Editing Halifax Explosion (section)

==Background==
{{Further|History of Halifax|History of Nova Scotia}}
[[File:Halifax, Nova Scotia, looking north from a grain elevator towards Acadia Sugar Refinery, ca. 1900.jpg|thumb|alt=Cityscape bisected by central traintracks, with dense buildings to the left and harbourfront to the right|Looking north from a grain elevator towards Acadia Sugar Refinery, circa 1900, showing the area later devastated by the 1917 explosion]]
Dartmouth lies on the east shore of [[Halifax Harbour]], and Halifax is on the west shore. By 1917, "Halifax's inner harbour had become a principal assembly point for merchant convoys leaving for Britain and France."{{sfn|Sutherland|2017|p=1}} Halifax and Dartmouth had thrived during times of war; the harbour was one of the British [[Royal Navy]]'s most important bases in North America, a centre for wartime trade, and a home to [[privateers]] who harried the British Empire's enemies during the [[American Revolution]], the [[Napoleonic Wars]], and the [[War of 1812]].{{sfn|Mac Donald|2005|p=5}}{{sfn|Flemming|2004|p=9}}

The completion of the [[Intercolonial Railway]] and its Deep Water Terminal in 1880 allowed for increased steamship trade and led to accelerated development of the port area,{{sfn|Flemming|2004|p=11}} but Halifax faced an economic downturn in the 1890s as local factories struggled to compete with businesses in central Canada.<ref>{{cite book|author1= Fingard, Judith |author2=Guildford, Janet |author3=Sutherland, David |title=Halifax: The First 250 Years|year=1999|publisher=Formac Publishing|page=98}}</ref> The British garrison left the city in late 1905 and early 1906.{{sfn|Bird|1995|p=36}}{{sfn|Armstrong|2002|pp=10–11}} The Canadian government took over the [[Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax|Halifax Dockyard]] (now [[CFB Halifax]]) from the Royal Navy.{{sfn|Johnston|Rawling|Gimblett|2011|p=96}} This dockyard later became the command centre of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] upon its founding in 1910.{{sfn|Armstrong|2002|pp=9–11}}

Just before the [[World War I|First World War]], the Canadian government began a determined, costly effort to develop the harbour and waterfront facilities.{{sfn|Flemming|2004|p=13}} The outbreak of the war brought Halifax back to prominence. As the Royal Canadian Navy had virtually no seaworthy ships of its own, the Royal Navy assumed responsibility for maintaining Atlantic trade routes by re-adopting Halifax as its North American base of operations.{{sfn|Bird|1995|pp=37–38}} In 1915, management of the harbour fell under the control of the Royal Canadian Navy; by 1917 there was a growing naval fleet in Halifax, including [[Patrol boat|patrol ships]], [[tugboat]]s, and [[minesweeper]]s.{{sfn|Armstrong|2002|pp=10, 14}}

The population of Halifax/Dartmouth had increased to between 60,000 and 65,000 people by 1917.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1172270-halifax-explosion-memorial-service-draws-large-crowd |title= Halifax Explosion memorial service draws large crowd |author= Mellor, Clare |work= Journal News |date=6 December 2013|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150614051535/http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1172270-halifax-explosion-memorial-service-draws-large-crowd|archivedate=14 June 2015}}</ref> Convoys carried men, animals, and supplies to the [[European theatre of World War I|European theatre of war]]. The two main points of departure were in Nova Scotia at [[Sydney, Nova Scotia|Sydney]], on [[Cape Breton Island]], and Halifax.<ref>{{cite journal |title= Sydney, Nova Scotia and the U-Boat War, 1918 |author1=Tennyson, Brian |author2= Sarty, Roger |journal= Canadian Military History |volume=7 |issue=1 |year=1998 |pages= 29–41}}</ref> [[Hospital ship]]s brought the wounded to the city, so a new military hospital was constructed.{{sfn|Kitz|Payzant|2006|pp=12–13}}

The success of [[U-boat Campaign (World War I)|German U-boat attacks]] on ships crossing the Atlantic Ocean led the [[Allies of World War I|Allies]] to institute a convoy system to reduce losses while transporting goods and soldiers to Europe.{{sfn|Kitz|Payzant|2006|p=12}} [[Merchant ships]] gathered at [[Bedford Basin]] on the northwestern end of the harbour, which was protected by two sets of [[anti-submarine net]]s and guarded by patrol ships of the Royal Canadian Navy.{{sfn|Kitz|Payzant|2006|p=13}}

The convoys departed under the protection of British [[cruisers]] and [[destroyer]]s.{{sfn|Mac Donald|2005|pp=9–10}} A large army [[garrison]] protected the city with forts, [[gun battery|gun batteries]], and anti-submarine nets. These factors drove a major military, industrial, and residential expansion of the city,{{sfn|Armstrong|2002|pp=10–11}} and the weight of goods passing through the harbour increased nearly ninefold.{{sfn|Mac Donald|2005|p=8}} All [[Neutrality (international relations)|neutral]] ships bound for ports in North America were required to report to Halifax for inspection.<ref name=scan>{{cite journal|url=http://www.cnrs-scrn.org/northern_mariner/vol10/tnm_10_4_39-50.pdf|author=Scanlon, Joseph|title=Sources of threat and sources of assistance: the maritime aspects of the 1917 Halifax Explosion|journal=The Northern Mariner|pages=39–50|volume=X|issue=4|date=October 2000}}</ref>