Eel Fishing Nets on the Isle of Orleans
Nineteenth century portrait of Charles Menou d’Alnay.
Families living on his land in Poitou, in France,
later settled in his Acadian seigneury.
The Acadian Settlements
Immigrants from France founded Acadia, located on the Bay of Fundy marshlands in the Atlantic region, in the seventeenth century. Some men came with their French wives while others married the indigenous Mi’kmaq women living in the area. By 1700 the population of Acadia reached 1,500 and they had become a distinct people.
However, because of ongoing wars, France lost control of most of Acadia to the British by 1713, only retaining Ile Royale (Cape Breton) and Ile-St-Jean (Prince Edward Island). The British then went on to eject the Acadians from their lands in 1755 and 1758. Despite being scattered far and wide, most Acadians returned to Canada.
Acadians spread themselves along the western and eastern coastlines of Nova Scotia, the northwest coast of Cape Breton, various coastal areas in Prince Edward Island, and across the northern and eastern coastal regions of what is now New Brunswick. They also settled along Chaleur Bay in the Gaspé region and along the St. Lawrence River, establishing communities in the Quebec, Montreal and Trois-Rivières regions.
