French Presence In North America

In 1604, Pierre Dugua Sieur de Mons arrived at Saint Croix, a small island near what is today the Maine (USA)-New Brunswick border. It was here that he attempted year-round French settlement in North America, an event which symbolizes the founding of Acadie.

Accompanying Sieur de Mons was the famed explorer and mapmaker, Samuel de Champlain, who would inspire the exploration of both Canada and the United States.

Sieur de Mons went to establish the Port Royal Habitation in 1605 while Champlain founded Quebec in 1608. And, with the following generations, French culture took root in North America. Today, Atlantic Canada boasts a vibrant Acadian population. There are now over 16 million North Americans of French descent, and more than 8 million have French as their mother tongue.

In 1958, The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada recommended that Saint Croix Island be recognized for its national historic significance to Canada, and in 1984, the United States Congress designated Saint Croix Island as International Historic Site in recognition of its historical significance to both countries.

Start planning your itinerary to view Saint Croix Island as well as the other fascinating sites which tell the the story of French exploration and setlement of North America. At Rogersville there is a monument to Acadien settlers and the home of a Trappist Monastery since 1904.

The French spoken in the Northern New Brunswick region is called “brayon” – a term derived from the textile industry. Brayon (which can also refer to the people themselves) is a blend of Quebecois and Acadian French, with a sprinkling of American English and Scots/Irish idioms thrown in for good measure. Read more...

Did You Know?

Did you know that the year 2020 marked the 416th anniversary of the beginnings of continuous French settlement in North America?

New Brunswick’s Bay of Fundy has the highest tides on earth and is one of the most accessible viewing areas for marine life in the world.

New Brunswick has many species of birds. Grand Manan Island in the Fundy Isles is one of the top birding spots in North America. Grand Manan Island is also the Dulse Capital of the World. Dulse is an edible dried seaweed with many healthy properties, containing many minerals and a variety of vitamins.

The Bay of Fundy is a pristine sanctuary for all kinds of rare, unusual wild creatures. Immense blooms of plankton provide a vast feeding ground for up to 15 species of toothed and baleen whales, including Finbacks, Humpbacks, Pilot whales and the rare right whale.

Kouchibouguac National Park extends over 238-square-kilometres of Maritime Plain Natural Region along New Brunswick’s scenic Acadian Coast. This mosaic of salt marshes, peat bogs, freshwater systems, Acadian woodland and sandy beaches has long captivated guests, one generation to the next.

Perhaps the most striking feature of the Kouchibouguac National Park is its sand dune system, which sits on a broken series of barrier islands extending over 25 kilometres. The dune system shelters the estuarine lagoons and salt marshes, forming a dynamic coastal environment greatly influenced by the presence of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The dune system is intensively dynamic – changing with rising sea levels, storms, and the long-shore transport of sands.

Shediac is home to the World’s Largest Lobster. This statue is 10.5 m (34 ft.) long and is 4.5 m (15 ft.) high. This monster weighs 90 tons! Fin more neat info about New Brunswick...

Related Links:

The Bay Of Fundy - The World's Highest Tides

Fundy Trail - The Hopewell Rocks

Hopewell Rocks - Fundy Trail - Experience The Majesty

Village of Alma - Low Tide

Village of Alma - High Tide

Hartland Covered Bridge

Moncton's Magnetic Hill

New Brunswick - A Truly Unique Maritime Experience