the week-long agricultural fair hosts the International Ox Pull, bringing together teams from the Maritimes and the Northeastern United States. The Exhibition also features a midway, carnival games, food, alcohol, animal exhibits, and musical acts. Community music has been a fixture in the town for many years, including the Bridgewater Fire Department Band, active since 1868. The South Shore Chorale, a seventy-voice mixed chorus, was founded in the 1960s, and for many years, the now-defunct Hospital Chorus and Drama Society helped to raise funds for the Dawson Memorial Hospital (later South Shore Regional Hospital) through its production of Broadway-style musicals. Art Happening was established in 2014 to create a thriving community art space in Bridgewater. Inspired by the 'Art Hive' movement in Montreal, a group of community members developed a free/low cost art building focused on creativity for people of all ages and backgrounds. Today, Art Happening is a not-for-profit organization that strives on fun classes, stress relief, and creativity in all shapes and forms. Like much of Lunenburg County, many of Bridgewater's residents trace their lineage to the Foreign Protestants who arrived in Nova Scotia in the 18th century. While much of that original culture has been lost, a few remnants remain. Lunenburg pudding, a type of pork sausage, is widely available, and some residents still speak in Lunenburg English, an accent featuring one of the few non-rhotic speech patterns remaining in Canada. Sports, parks, and recreation Residents of Bridgewater enjoy a relatively extensive parks system, which the town estimates at . This, however, does not include open green space within the town, the inclusion of which would give a much higher total. The crown jewel of the parks system continues to be the Woodland Gardens, locally known at the "Duck Pond." This park includes the DesBrisay Museum, one of the town's public swimming pools, a large pond and various trails. Shipyards Landing is a large public park located at the reclaimed site of the former Acadia Gas Engine Company. Situated on south King Street along the LaHave River, the area features berthing for boaters and kayakers, picnic and open space, and is often used as a gathering point for festivals, such as Canada Day on the LaHave. Other parks include Pinecrest and Glen Allen playgrounds, Riverview Park, King Street Court and Pijinuiskaq Park, located in the heart of the downtown. 8 kilometers of the Centennial Trail run through