#1Politics & Law
Peter MacKay
born 1965Canadian politician
21 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Famous people · New Glasgow, Nova Scotia
47 famous people from New Glasgow, many of them leaders
Most widely known is Peter MacKay, the Canadian politician, with articles in 21 languages. 13 of them were born between 1914 and 1945, more than in any other period. The list runs from John Rankin, born in 1820, to Brody Blair, born in 1991. Births since 1970 account for 10 of the names.
Born here
47
confirmed by Wikipedia
Best known
Peter MacKay
21 Wikipedia and sister-site articles
First
1820
John Rankin
Youngest
1991
Brody Blair
Most common field
Politics & Law
18 people
What stands out about New Glasgow’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What New Glasgow is known for
Soldiers and sailors stand out most, at 4.2 times the usual share.
For comparison, the usual town: how the people listed across Canadian towns split by field. Tap a field to list its people.
Through the years
When New Glasgow’s famous people were born
The 1970s top the chart, with 6 births in the decade.
Politics & LawSportsWriting & ArtsMilitaryFilm, TV & StageScience & MedicineBusinessNotableMusicFaith
Dots are people, stacked in the decade of their birth.
The best known
Born in New Glasgow
#1
#2Sports
Colin White
born 1977Canadian ice hockey player
13 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
#3Film, TV & Stage
Mike Smith
born 1972Canadian actor and musician
10 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Everyone
Everyone else born in New Glasgow
Of the other 44, 17 are leaders.
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Pictou has the longest list next door: 34.
Pictou · 11 kmGeorge Mercer Dawson & 33 more
Pictou County, Subdivision C · 7 kmDiego Klattenhoff & 9 more
Pictou County, Subdivision A · 18 kmAnna Sutherland Bissell & 9 more
Stellarton · 4 kmGeorge Monro Grant & 6 more
Pictou County, Subdivision B · 10 kmLeonard W. Murray & 5 moreJMWestville · 7 kmJohn MacLellan & 3 morePDTrenton · 3 kmPat Dunn & 2 moreQuestions about famous people from New Glasgow
Who is the most famous person from New Glasgow?
Peter MacKay (Canadian politician) heads the list, ranked by how many Wikipedias cover them. Next come Colin White and Mike Smith.
How many famous people were born in New Glasgow?
Wikidata places 63 here in all; the others lack an article that agrees.
What is New Glasgow known for?
Across Canadian towns the figure is 22%; here, 38%.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from New Glasgow?
John Rankin, born in 1820. The youngest on the list was born in 1991.
Who counts as from New Glasgow?
The list takes people born within New Glasgow’s municipal boundary (Statistics Canada’s 2021 census subdivision), its hospitals and districts too, as Wikidata records it and an English or French Wikipedia article confirms. It leaves out residents born elsewhere, adult performers and people chiefly known for crimes.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata record may stop at the province, point to a rural area we have no page for, or name a different town, and their article may disagree or say nothing. Only a birthplace both sources share is listed; edits to either are picked up at the next refresh.
Birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations and the count of Wikipedia and sister-site articles come from Wikidata (CC0). Each birthplace is checked against the person’s English Wikipedia article, or the French one where English says nothing or has no article; the articles are linked, never quoted. Wikidata’s Statistics Canada code, the place’s name or its point inside the 2021 census outline puts a birth in a town, and a birth given only as a split city stays on that city’s page. Fields are read from the description and occupations, and the list runs by number of articles. “The usual town” is everyone listed across Canadian towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (23)
- Peter MacKay: DOD, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Colin White: Horge, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mike Smith: Jason Bain / Copyright Sun Media, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- John James Grant: LGNSComms, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jon Sim: Dan4th Nicholas from Cambridge, MA, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Walter Borden: Canada's Theatre Museum, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Derrick Walser: Fabien Perissinotto, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Gitz Rice: Gitz Rice, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jason MacDonald: The original uploader was East718 at English Wikipedia ., CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- John Hamm: CMRYAN2003, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Kori Cheverie: TVA Nouvelles, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Lisa MacLeod: Canadian Film Centre from Toronto, Canada, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- James Drummond McGregor: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John A. Wilson: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- George Frederick Cameron: Photographer not named., Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John Forrest: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Cantley: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Margaret Marjory Fraser: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- George Mercer Dawson: William Notman and Son, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Diego Klattenhoff: Thibault, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Anna Sutherland Bissell: American Historical Socy. - Steel Engraving by Finlay & Conn. (book editor was Winfield Scott Downs (1895-1958)), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- George Monro Grant: Government of Canada, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Leonard W. Murray: Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).