Trenton incorporated in 1911 with a population of 1,400 people; this was double its population of 700 in 1892. The town is perhaps best noted for being the first community in Canada to produce steel, as early as 1883. With the establishment of the Nova Scotia Steel Company numerous businesses emerged in support of this industry.

By 1893 sixteen businesses provided products ranging from groceries to hardware and services such as hair cutting and shoemaking. Between 1912 and 1913 the Eastern Car Company was established to build railway cars to meet the demands for Canada’s railway system. During the period marking the First World War, not only did Trenton see men go off to fight, but also the town became the first Canadian community in the British Empire excluding Great Britain) to mobilize its industries for shell production and build ships for the war effort.

Trenton would also witness the establishment of some of the leading glass manufactures in the province. For instance, the Humphrays Glass Works (also known as Trenton Glass Works) supplied bottles for many of the favorite beverages of the time, such as ginger ale, lemonade and sarsaparilla. Unfortunately, after the war many of these industries began to falter. Ship construction declined and railway construction in Canada was gradually coming to a close. Trenton Glass Works established in the early twentieth century closed its doors twenty-five years later.