Chronicling the rise and fall of Beaubassin

Predictably, because of its location and significance, the majority of readers will be familiar with Fort BeausÉjour, located on a ridge at the head of the Bay of Fundy.
It is, after all, the historical centrepiece of the Tantramar region!
Administered today by Parks Canada, Fort BeausÉjour - or Fort Cumberland as it was later renamed - attracts large numbers of visitors annually.
Their totals tell the story: 24,900 in 2006 and 23,500 last year . . . and this does not count casual visitors. The latter include many local people and tourists alike, who visit this historic site to admire the superb view of the marshlands and the Cumberland Basin.
In keeping with the fort's name recognition, BeausÉjour was selected in 1988 as the designation for the federal constituency that encompasses the southeastern section of New Brunswick.
Fort BeausÉjour once overlooked Beaubassin, a thriving Acadian village located on the Missaguash River. Today the site may be reached on the Fort Lawrence Road, behind the Nova Scotia Information Centre on the N.B.-N.S. border. A glance at the map of the Maritime provinces provides evidence of the strategic nature of both the Chignecto Basin and Isthmus.
Today's peace and quiet belies the fact that for decades, Britain and France fought for control of this crucial territory. The place name Beaubassin (literally "beautiful bay or basin") first appears on maps in the early 1700s, when it replaced the earlier Bourgeoisville.
Beaubassin was, after Port Royal, one of the first major settlements to be established by the French in the new colony of Acadia. Its story begins with its founding by Jacques Bourgeois (1618-1701) in 1672. A very talented individual, before emigrating from France to Port Royal, he had the benefit of some medical training as a surgeon. However, it was his role as colonizer, farmer and shipbuilder that Bourgeois made his mark on the new colony of Acadia.
In 1642 Jacques Bourgeois married Jeanne Trahan; they had 10 children - seven girls and three boys.
This family was destined to provide a common ancestry for the many Bourgeois descendants of today. With the help of his sons, Charles and Germaine, Bourgeois was able to entice an additional five families to move from Port Royal.
Situated on the largest salt water marsh on the Atlantic seaboard, the community prospered. Here the new settlers were able to put to good use their skill and knowledge of dykeland agriculture and, in addition, to engage in the lucrative fur trade with the Mi'kmaq.
Over the years Beaubassin grew in importance and eventually became the centre of local government in 1684. Not only was it the geographical hub of Acadia, but also its administrative centre.
An interesting account of life in Beaubassin was recorded by Jacques de Meulles (?-1703) who served as the Intendant of New France from May 1, 1682 to Sept. 23, 1686. During his final year in office, de Meulles had the misfortune to be "marooned" in Beaubassin during the winter of 1685-86.
He recalled: "I spent five months there bored to death. As the ground was continuously covered with snow all this time, something which was never seen there before, I spent some of my time in inspecting the place. It is remarkable for the number of its meadows [marshlands] to be seen in the spring, in which more than 100,000 horned cattle could be pastured."
By 1686, Beaubassin was officially constituted as a parish. In the same year, a priest from QuÉbec - AbbÉ Claude TrouvÉ (c.1644 -1704) - built Beaubassin's first church.
In 1696, and again in 1704, the settlement was attacked and burned by New Englanders. However, on each occasion, the village was immediately rebuilt.
AbbÉ TrouvÉ was still serving the parish during the second raid. On this occasion he, along with some parishoners, attempted to escape by land. Their objective was to reach Chedabouctou (now Guysborough, N.S.). It was here that AbbÉ TrouvÉ died "from exhaustion" - a direct result of this long trek through the wilderness.
Fortunately, we have descriptions of Beaubassin as it was in the early 1700s. The first account is taken from a diary kept by Robert Hale, a merchant from Beverly, Massachusetts: "There are about 15 or 20 houses in the village, besides two mass houses or churches." He found the people hospitable and describes in some detail a "supper in the home of Mr. Sears . . . We were regaled with Bonnyclabber [thick, soured milk eaten with cream and sugar, honey, or molasses], soup, salad, roast shad, along with bread and butter."
Hale noted that living conditions were spartan to say the least: "They have but one room in their houses, besides a cellar and sometimes a closet. Their bedrooms are made something in the manner of a sailor's cabin, boarded all around the bigness of the bed, except one hole on the foreside, to crawl into."
An ironical twist of history accounted for the final destruction of Beaubassin in 1750. This time the guilty party was closer to home in the person of AbbÉ Jean-Louis Le Loutre (1709-1772). During the first half of the 18th century the precise boundaries of Acadia were in perpetual dispute. In April of 1750, a British expeditionary force, under the command of Major Charles Lawrence (1709-1760), sailed into the Upper Bay of Fundy.
What happened next is well told in the words of local historian Will R. Bird: "AbbÉ Le Loutre swung into quick action when he saw the British ship approaching. By the time that Lawrence had landed, the Mi'kmaq, under Le Loutre's orders, had fired every house, barn and outbuilding in Beaubassin."
Reduced to ashes were the homes of 500 Acadians, forcing them to cross the Missaguash River and fend for themselves.' A major Beaubassin artifact, the bell from the Notre Dame d'Assumption Church survived. (See illustration).
In the summer of 2004, Parks Canada acquired some 107 acres, on today's Fort Lawrence Ridge - including part of the historic village of Beaubassin. On July 7, 2005, it was designated a National Historic Site.
Within the region, Fort BeausÉjour/Fort Cumberland, Fort Lawrence (named for the above mentioned), Fort Gaspereaux and La Coupe historic sites are all part of the Parks Canada mandate on the Isthmus of Chignecto.
Archaeological testing in 1967, 1986 and 2004 at the Beaubassin site revealed "numerous architectural features, foundations, and other artifacts" of . . . great historical interest. This led, in 2007, to the establishment of the fascinating and important "Beaubassin-Fort Lawrence public archaeology experience." Highly successful in its first year, it will be repeated in 2008.
Members of the public with an interest in archaeology, are invited to participate in this program during a four-week period from July 10 to Aug. 3, 2008. Those wishing to take part must register in advance with the Fort BeausÉjour staff at (506) 364-5080. This should be done as soon as possible, as a number of people have already signed up for 2008. Full details of the "experience" are also available at the above number.
Participants will have the opportunity to discover artifacts from the pre-deportation Acadian period as well as that of the later British occupation. These artifacts will remain the property of Parks Canada. This ensures that they will be used to help unravel the historical and archaeological understanding of this important site.
Parks Canada, and the personnel at Fort BeausÉjour, deserve commendation for developing this outstanding outreach program. Who knows what significant discoveries may be unearthed in the summer of 2008? Special thanks are extended to Fort BeausÉjour supervisor Juliette McLeod for providing background material for this Flashback.
Ideas for, or comments about Tantramar Flashback, may be addressed to Bill Hamilton, c/o the Sackville Tribune Post, 80 Main Street, Sackville, N..B, E4L 4A7, or via e-mail at tribune@nbnet,nb.ca.