The Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society is a historical society in Halifax, Nova Scotia that was founded in 1878 and is the third oldest in Canada (The Literary and Historical Society of Quebec is the first, founded in 1824, followed by the York Pioneers which was founded in 1869.) The Society is a voluntary organization that operates without an office or paid staff. The Society first published the Nova Scotia Historical Quarterly and then the Nova Scotia Historical Review. Eventually, the publication was named the Collections of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society and now it is known as the Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Historical Society.