Nova Scotia

Rejected names for new Halifax ferry include Yeah Buoy! and Donair

There's no 'Boaty McBoatface' but Halifax municipal citizens spared no creativity dreaming up names for a new harbour ferry.

Halifax municipal citizens spared no creativity dreaming up names for a new harbour ferry

Voters chose to name the ferry after Nova Scotia civil rights hero Viola Desmond. (CBC)

There were no submissions for Boaty McBoatface — but Halifax citizens spared no creativity dreaming up names for a new harbour ferry.

The full list of 130 publicly submitted names was released to CBC News on Tuesday.

Some rejected names were irreverent, and included Donair, Nine Lives, HalDarth, Fart Hopper and Mont-Blanc— the source of the Halifax explosion.

Others name held undercurrents of protest. The Peace Ferry, No More Military, HMCS Welfare, HRM Money Pit and The D/\RTMOUTH — a jab at Halifax's new logo, and attempts to force the brand on the city's formerly autonomous regions.

There were also plays on the word ferry, as evidenced in submissions that included Brian Ferry, Katy Ferry and Ferry Fine Friends.

Local references

Some of the names included shout outs to local politicians, past and present. The Gloria, The Savage, Mayor Joseph Zatzman, Walter R. Fitzgerald, Peter Stoffer, Megan Leslie, Joseph Howe and Edward Cornwallis.

Some suggested names acknowledged the area's Mi'kmaq history, with entries such as Chief Kolpit and K'jipuktuk.

Others honoured citizens with varying degrees of prominence: John Dunsworth, Fat Apollo and Tuxedo Stan.

There were also a couple of notable names with a jaunty Maritime theme: ANCHORS AWAY and Yeah Buoy!

City communications staff, Halifax Mayor Mike Savage and three community councillors had a first crack at the list, narrowing it down to to five finalists: Viola Desmond, Vincent Coleman, Private John Curwin, Major Gavin Rainnie and Ronald Wallace.

In online voting, the public chose to name the ferry after Nova Scotia civil rights hero Viola Desmond. Final approval for the name rests with Transport Canada.

See the full list of submitted names here.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jack Julian

Reporter

Jack Julian joined CBC Nova Scotia as an arts reporter in 1997. His news career began on the morning of Sept. 3, 1998 following the crash of Swissair 111. He is now a data journalist in Halifax, and you can reach him at (902) 456-9180, by email at jack.julian@cbc.ca or follow him on Twitter @jackjulian