extends 13 km (8 mi) across the Northumberland Strait, connecting Borden, P.E.I., with Jourimain Island, N.B. Ferry service to and from Nova Scotia runs during the summer months, when coastal waters are not ice covered. The principal airport serves Charlottetown.

Energy.

Unlike the other Maritime provinces, Prince Edward Island has no hydroelectric installations. Installed electricity-generating capacity is only 122,100 kw, of which 58% derives from conventional steam-powered generators, 33% from gas-powered turbines, and 9% from internal combustion engines. In the 1990s, however, virtually all of Prince Edward Island's electricity was accessed from other provinces, via an underwater cable in the Northumberland Strait.        A.H., ALFRED HECHT, M.A., Ph.D.

HISTORY

The territory now called Prince Edward Island was reached in 1534 by the French explorer Jacques Cartier, who found Micmac Indians living here. In 1603 Samuel de Champlain claimed the island for France and called it Île St-Jean. The island, a part of the French province of Acadia, held little interest for the Europeans and supported only temporary fishing villages for nearly 200 years. After 1713, when the British acquired mainland Acadia from France, French authorities encouraged the Acadians and new arrivals from France to settle on the island. The British won control of Île St-Jean in 1745; France regained sovereignty in 1748. British troops occupied the island in 1758, during the French and Indian War; it was finally ceded to Great Britain by the Treaty of Paris in 1763, when it was renamed Saint John's Island and became part of Nova Scotia. Most of the French settlers were expelled between 1753 and 1763.

Under British Control.

In 1767 the land was divided into 67 large lots, which were granted to British citizens to whom the government of Great Britain was indebted. Settlers were thus forced to become tenant farmers. Settlement was slow and the colony isolated; the establishment of responsible government and a prosperous economy was delayed by strife between tenant farmers and the absentee landlords. The island was separated from Nova Scotia in 1769 and an independent administration established. In 1799 the island was renamed to honor the son of King George III, Edward Augustus, duke of Kent and Strathern, the commander in chief of royal forces in North America.

Responsible government was granted in 1851. A brief period of prosperity ensued in the 1850s and '60s, when native-built wooden ships carried island products all over the world. Although Charlottetown was the scene of the first Canadian Confederation conference in 1864, Prince Edward Island refused to join the Confederation of Canada when it was established in 1867. The islanders finally were led to do so in 1873 after an attempt by the colonial government to build a railroad left the colony bankrupt. The terms under which the island became a province provided that the federal government take over the railroad, provide and maintain year-round ferry service, establish telegraph communications, and buy out the absentee landlords and permit former tenants to buy the land cheaply. In addition to complying with these requirements, the Canadian government initiated a policy of providing annual subsidies and per capita grants to the province and remission of some federal taxes.

Since Confederation.

Canada's smallest province has enjoyed a quiet history since Confederation. The island's economy, based on fishing and farming, changed little until the mid-20th century. The population actually declined from 109,000 in 1891 to 88,000 in 1931 as islanders went to the mainland in search of employment. (During the last half century, the population has grown to more than 130,000.) After 1950 agriculture was slowly modernized; the number of farms decreased, while their size increased. A similar process brought specialization and lower employment to the fisheries. Since the mid-1960s tourism has become a major source of income. Federal transfer payments and social policies have been especially important in bringing educational and health benefits to islanders. In the late 1970s completion of the maritime power grid made available to the province additional and cheaper sources of energy.

Political power in the province has alternated between the Liberal party and the Progressive Conservative party. The Liberals won the parliamentary elections of 1986 and increased their majority in 1989. In 1993 Catherine Callbeck (1939–    ), also a Liberal, became the first woman to win election as premier of a Canadian province. Following a Conservative victory in the elections of November 1996, Pat Binns (1948–    ) became premier. He led the Tories to landslide victories in the elections of April 2000 and September 2003. Turnout for the 2003 vote exceeded 80 percent, despite a hurricane that struck the island early on election day, causing widespread power outages and substantial property damage.         Rev. by P.R., PAUL FREDERIC WILLIAM RUTHERFORD, M.A., Ph.D.

For further information on this topic, see the Bibliography, section 1116. Nova Scotia.