Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia
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Grand-Pré () is a Canadian
rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...
community in Kings County,
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...
. Its French name translates to "Great/Large Meadow" and the community lies at the eastern edge of the
Annapolis Valley The Annapolis Valley is a valley and region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It is located in the western part of the Nova Scotia peninsula, formed by a trough between two parallel mountain ranges along the shore of the Bay of Fundy. St ...
several kilometres east of the town of
Wolfville Wolfville is a Canadian town in the Annapolis Valley, Kings County, Nova Scotia, located about northwest of the provincial capital, Halifax. The town is home to Acadia University and Landmark East School. The town is a tourist destination du ...
on a peninsula jutting into the
Minas Basin , image = Lookout On Way to Cape Split - 25006718579.jpg , alt = , caption = Looking east across the Southern Bight of Minas Basin from The Lookoff , image_bathymetry = , alt_bathymetry = , ca ...
surrounded by extensive dyked farm fields, framed by the Gaspereau and
Cornwallis River The Cornwallis River is in Kings County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It has a meander length of approximately through eastern Kings County, from its source on the North Mountain at Grafton to its mouth near Wolfville on the Minas Basin. The lower ...
s. The community was made famous by
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...
's poem
Evangeline ''Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie'' is an epic poem by the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, written in English and published in 1847. The poem follows an Acadian girl named Evangeline and her search for her lost love Gabriel, set during t ...
and is today home to the
Grand-Pré National Historic Site Grand-Pré National Historic Site is a park set aside to commemorate the Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia, Grand-Pré area of Nova Scotia as a centre of Acadian settlement from 1682 to 1755, and the British Great Upheaval, deportation of the Acadians that ...
. On June 30, 2012, the Landscape of Grand-Pré was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.


History

Grand-Pré was founded in about 1680 by Pierre Melanson and Pierre Terriot. Pierre Melanson, an
Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...
settler who traveled east from
Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons Pierre Dugua de Mons (or Du Gua de Monts; c. 1558 Р1628) was a French merchant, explorer and colonizer. A Calvinist, he was born in the Ch̢teau de Mons, in Royan, Saintonge (southwestern France) and founded the first permanent French set ...
's original settlement at Port Royal (see
Annapolis Royal Annapolis Royal, formerly known as Port Royal, is a town located in the western part of Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Today's Annapolis Royal is the second French settlement known by the same name and should not be confused with the n ...
and the Habitation). Pierre, an Acadian of French Huguenot and English extraction, had arrived in Port Royal with Sir Thomas Temple in the 1650s when Acadia was under English control. Pierre Terriot was the son of Jehan born in Port Royale around 1654. Pierre Melanson was responsible for founding the parish of Saint-Charles des Mines while his friend, Pierre Terriot founded the parish of Saint-Joseph de la rivière aux Canards. The fertility of the soils and wealth of other resources in the area had been known to the French since the early part of the century when
Samuel de Champlain Samuel de Champlain (; Fichier OrigineFor a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December 1635) was a Fre ...
, de Mont's cartographer, had surveyed the region. The settlers quickly employed their dyke building technology to the vast salt marshes; effectively reclaiming several thousand acres of productive farm land. The farms and the population grew quickly, making Grand-Pré the principal settlement in Acadia. Settlements spread from Grand-Pré around the Minas Basin, collectively becoming known as Les Mines or Minas after the copper deposits surveyed by de Mons at the entrance to the Basin. By the mid-1680s the population was sufficient to support a church and the parish of Saint-Charles des Mines was formed.


Queen Anne's War


Raid on Grand-Pré (1704)

During
Queen Anne's War Queen Anne's War (1702–1713) was the second in a series of French and Indian Wars fought in North America involving the colonial empires of Great Britain, France, and Spain; it took place during the reign of Anne, Queen of Great Britain. In E ...
, New Englander Ranger Benjamin Church, burned the village and broke some of the dykes in the
Raid on Grand Pré The Raid on Grand Pré was the major action of a raiding expedition conducted by the New England militia Colonel Benjamin Church (ranger), Benjamin Church against French Acadia in June 1704, during Queen Anne's War. The expedition was allegedly ...
. In this raid, Church and his rangers got stuck on the mud flats of Baie Francais (Bay of Fundy), which gave the Mi'kmaq and Acadians time to position themselves to fiercely defend the village. They were eventually overwhelmed and Church burned the village and the fields.


King George's War


Battle of Grand-Pré (1747)

During
King George's War King George's War (1744–1748) is the name given to the military operations in North America that formed part of the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748). It was the third of the four French and Indian Wars. It took place primarily in t ...
, a French force led by
Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Roch de Ramezay Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Roch, ''Seigneur de Ramezay'', (4 September 1708, in Montreal, New France – 7 May 1777, in Blaye, France; officer of the marines and colonial administrator for New France during the 18th century. Joining at age 11, as an ...
defeated a larger British force in a night raid at the Battle of Grand-Pré. This battle was the most significant and bloodiest victory for the French in Acadia. The village, however, remained in British control once the French retreated.


Father Le Loutre's War


Acadian Exodus (1749-1755)

During
Father Le Loutre's War Father Le Loutre's War (1749–1755), also known as the Indian War, the Mi'kmaq War and the Anglo-Mi'kmaq War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the Briti ...
, the Acadians at Grand-Pré played a significant role in supporting the
Acadian Exodus The Acadian Exodus (also known as the Acadian migration) happened during Father Le Loutre's War (1749–1755) and involved almost half of the total Acadian population of Nova Scotia deciding to relocate to French controlled territories. The thr ...
out of mainland Nova Scotia, which started in 1749. Grand-Pré willingly responded to the call from Le Loutre for basic food stuffs. The bread basket of the region, they raised wheat and other grains, produced flour in no fewer than eleven mills, and sustained herds of several thousand head of cattle, sheep and hogs. Regular cattle droves made their way over a road from Cobequid to Tatamagouche for the supply of
Fort Beauséjour Fort Beauséjour (), renamed Fort Cumberland in 1755, is a large, five-bastioned fort on the Isthmus of Chignecto in eastern Canada, a neck of land connecting the present-day province of New Brunswick with that of Nova Scotia. The site was strateg ...
,
Louisbourg Louisbourg is an unincorporated community and former town in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. History The French military founded the Fortress of Louisbourg in 1713 and its fortified seaport on the southwest part of the harbour, ...
, and settlements on ÃŽle St. Jean (
Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...
). Other exports went by sea from Minas Basin to
Isthmus of Chignecto The Isthmus of Chignecto is an isthmus bordering the Maritime provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia that connects the Nova Scotia peninsula with North America. The isthmus separates the waters of Chignecto Bay, a sub-basin of the Bay of ...
or to the mouth of the Saint John River, carried in Acadian vessels by Acadian middlemen. The Acadians from Grand-Pré also offered their labour to those at
Isthmus of Chignecto The Isthmus of Chignecto is an isthmus bordering the Maritime provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia that connects the Nova Scotia peninsula with North America. The isthmus separates the waters of Chignecto Bay, a sub-basin of the Bay of ...
to build a church and dykes.


Siege of Grand-Pré (1749)

The British built
Fort Vieux Logis Fort Vieux Logis (later named Fort Montague) was a small British frontier fort built at present-day Hortonville, Nova Scotia, Canada (formerly part of Grand Pre) in 1749, during Father Le Loutre's War (1749). Ranger John Gorham moved a blockhou ...
in the area during
Father Le Loutre’s War Father Le Loutre's War (1749–1755), also known as the Indian War, the Mi'kmaq War and the Anglo-Mi'kmaq War, took place between King George's War and the French and Indian War in Acadia and Nova Scotia. On one side of the conflict, the Briti ...
, which was attacked by the Acadians and Mi'kmaq in the Siege of Grand-Pré. The siege lasted for a week and the 300 natives took prisoners who remained in captivity for almost two years. Eventually the Mi'kmaq retreated.


French and Indian War


Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755)

During the
French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
(the North American theatre of the
Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754†...
), the Acadians were expelled from Grand-Pré during the
Bay of Fundy Campaign (1755) The Bay of Fundy campaign occurred during the French and Indian War (the North American theatre of the Seven Years' War) when the British ordered the Expulsion of the Acadians from Acadia after the Battle of Fort Beauséjour (1755). The campaign ...
. There were various British soldiers who kept a journal of the deportation from Grand-Pré such as Lt. Col. John Winslow and Jeremiah Bancroft. The site of Grand-Pré during the expulsion was later immortalized by American poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and ''Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely transl ...
with his epic poem
Evangeline ''Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie'' is an epic poem by the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, written in English and published in 1847. The poem follows an Acadian girl named Evangeline and her search for her lost love Gabriel, set during t ...
. Acadians from Grand Pré were dispersed in many locations and some eventually returned to other parts of the Canadian Maritimes such as Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and New Brunswick. Many Acadians expelled from the Grand-Pré area eventually settled in the New England States and travelling overland to South
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
after being dropped on the Atlantic coast. In Louisiana, the term
Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...
evolved from the name Acadian.


New England Planters

After the deportation of the Acadians, the vacant lands were resettled by
New England Planters The New England Planters were settlers from the New England colonies who responded to invitations by the lieutenant governor (and subsequently governor) of Nova Scotia, Charles Lawrence, to settle lands left vacant by the Bay of Fundy Campaign ( ...
in 1760 and renamed Horton Township. A large town plot with a rectilinear street grid was laid between Grand-Pré and Horton Landing to the east, but the local farming population preferred to settle along the upland ridge in a spread out fashion, much like the previous residents of the area, the Acadians, had done. Several schools and congregations were formed at Grand-Pré including a meeting house converted into a church in the early 19th century, today known as the Covenanter Church. Over time, merchants and shop owners congregated at nearby
Wolfville Wolfville is a Canadian town in the Annapolis Valley, Kings County, Nova Scotia, located about northwest of the provincial capital, Halifax. The town is home to Acadia University and Landmark East School. The town is a tourist destination du ...
to the west, leaving Grand-Pré to continue as a farming community. One of the Planter descendants was Sir
Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 â€“ June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World War I. Borde ...
, the eighth
Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Hou ...
, who was born in Grand-Pré in 1854. Grand-Pré continued as a rich and productive but small farming community. The
Windsor and Annapolis Railway The Windsor and Annapolis Railway (W&AR) was a historic Canadian railway that operated in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley. The railway ran from Windsor to Annapolis Royal and leased connections to Nova Scotia's capital of Halifax. The W&AR played ...
arrived in 1869, at first serving the community with a small rural station. Livestock and marsh hay became major exports, joined in the late 19th century by the Annapolis Valley's major apple exporting industry. Four large apple warehouses were built around the station to pack and ship apples. In the 1920s when the
Dominion Atlantic Railway The Dominion Atlantic Railway was a historic railway which operated in the western part of Nova Scotia in Canada, primarily through an agricultural district known as the Annapolis Valley. The Dominion Atlantic Railway was unusually diverse for a ...
developed the Grand-Pré Memorial Park to attract tourists. While agriculture remained Grand-Pré's major industry, the park made the community a tourism destination as well as a memorial to the Acadian people. The Park eventually became a National Historic Site and in 1957 was purchased by the Canadian Park Service.


Economy and culture

Today, Grand-Pré is the home the
Grand-Pré National Historic Site Grand-Pré National Historic Site is a park set aside to commemorate the Grand-Pré, Nova Scotia, Grand-Pré area of Nova Scotia as a centre of Acadian settlement from 1682 to 1755, and the British Great Upheaval, deportation of the Acadians that ...
which is now a national park administered by Parks Canada to commemorate the Acadian people and their deportation. The Covenanter Church at Grand-Pré is the oldest existing Presbyterian church in Nova Scotia. One of Nova Scotia's best known wineries, Domaine de Grand-Pré, is located in the community. Grand-Pré is also Canada's first designated Historic Rural District. The
Just Us! Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op is a Canadian importer of fair trade coffee, tea, sugar, and chocolate. Based in Grand Pré, Nova Scotia, Just Us! products are sold throughout Canada, typically in shops specializing in fair trade goods such as T ...
coffee company headquarters is located in the village and is something of a tourist attraction. Evangeline Beach is a famous stopover for thousands of migrating shore birds and is also a fine vantage point for watching the ebb and flow of the world's highest tides.


Demographics

Grand-Pré has no official status; there are only specific data for subdivision D of Kings County, which includes the area between
Hantsport Hantsport is an unincorporated area in the West Hants Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is at the western boundary between West Hants Regional Municipality and Kings County, along the west bank of the Avon River's tidal estuary. ...
and
Wolfville Wolfville is a Canadian town in the Annapolis Valley, Kings County, Nova Scotia, located about northwest of the provincial capital, Halifax. The town is home to Acadia University and Landmark East School. The town is a tourist destination du ...
, where Grand-Pré and a few other villages exist. In this area, there were 5499 inhabitants in 2006, compared to 5167 in 2001, an increase of 6.4%. The average age is 44.5, compared to 41.8 for the province. 84.8% of the population is older than 15 years, which is in the provincial average.Statistique Canada - Profils des communautés de 2006 - Kings, Subd. D
/ref> With regard to language, 96.6% of the inhabitants are English-speaking, 1.4% are
francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...
and 2.0% are
allophones In phonology, an allophone (; from the Greek , , 'other' and , , 'voice, sound') is a set of multiple possible spoken soundsor ''phones''or signs used to pronounce a single phoneme in a particular language. For example, in English, (as in ''s ...
. The francophone population is anglicized as 99.3% of the population speak English at home. With respect to knowledge of official languages, 7.2% of the population can communicate in French at various levels, the rest being unilingual anglophone.


Notable people

Grand-Pré is the birthplace of
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Sir Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 â€“ June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World War I. Borden ...
.


References


External links


Société Promotion Grand-Pré - The National Historic Site

Grand-Pré National Historic Site

Landscape of Grand Pré World Heritage Site

Explore the Landscape of Grand Pré in the UNESCO collection on Google Arts and Culture

Acadian Ancestral Home - a Repository for Acadian History & Genealogy including Grand-Pré
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grand-Pre, Nova Scotia Communities in Kings County, Nova Scotia Acadian history Acadian communities Conflicts in Nova Scotia General Service Areas in Nova Scotia World Heritage Sites in Canada Dikes in Canada 1680 establishments in the French colonial empire