Prince Edward Island

To its inhabitants, Prince Edward Island is not so much a place as a special way of life. Throughout the Island's history, Islanders have planted their roots deep in the undulating, verdant countryside. Indeed, for 200 years the family farm tradition in this 'Million Acre Farm', this 'Garden of the Gulf', has been the backbone of PEI society, reflecting in the Island's political, social, and cultural institutions. Agriculture has dominated the island, and even its other major industries, such as fishing, shipbuilding, fox farming, and indigenous manufacturing, have always been marked by an unmistakably rural character, as have the self-sufficient villages with their churches, schools, community halls, and small businesses; the larger towns; and Charlottetown, the capital city. While modern technology and political centralization have dictated radical changes in the traditional agricultural milieu, there remains on part of most Islanders a determination to preserve their Island's pastoral serenity. Wayne Barrett. Anne MacKay, and Francis W.P.Bolger portray in word and picture the rich heritage that is Prince Edward Island's history and its way of life.