Before we continue, we will gather the data that we will analyze later in this chapter.
Please visit the following links from the Government of Prince Edward Island’s website for the first five datasets. We can use this data to research the amount of deforestation on PEI.

• On each of these pages, click “Download File.” Each of the files will download in a zipped folder. Extract these folders into the Data folder we created within the Chapter1 folder earlier.
  • PEI Coastline Shapefile
  • PEI Lot/Township Shapefile
  • PEI Hydronetwork Shapefile
  • PEI Forest Shapefile
  • PEI National Park Shapefile

Next, click the following download links from the Programming Historian website. Extract these zipped folders into the Data folder within the Chapter1 folder. These datasets are primarily helpful for adding common points of reference to our map. This will make it easier for us to interpret the location of any deforestation that we uncover.

1. PEI Highways
2. PEI Places

A Description of the Data

The coastline data will show us the modern contours of PEI’s coasts. The nature of PEI’s ever-shifting coasts means that they have changed considerably in some areas between the start of British colonization in the late-eighteenth century and today. Nevertheless, this coastline data provides us with a starting point for imagining what kind of coast the first British settlers to the Island experienced upon arrival.

The Island’s river systems have been important to its history. Before British settlers cleared much of the land, the only viable way of traversing the Island was by travelling on its many rivers. So, we will add a data layer that contains PEI’s “hydronetwork”—that is, its system of rivers and bodies of water.

As an example of the importance of rivers to the Island’s past, consider the Georgetown area. The Three Rivers that flank Georgetown on the Island’s eastern edge were critical to the area’s development. They were partly responsible for affording Georgetown its excellent capacity as a harbour, and their banks provided many excellent locations for shipbuilding. We will return to studying the historical geography of Georgetown and the Three Rivers community later in the textbook.

Most importantly, we will add a dataset that contains the amount of trees on the Island in 1935 and their location. This is the primary dataset that could be used to determine the amount of deforestation that occurred between the early British colonial period and the twentieth century.

We will also add a dataset that maps PEI’s highways. We will be able to see where PEI’s roads ended up being placed, after the British settlers had cleared the interior and no longer needed to rely solely on water-based transportation.

Finally, we will add a layer that contains some place names of a few Island communities. These place names will appear on our map and give it some context.