River John is an unincorporated community in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located near the mouth of the River John on the Northumberland Strait, halfway between Pictou and Tatamagouche near the boundary with Colchester County. It is on Nova Scotia Trunk 6 and the designated tourist route, the Sunrise Trail. River John was colonized by Europeans during the 18th century and its port and the proximity of plentiful timber led to the development of a small shipbuilding industry. Today the local economy is based on the seasonal industries of fishing, agriculture, and tourism. The area is a popular summer cottage location for residents of Halifax and other urban areas in the province. The village supports a few local shops, a library, several churches, a post office and a volunteer fire department. The K-9 school was closed in 2015. The Nova Scotia folklorist W. Roy MacKenzie (1883–1957) lived in River John, as does novelist Linda Little. History The river was originally called Caijebouguac (lonely river) by the indigenous Mikmaq. ‘River John’ has a name of French origin but the English named the river Deception River, although this name has been lost and is used only by very few elderly residents. The name ‘River John’ came to be as almost all of the original settlers had the name John; John George, John Patriquin, etc. The name River John is a beautiful and euphonious name that isn't as well known as it deserves, because of the hundreds of vessels built and registered in the area and designated from other ports in its early days. Now the village is very modern in business, but the famous river sunsets will always hold a glimpse of the past. The first official settlers in River John were four men and their families who did not want to pay as tenants in the nearby village of Tatamagouche. At the time the land was part of the Philadelphia grant owned by a company that had no longer use for it, so it was sold off. In 1785 John Frederic Patriquin, John George Patriquin, George Frederic Langill (or Langille) and James Gratto each built their log cabins near each other originally and then more settlers came in each taking their own land. School In 1808, the school was opened under Reverend John Mitchelle who came from Amherst to River John, with Christopher Perrin as the schoolmaster teaching his