Most of us have forgotten that much of the south end of Halifax was part of the original Common. It is an enjoyable walk to recreate the boundaries of the historic South Common and visualize how large the original Common was when the North and South Common were one.

Let’s start at the intersection of Sackville Street and Summer Street, at the gateway to the Camphill Cemetery. If you have time, you could also explore the Camphill Cemetery.

If you turn your back to the gate of the Camphill Cemetery, you will be looking across to the Public Gardens on the right and the Wanders Grounds to the left. The Public Gardens were once part of the Common. Part of the Wanderers Grounds are currently under threat to be privatized for the benefit of a for-profit corporation.

A little further to your left is the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History, built on former Common land.

Start your walk by turning right and following Summer Street to the intersection of Spring Garden Road. The name “Spring Garden” comes from an early garden further east and reminded citizens of a place in London where many had come from. In 1818, lease grants of land were being carved off of the Halifax Common for private use. In 1837 the Nova Scotia provincial legislature granted the Nova Scotia Horticultural Society 51/2 acres of land to start what is now known as the Public Gardens.

To the right of the intersection, many fine homes once stood but most were demolished in the 1960’s. This area of the South Common was sold to raise money for the town of Halifax, which was incorporated in 1841.

Opposite the Public Gardens, on the south side of Spring Garden Road, is the Sacred Heart School. Originally established in 1849 further east on Spring Garden, the Ladies of the Sacred Heart moved to this location in 1852 to establish the Convent of the Sacred Heart on a much larger piece of land that was part of the South Common. This was Halifax’s first boarding school and remains a private Catholic day school.

Cross Spring Garden Road to the opposite/south side and stay on the right/west side of Summer Street until you come to College Street. College Street was named at the request of the Halifax Medical College that was located up the block to the right/west at the corner of Carleton Street from 1875 to 1900. This private school did not meet with success and closed.

The Salvation Army Grace Maternity Hospital opened in 1922 along this section of Summer Street between College and University Streets and was affiliated with Dalhousie Medical School. It closed in 1992 when a new maternity building opened a block away. It was thought the former site would return to public open space as part of the Common, however after Dalhousie operated the vacant land for twelve years as a parking lot, it received a minor variance to build the Dalhousie University Brain Repair Centre at the northern (College St) end of the lot.

On the opposite side/east of Summer Street is land that during World War II was the location of the Cathedral Barracks. During the war, 22,000 women joined the Canadian Women’s Army Corps and some of those women lived at the Cathedral Barracks.

Proceed across University Avenue, (Summer Street ends). University Avenue was the upper part of Morris Street until after World War II. With increased enrolment of returning service personnel and more buildings added to the western end of Studley Field of Dalhousie University, the street was renamed in 1950. A grassy boulevard was already in place so this distinguished it from the lower part of Morris Street.

South of University Avenue is the last portion of the South Common. You can walk straight ahead into the hospital parking areas to get a view of the buildings. In front of the Dixon Building there are pieces of granite from Victorian hospital buildings demolished to make way for new. To your left/east is the Victoria General Hospital where you will have a sweeping view of the front parking lot.

Continued building and demolitions has gradually filled this part of the South Common and any open space is now mostly dedicated to parking.
Looking east over the front parking lot of the VG hospital you will see a graveyard behind a fence in the distance. This is Holy Cross Roman Catholic Cemetery and is also well worth a visit if you have time.

Go back to the sidewalk along University Avenue. Walk east towards the traffic lights at University and South Park Street. At the traffic lights look across South Park Street to the right and see a streetscape of registered heritage houses built in the 1890s by Halifax businessman George Wright.

While some of the architectural details have been lost it is still an impressive grouping. George Wright is remembered as one of the wealthy passengers lost in the sinking of the Titanic in 1915.
Turn left and proceed across University Avenue to Victoria Park on the South Common, a lovely green area that remains public land. Walk north along South Park Street side of Victoria Park.
You are now back to Spring Garden Road opposite the Public Gardens beautiful gate.

You can return to Summer Street at Sackville Street by continuing along the Gardens’ fence on South Park Street, then left on Sackville Street past the former head gardener’s house and green houses. You can also go through the Gardens and enjoy the calm in the middle of a busy city.