On December 6th 1917 two cargo ships traveling through Halifax harbour collided, creating the largest explosion until the detonation of the atomic bomb. The explosion killed many people and devastated Halifax, its harbour and the neighbouring towns of Richmond and Darmouth. The towns surrounding the harbour were thriving thanks to the war overseas and their populations grew drastically. Halifax quickly became a "boom" town by 1917, only three years after the war. Halifax's population was about 50, 000 before the explosion, which at the time was one of the largest in Atlantic Canada. Businesses and industries around the harbour were on the rise since everything in Halifax revolved around the harbour. Since WWI broke out, Halifax harbour was extremely busy due to wartime shipping. It was so busy that the harbour traffic control couldn't keep up with the sheer volume of ships passing through daily. Collisions were frequent in the harbour. The ships usually followed "the rules of the......
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