Under the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, the peninsular part of Nova Scotia (or Acadia) was ceded to the British.  The capital was established at Annapolis Royal and remained there until shortly after the 1749 founding of Halifax.

Later in 1753 several fishing companies from the Province of New York petition for land grants in Mahone Bay.  Fishing agents John Gifford and Richard Smith are granted three islands, one of which is Oak Island.  Modern day Rafuse Island is granted to another New York fishing company. Did these New York folks already have fishing operations established in Mahone Bay and thereby ensuring a grant to keep said islands, or did protection with soldiers in Lunenburg allow them to start a fishery?

In 1754, Ephraim Cooke was granted the lands at the mouth of the Mush-a-Mush, later to become the Town of Mahone Bay. Further in 1754, the ‘twenty wealthiest men” from New York seek to establish a community deep in the bay. The previously mentioned John Gifford acts as consultant for these men and he provides recommendations on where to settle. This role as a consultant could speak to Gifford’s previous knowledge of the bay and might indicate he was fishing prior to the establishment of Lunenburg.  The Governor could not promise protection for this proposed settlement, thus it was never established.

During 1757 and 1758, several private land grants were made for land around the bay with a few tracks along the Gold River.

In 1759, a general invitation to New Englanders was made to come and settle Nova Scotia. Communities such as Chester, Horton, Truro, Onslow, and Liverpool all have origins rooted to this invitation. The folks who responded would become known as the Planters.  This generation of settlers will play an important part of Oak Island’s history.

The final groups of folks to arrive in Mahone Bay were the United Empire Loyalists followed by disbanded soldiers at the end of the American Revolution. Commencing in 1776 to 1786, large and small groups of these folks escaped the American Revolution and came to Halifax. Many were granted land in Chester and a few came for work. These Loyalists and ex-soldiers will also play an important part in the island’s history.