History Atlantic Provinces (nb, Nl, Ns, Pe)
The Forgotten Acadians
... a story of discovery (UPDATED EDITION)
- Publisher
- New World Publishing
- Initial publish date
- Feb 2020
- Category
- Atlantic Provinces (NB, NL, NS, PE), Social History
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781989564127
- Publish Date
- Feb 2020
- List Price
- $16.95
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Where to buy it
Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels
- Reading age: 14 to 18
Description
Prologue: The Forgotten Acadians For Acadians, tracing their history has been a challenge that has spanned several centuries. Little was known of their story beyond some oral accounts, and the titbits of written information available were most often written by someone other than Acadians and subsequently discovered to be riddled with biases and inaccuracies. For that reason, it was difficult to learn this story based on facts and have the information presented such that Acadians were not seen as villains, but victims of a dark period in Canadian history. Most Acadians grew up believing that if our ancestors had signed the Oath of Allegiance to the British Crown in 1755, the atrocities of the Deportation would have been avoided and everyone would have lived happily ever after. Due to an initial lack of education and laws that prevented our ancestors from attaining the truth, Acadians remained in a “black hole of knowledge” for centuries. However, political and social forces can only succeed in maintaining forceful ignorance for so long before small rays of light begin to penetrate the abyss. Having lived under a ban of possessing written materials, Acadians were slow to accumulate information that countered allegations of our ancestors’ short-sightedness and involvement in Mi’kmaq uprisings. Through eventual cracks in oppressive education practices, new information began to emerge that led to demands for corrections, justice and basic human rights. Slowly, political, legal and social wheels began to turn, such that Acadian unrest and demands grew stronger. However, early changes were mostly witnessed in the larger Acadian communities within the Maritimes, while smaller and more isolated ones remained locked in ignorance much longer. Such was the case with the Tor Bay Acadian region of Guysborough County. Where writers, politicians and educators from other larger Acadian areas were contributing their research and knowledge for their people, local populations in the easternmost corner of the Nova Scotia mainland benefitted little from those early efforts. Isolation kept communities too removed from the key “movers and shakers” from being awakened by those discoveries and impacts. Obscurity caused the local population to not only miss this awakening, but they were off the radar screen so that few other Acadian regions even knew they existed. Local discoveries came much later than other areas of the Maritimes, but those community education processes (outside formal institutional education) provided a deeper knowledge of who they were as this education became recognized and entrenched. One great failure for Tor Bay Acadians was to have someone who lived there relate their story from the Acadian point of view and with local input. This book is an attempt to correct this with the hope that as many as possible will read it and learn with appreciation some information that will make readers see our communities as having a rich and noteworthy history. It is hoped that others will follow with contributions in music, art, poetry or any other expressive medium to tell our story from different perspectives. In his initiative, the writer does not use the approach of an historian, but attempts to weave a combination and compilation of historical information, folklore, culture, and traditions into a local historical tapestry. During his entire teaching career, Jude was involved in Acadian affairs and served as regional representative and member of le Conseil d’Administration de la Fédération Acadienne de la Nouvelle Ecosse. This was a natural extension of his Acadian life and interest that evolved into a passion. Upon retirement, he was able to devote more time and effort in educating himself in his culture, genealogy and history. The first Congrès Mondial Acadien held in the Moncton area of New Brunswick in 1994 and subsequent ones held every five years in different Acadian/Cajun areas, proved to be the real catalysts for him and many others to be drawn into this discovery process. Through Jude’s involvement with F.A.N.E., many doors were opened via meetings with a wide range of people from many regions, which then provided access to even more significant sources of information. Visits to Louisiana, France and all Acadian regions of the Maritimes led to a growth in knowledge and a greater feel for the Acadian saga. When Nova Scotia hosted the 2004 Congrès Mondial Acadien, Jude got involved in the organization of the local Pellerin/Bonnevie /Retrouvailles/family Reunion celebrations. He followed Brad Pellerin as President of the newly formed Société des Acadiens de la Région de Tor Baie after Brad’s death in 2002. This Association was established for the sole purpose of planning and steering the 2004 Pellerin/Bonnevie family reunion celebrations in the Tor Bay area. However, the celebrations proved to be so moving and exciting for the entire Tor Bay Acadian region, that an expressed desire to continue the process was made and the “Forgotten Acadians” of the Tor Bay shores were awakened and continue to make “cultural noise”. As a result of this Réveil/Awakening, several celebrated additions have been made to this forgotten Acadian region that has evolved into tourism gems for the area and province. An annual Festival Savalette has been established and will be celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2019. Plans for a unique Parc de Nos Ancêtres were conceived and developed in 2006/2007 as ten professionally painted chapter scenes by Moni Deursch and Charlotte Petitpas/Pitts on rocks were created. These were accompanied by bilingual interpretive panels as a means of presenting and interpreting in a unique way, the Acadian history from the 1604 departure from France to settlement on the shores of Tor Bay in the late 1700s. This park was developed in an anchor shape (see p. 19, as well as the photo on the page opposite) signifying the Acadian qualities of determination, attachment, perseverance and adaptability. A “Salle Acadienne” Resource Centre was developed and built in 2011 where visitors and locals can discover and expand their knowledge of history, culture, and genealogy. An 8 x 16 foot Moni Deursch historical mural (painting) is a featured part of this facility highlighting twenty-five local memorable scenes from the early 1900s to 1960.
About the authors
Contributor Notes
About the author Jude Avery was born and raised in Larry’s River, Guysborough County, the youngest of five children born to Frank and Evangeline (Pellerin) Avery. He attended Larry’s River School until completion of Grade Nine then transferred to Guysborough Municipal High School for Tenth Grade. He moved to Toronto in 1965 to live with his brother, Carman and sister-in-law, Sara Ann while he attended Alderwood Collegiate Institute for Grade Eleven. He then enrolled at Radio College of Canada in Toronto in 1966 and successfully completed a one-year program in Radio and Television Technology. Returning to Nova Scotia in 1967, Halifax became his new home where he worked in the technical field as a radio and television serviceman then as a central office telephone equipment installer with Northern Electric. While in Halifax he met his wife-to-be, Emma Vaughn (Vaughnie) MacNeil of Sydney Mines and made a drastic life-shift when he registered at Saint Francis Xavier University as a mature student in September 1969, only days after marrying Vaughnie. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1972, Bachelor of Education in 1973 and Un Programme de Perfectionnement de Langue de l’Université Ste. Anne, in 1996. 16th His first employment upon completion of his St. F. X. studies was as an Elementary Teacher at Pomquet Consolidated School. It was here that Jude began a lifetime process of discovery in the uniqueness and richness of Acadian history, culture and language. In his first year at Pomquet School, he was instrumental in organizing the first Carnaval d’Hiver in the community that was designed to celebrate the Acadian culture, history and folklore. He was in Pomquet for two years and saw two of these events staged where excitement and pride were expressed by locals who were very ready to rediscover themselves and share their stories. This winter celebration has evolved to help shape Pomquet as a prominent Acadian region and it continues to be celebrated in February each year as a much-anticipated annual event. He then transferred to the Guysborough School District as a junior high French teacher at the newly constructed Riverview Consolidated School in New Harbour in 1975. He spent his next fifteen years here until the Junior High section of the school was phased out due to a sharp enrollment decline in 1990. Jude transferred to Canso High School as high school French teacher and taught there for two years then moved to Guysborough Municipal High School, again as a high school French teacher, where he remained until his retirement in 2003.
Excerpt: The Forgotten Acadians: ... a story of discovery (UPDATED EDITION) (by (author) Jude Avery; edited by Francis G. Mitchell; guest editor Virginia Houston; cover design or artwork by Janet Soley)
Foreword
Les Acadiens, who eventually settled in the Tor Baie region of Guysborough County(NS) undoubtedly had a difficult journey to even get to this place, having left George’s Island detention and deportation centre in Halifax Harbour, and other similar smaller forts within the region, eventually making it to Chezzetcook on the Eastern Shore after the first Treaty of Paris (1763), only to be displaced again a generation later (1783)by United Empire Loyalists fleeing New England and New York after the American Revolutionary War/War of Independence. This time these Acadians settled in one of the more isolated areas of Nova Scotia, where the soil and rugged coast were more suited to forestry and mining than farming. Thus, these traditional Acadians reinvented themselves once again as fishermen and woodsmen, eking out a living from the forests and the sea, along with subsistence farming of root vegetable in rocky soils, and learning from their Mi’kmaq friends to seek sustenance among the woodland berries, edible plants and native animals/birds of the land and shores.
While there is little doubt that Les Acadiens of Tor Baie, Guysborough Co. were moreisolated and indeed, were largely “forgotten” by most, (see Avery’s first book, TheForgotten Acadians © 2019; 2020), readers also need to be aware they were not, untilrecently, even included by FANE on their map of Acadian Communities of this province,and were barely on the radar of the federal or provincial governments until July, 2019 at Festival Savalette, with the dedication of Place Savalette. Their story of survival ina harsh environment is not only a remarkable testimony to their resilience and their dedication to their creator through their religion, as well as to one another, which not only sustained them, but forced them to invent their own unique forms of socialization, entertainment, games, recreation and culture out of what the natural environment provided.
This latest work by Jude Avery, Joie de Vivre/Love of Life, covers a wide range of Acadian culture and qualities, and while it aptly describes the local scene, with unique communities, family names, as well as geography and climate that differs from other Acadian communities, a quick look at the book’s ‘Table of Contents’ reveals a list that may well be quite familiar to Acadians living in many other regions of theMaritimes. Topics such as Acadian culture – a resilient people; neighbours more like family; their Roman Catholic religion/the influence of priests and nuns; Feast days and Celebrations; home grown theatrical presentations; Maritime Acadian Music and its performers – from all three Maritime provinces – and “Cajun country”; food and its preparation; winter vitality – sport and recreation; summer fun; rural politics; the influence of culture and history on tourism ... most of those would seem to apply widely within the Maritime region. What was different was the geography, degree of isolation and the distance from larger communities and urban centres … and the separation of time – the communities of Tor Baie being more economically and technologically isolated well into the second half of the Twentieth Century.
Again. while the specifics are different in time and place, many Acadians, indeed many others who lived in isolated, rural locations, may well relate to the struggles of living off the land and available resources. Even those of different cultures were often sustained by their beliefs and ‘religion’ and in looking out for their neighbours, both in safety and economically. Growing up in many of the more isolated areas of Atlantic Canada meant being without many of the amenities that public infra-structure, transportation, recreation and goods afforded urban dwellers, so they too learned to be inventive, using one’s imagination and ingenuity to create what the author refers to as fun!
And many individuals can relate to much in their own upbringing related to hard work,caring for others and the role of faith in their personal growth and development. Also travelling within the larger world, one can appreciate those different from themselves, for family, faith and culture are what binds us as humans.
More specifically, having travelled widely, experiencing many cultures, there is much in common among peoples who have struggled, not only with their environment, but with the political and economic realities of the world in which they found themselves. I was particularly fortunate to have shared the special hospitality of Les Acadiens in all three Maritime provinces during a primary working career in education and in organizing national bilingual programs for youth. As such, I can strongly suggest the Acadians are to be especially admired for their fascinating culture, resilience and joie de vivre.
While the book is geographically placed in the land of the “Forgotten Acadians”, in remote Guysborough Co., NS, it is recommended to all Acadians as a shared experience, and to anyone who can relate to what was required by people internally, not only to survive, but indeed thrive under difficult circumstances, including isolation.
A final comment on the author: In March 2021, Jude Avery was among the first of six initial recipients of the Lieutenant-Governor’s Award of Excellence for l’Acadie and laFrancophonie of Nova Scotia, awarded for his life-long contribution to Acadian affairs and history, which included writing stories on his region for over thirty years, teaching French for even longer in regional schools, helping out in Baton Rouge, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, working with others to bring Le Congrès Mondial Acadien to this region and home communities and was a driving force behind the recognition of Place Savalette by the federal and provincial governments, commemorating a lesser known, but very important historic meeting between Captain Savalette and Samuel de Champlain in 1607 (at Port Felix, NS) before the latter founded what became the City of Quebec a year later – truly significant Canadian historic events.
Francis Mitchell, Editor/Publisher
Editorial Reviews
Post-release commentaries regarding the First Printing “Avery’s book, The Forgotten Acadians ... a Story of Discovery, draws upon decades of historical and genealogical research, countless discussions and personal memories. In that sense, it has been a labour of love - a passion developed early in Avery’s career.” Guysborough Journal, November 6, 2019 edition “Jude, I am an avid reader and very interested in our Acadian history. You have said everything we have felt and wanted to say or hear all of our lives. You told our local story such that it connected us to the broader Acadian saga in a meaningful and tangible way. Thank you for your time and effort! We appreciate you doing this for all Acadians, but especially for those of us living in smaller culturally-isolated communities.” Mary Ann DeYoung, Pomquet resident at Cyril Ward Memorial Library launch, Nov. 12, 2019. “I have grown up with Jude and have witnessed his determination, tenacity and passion for our Acadian culture and history. It wasn’t shocking to see his years of research evolve into this book and witness its popularity.” Sylvester Pellerin’s introduction of author Jude Avery, at Cyril Ward Memorial Library launch, Nov. 12, 2019. “I had a strange e-mail yesterday from a friend in Kanata, Ontario who said she and her husband went to Chapters to purchase a copy of my book and were told they were sold out! They sold very quickly and we’re waiting for a new supply to arrive.” The first printing of The Forgotten Acadians sold out in just 58 days, a testimony to the thirst by Acadians for stories about themselves and the spirt in which the author, Jude Avery, captivated their interest. This second UPDATED printing became available in late-January, 2020. [Editor] SECOND UPDATED PRINTING (January 30, 2020) This second updated printing essentially contains the same story as the first, but with small updates throughout and nine more pages, containing three maps outlining the many vibrant Acadian communities located within the three Maritime provinces, along with brief summary of Acadian history and culture in each of those provinces.
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