Preface References “…it was a Fine Country and Full of Inhabitants, Modern Placenames Old Placenames a Butiful Church & abundance of ye Goods of the world. Annapolis River Rivière Dauphin Paradise Paradis Terrestre Provisions of all kinds in great Plenty.” Melanson Settlement Établissement Melanson Lt. Col. John Winslow, September 3, 1755 Round Hill Prée Ronde Cornwallis River Rivière Saint Antoine/ Rivière Grand Habitant This guide is for people who want to deepen their understanding and Canard Rivière aux Canards appreciation of Acadian history by exploring the AnnapolisValley of Nova Porters Point Pointe des Breau Scotia through “Acadian eyes.” Minas Basin Bassin des Mines Starrs Point Côte des Boudreau/ Petite Côte/ It contains information which was collected from primary documents, printed Pointe des Boudreau/ works or expert testimony. This information has never been found in one document before. Régis Brun's book Les Acadiens avant 1755 helped to give a Village des Michel human face to the 17th and 18th century Acadians. Lt. Col. John Winslow's New Minas Rivière des Habitants Journal was more interesting and educational each time I read it and some of Canning/ Pereau/ Kingsport Rivière des Vieux Habitants the primary documents were sobering. Habitant River Rivière de la Veille Habitation Pereaux River Rivière Pereau Inside, you will find geographical locations in the beautiful AnnapolisValley that Grand-Pré Les Mines/ Grand-Pré have significance in Acadian history. It also includes some of the Acadian family names connected to many of these locations. I have made every effort Horton Landing Pointe Noire/ Vieux Logis to be historically accurate. However, the guide is far from being complete. Avon River Rivière Pigiguit More sites will surely come to light. The family names have been chosen Windsor Pigiguit/ Pisiquid carefully with attention to historical accuracy but are only a sample since George's Island Île Ronde/ Île Raquette many names appear in many different locations. I have used the spelling that Devil's Island Île Rouge appears on official documents. Don't let that fool you, most names were spelled several different ways, usually depending on who was doing the writing. I hope this guide book inspires you to continue your Acadian experience. Scale 1:5,000,000 Ferry Gulf of Les Amis de Grand-Pré is a group of people who maintain Acadian connections St Lawrence and traditions in the AnnapolisValley of Nova Scotia, where many of the CapeSydney settlements of old Acadie were located. We are proud to welcome visitors and PRINCE Breton “cousins” whether they are Acadians by birth or by heart. EDWARD ISLAND Island 105 Charlottetown Cartography:© 2004 Monica Lloyd NEW Author: Susan Surette-Draper of Les Amis de Grand-Pré Northumberland Strait IA with resources and staff support from the Société Promotion Grand-Pré. BRUNSWICK T O Editor: Sally Ross Amherst 104 C Cartography & Design: Monica Lloyd (MapFX Digital Mapping Consulting) Moncton 104 Truro S Halifax Photos: François Gaudet, Georges Arsenault & Paul Illsley (www.paulillsley.com) International ATLANTIC Historical maps: Special Funding: 102 Airport 3 Q OCEAN Fredericton 2 101 5 4 HALIFAX A Saint John 1 V 1 O Bridgewater aofund N By F y1 103 Digby 1 The First Footsteps Trail 2 Riviéré-Aux-Canards Trail ISBN 0-9730865-3-X 3 Grand-Pré Trail © 2004 Yarmouth 4 Pisiquid Trail Société Promotion Grand-Pré 5 The Gathering Trail www.grand-pre.com www.geogratis.com Return to Acadie Memory Walk 1 First Footprints Trail First Footprints Trail 0 kilometres 5 Belleisle 0 miles 3 NordI N Belleisle Tupperville A 1 201 T Granville Marsh N 101 U Centre BAY OF FUNDY O R ive r M Granville Round Delaps Hill Ferry i s Cove H p o l T A n n a Moschelle R Annapolis O 3 N Royal Melanson Lequille Settlement 2 Allains Creek Port Royal 1 1 Acadian Historic Site Thornes Karsdale 2 Cove 22 Acadian Historic Trail Goat I Port 101 Arterial Highway Victoria Wade i n 8 Bay View Beach a s 22 Exit Number Cartography:© 2004 Monica Lloyd B i s 8 Trunk Highway o l p Clementsport 201 Collector Highway n a n 101 Local Road A 1 1 PORT ROYAL sluice or aboiteau. The one that was uncovered here, is on The Habitation constructed in 1605 near the mouth of the Rivière display in the Visitor and Interpretation Centre at Grand-Pré Dauphin (Annapolis River) under the supervision of Samuel de National Historic Site. Champlain became the centre of a small French settlement. You can visit a reconstruction at Port Royal National Historic Site of 3 ANNAPOLIS ROYAL Canada where costumed guides will help you get a feel for When d'Aulnay brought families to Port Royal in the1630s, he did colonial life in the early 1600s. Although the Habitation was not settle on the site of Champlain's Habitation, but further up looted and burned in 1613 by troops fromVirginia, the name the river in the location we know as Annapolis Royal. If you are Port Royal survived. After the arrival of Acadian families in the one of the Robichaud,Amirault, Martin, Mius d'Entremont, Breau, 1630s, the Port Royal area became the cradle of Acadie. In Leger, Guédry, Lord or even d'Aulnay families, your ancestors settled general terms, Port Royal referred to all the Acadian settlements in this area. After the British captured Port Royal in 1710, they along the Rivière Dauphin as far as ParadisTerrestre (Paradise). renamed it Annapolis Royal. Acadian families continued to dyke and farm the marshlands along the river until the Deportation in 2 MELANSON SETTLEMENT 1755. Fort Anne was occupied by the British and was the seat of The ruins of l'établissement Melanson can be found 6.5 km from government for the colony of Nova Scotia until the founding of the town of Annapolis Royal on the north shore of the Annapolis Halifax in 1749. Exhibits at Fort Anne National Historic Site of River. This was home to Charles Melanson, his wife Marie Dugas Canada will help you enter into the Acadian experience. Step and their descendants. In 1713, there were 9 households with 16 back into the history of this town with the Annapolis Royal adults and 25 children. After the Deportation, some of the Garrison Candlelight Graveyard Tour where you will also find the family escaped to Quebec, some to France, the fate of the others graveyard for the original parish of Saint-Jean-Baptiste (1702-1755) is unknown. Dyke construction and maintenance was an or visit the Historic Gardens where you can see an Acadian important part of Acadian life. A key element of the dyke was the kitchen garden, an Acadian house and take a moment to “smell the roses.” 2 Return to Acadie Memory Walk 3 First Footprints Trail First Footprints Trail 4 BELLEISLE The present-day village of Belleisle on the Annapolis River, 8 km east of Annapolis Royal, still bears its Acadian name. It is said that BAY OF FUNDY Pierre Martin planted the first apples in Nova Scotia in this small St Croix Acadian community in the mid-1600s. In 1983, archaeologists Cove fully excavated the remains of one pre-Deportation Acadian Hampton Central home here. If you would like to get a peak into the past of this Clarence village, you can find a small exhibit of artefacts from Belleisle at I N the Museum of Natural History on Summer Street in Halifax. A Phinneys T N 1 Cove U Paradise 6 5 O ROUND HILL M r If you take Route 201 from Annapolis Royal, you will drive Youngs Cove Inglewood ive H R through the village of Round Hill. Acadians called it la Prée Ronde. T West R BRIDGETOWN 20 201 O Paradise Members of the Thibodeau family will be interested to know that N Granville this is the place where their ancestors, PierreThibodeau and his lis Centre apo family, once lived and owned a mill. Today, descendants can be Ann 21 found in Quebec, New England and Louisiana. Next to the small 1 Belleisle Centrelea bridge, you will find a stone bearing a plaque in memory of the 4 Thibodeau patriarch. Belleisle Tupperville Marsh 6 PARADISE 101 Cartography:© 2004 Monica Lloyd Cartography:© 2004 Monica Lloyd The village of Paradise on Route 1 has an intriguing name. The Acadians called the area around Bridgetown, ParadisTerrestre. It is 5 0 kilometres 5 Round Hill no wonder that the Gaudets wanted to return to Nova Scotia 201 0 miles 3 after having lived in this piece of heaven. http://collections.ic.gc.ca/neo-ecossaise 4 Return to Acadie Memory Walk 5 First Footprints Trail First Footprints Trail 7 7 MORDEN BAY OF FUNDY Morden In the village of Morden, on the Bay of Fundy, you will find the French Cross Monument. Local tradition says that while trying to evade deportation,Acadians from Belleisle spent the winter of Aylesford 1755-1756 in this location with nothing to eat but shellfish and Mountain what their friends, the Mi'kmaq, could provide. Less than a third N I 221 A of the exiles survived. Before leaving for Cape Chignecto in the T N Weltons Corner spring, on their way to Quebec, they erected a cross in memory Margaretsville U O of those who died. It stood for many years and the village M 16 became known as “French Cross.” Members of the Melanson H AYLESFORD T family will especially want to visit this site as will the Savoie, R North Kingston 1 O Lejeune, Doucet, Blanchard, Gautreau andTheriaults, all families of N Auburn 362 the Acadian Belleisle. The present cross is the fourth to mark the 221 17E site.