This article examines the short but indicative lifespan of the Nova Scotia Cricket League (NSCL), showing that in Nova Scotia prior to 1914 cricket was a complex and deeply rooted settler sport. Although 19th-century cricket in the province had developed in largely disconnected social frameworks – elite and military cricket, rural and small town clubs, and working class teams on the coalfields – the NSCL represented an effort to bring about greater integration. Players from diverse social backgrounds routinely shared the playing surface. Despite cricket’s eventual decline in the region, for a time the NSCL provided a venue for the negotiation of social differences.