Canada and Acadian Genealogical Research
If you have Acadian ancestors, chances are that the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island will play a significant role in your research. This region, once known as Arcadie, was first setled by the French, who established Port Royal (present-day Annapolis) in 1605. Jurisdiction passed back and forth from French to English hands many times: 1632 (French), 1654 (English), 1667 (French), 1690 (English), 1697 (French), and 1713 (English).
With the enactment of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, France ceded the Nova Scotia peninsula and the New Brunswick area to England but made no effort to settle the area. The French-speaking Acadians remained in the overwhelming majority population wise until the 1750s. France still retained Ile Saint-Jean (now Prince Edward Island) and Cape Breton Island (now part of Nova Scotia), where Louisbourg became the capital.
A large number of the Acadians were deported by the English from 1710 to 1760 for refusing to sign the oath of allegiance to the Crown. This deportation has become known as the Great Upheaval or Le Grand Dérangement. To escape deportation, many fled to Québec or to what is now New Brunswick. In 1759 the Cape Breton and Prince Edward Island areas fell to Britain and the settlers were deported to France. In 1763 France ceded most of its maritime lands to England, and the area became known as Nova Scotia. For those Acadians who fled to the United States, most eventually made their way to Louisiana or settled in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont. Many of these settlers have maintained family connections with their counterparts in Canada to the present time. Acadians in the United States are usually known as Cajuns, or “les Cadiens”.
In 1769 a separate province, Saint John's Island (Ile Saint-Jean), was established. It became Prince Edward Island in 1799. In 1784 the New Brunswick area also became a separate province. About this time many Acadians who had been deported agreed to sign the oath of allegiance to England and were allowed to take up lands in the Maritime Provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island). They worked primarily as farmers and fishermen. For the most part, they continued to speak French and uphold their Roman Catholic faith.
Because of this great dispersion, the Acadian records are only complete for the early years of settlement. There are some good church registers from the late 1600s to 1755. Registers exist for Port Royal only for the earliest years. The most important remaining sources for Acadian research are:
- Parish Registers
- Cemetery Records
- Census Records
- Land Grants
- Notarial Records
- Miscellaneous Records
Records found in the miscellaneous category may include lists of deported Acadians, Acadians in transit, and Acadians in the British Colonies; petitions of Acadians in Massachusetts; and allegiance lists.
BLM 6/7/2017