Clement Ligoure

Clement Courtenay Ligoure (13 October 1887 – 23 May 1922) was a Trinidadian doctor and newspaper publisher who was the first Black physician to practise in Nova Scotia, Canada. He is also noted for treating hundreds of victims of the Halifax Explosion from his home clinic as well as being an editor and publisher ofThe Atlantic Advocate newspaper.

Born in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, he was the son of Clement François and Amanda M. (née) Crooke. His father worked for the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago.

In April 1906 at age 18, Clement Ligoure immigrated to the United States. That same year, he started studies at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada. At the university, he earned a Bachelor of Medicine Degree in 1914 and a Doctor of Medicine degree in 1916.

Military and early medical work

With World War I underway, Ligoure enlisted in the Canadian military and ended up travelling to Halifax, Nova Scotia—arriving in 1916, two months after getting his final degree—to be a medical officer in the No. 2 Construction Battalion, made up of Black recruits. However, an "error" in the application resulted in him being replaced by a white physician, "likely due to the British War Office ergo the Canadian Department of Militias and Defence refusing to see past the colour bar." He still assisted by raising money and spent seven months recruiting for the battalion.

Despite being a licensed physician, Ligoure was not allowed to use hospitals in Halifax. Still, he served as medical officer for Canadian National Railway workers. His fifteen-person clinic was located in his house and named the Amanda Private Hospital for his mother.

Halifax Explosion

After the Halifax Explosion on 6 December 1917, Ligoure worked long hours to treat blast victims. Some of the patients that filled his clinic had been unable to get medical help elsewhere. In a statement to Dr. Archibald MacMechan, Ligoure conveyed that he worked day and night:

In spite of the warning of a second explosion, he worked steadily till 8 p.m. ... Seven people spent the night in his office, laid upon blankets. On December 7th, 8th and 9th, he worked steadily both night and day, doing outside work at night.

At first his only support was from his housekeeper and his boarder. On 10 December, Ligoure requested assistance from City Hall and received two nurses to come with him to establish an "official dressing station" for changing and applying bandages. Eventually, he was leading ten nurses, six other women and four soldiers (one of whom was a physician).

His work continued to 28 December, with records indicating nearly 200 patients were helped each day. His patients were almost all White. According to archival records, patients were not charged. This work has led him to be recognized as a "local hero" and "unsung hero".

The Atlantic Advocate newspaper

Ligoure served as the editor and publisher of The Atlantic Advocate. Publication took place in the home he had purchased in 1917 at 166 North Street. It was the first newspaper in Nova Scotia owned and published by Black Canadians. The newspaper ran from 1915 to 1917 and its masthead read: "Devoted to the interests of colored people."

During a visit with his brother Clarence in Tobago, Ligoure contracted malignant malaria. He was transported to the Colonial Hospital in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where he died on 23 May 1922.

David Woods' play Extraordinary Acts, in part, dramatized Ligoure's role in the Halifax Explosion. It was scheduled to be staged in 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

An inaugural "Dr. Clement Ligoure Award" was given in 2021 by the Doctors Nova Scotia organization to Nova Scotia's Chief Medical Officer of Health. It is a non-annual prize given to a physician for handling a medical crisis in Nova Scotia.

In Halifax, the former house of Ligoure (of which only a part still stands) was given heritage status on 24 January 2023. The decision by Halifax's regional council followed lobbying efforts by notable Black community members. The house is listed at 5812-14 North Street, and was built in 1892.