The Gaelic at the bottom of the town's welcome sign reads "
Ciad Mile Failte", which translates literally to "
First Mile Welcome". We're not sure what that means.
In any event, Antigonish is home to
St. Francis Xavier University and the oldest continuously held Highland games outside Scotland. It is also the site of
Saint Ninian's Cathedral, the Episcopal seat of the Catholic Diocese of Antigonish since 1886, when the seat of the Diocese was moved from Arichat to Antigonish.
The
Town of Antigonish, (present population 5,195) was first settled in 1784 by Scots settlers as Dorchester, after Sir Guy Carleton, then Governor General of Canada and subsequently Lord Dorchester. By the late 1820s Dorchester came to be known as Antigonish. St. Francis Xavier University, founded in 1853 in Arichat, Cape Breton Island, was established in Antigonish in 1855. Originally a Catholic Seminary, St. FX became a full university in 1866.
Possibly the most notable local achievement is the launching of the
Antigonish Movement by priests and educators at St. Francis Xavier University in 1920. The object of The Movement was to empower farmers, fishermen, small business owners and others to create their own economic destinies, primarily through appropriate and meaningful education. The Movement was based upon six essential principals:
• The Primacy Of The Individual
• Social Reform Must Come Through Education
• Education Must Begin With The Economic
• Education Must Be Through Group Action
• Effective Social Reform Involves Fundamental Changes In Social And Economic Institutions
• The Ultimate Objective Of The Movement Is A Full And Abundant Life
For Everyone In The Community