Acadians returning from the expusion that began in 1755 found their way back to the Memramcook River, 15 km inland, as the crow flies. Of course, they would not have been flying, they would have been following the winding course of this crooked, tidal river.

Acadians returning from the expusion that began in 1755 found their way back to the Memramcook River, 15 km inland, as the crow flies. Of course, they would not have been flying, they would have been following the winding course of this crooked, tidal river.

by ARCHIE NADON

“Why here? Of all the places returning Acadians could have chosen to begin again, why Memramcook?” Like most contemporary travelers, I stood in a historically significant spot and wondered why this community, built on either side of the Memramcook River, became significant. It certainly wasn’t obvious to someone driving in from Moncton on the new Trans-Canada Highway.

What I should have done, and who knows, maybe I’ll try it someday, was pack up my family —and Elaine’s—and make my way up the American Atlantic coast until I got near the original Acadie and head inland far enough not to be noticed and start looking for something familiar, like marshes, that could be turned into farms. Looked at from this perspective, Memramcook looks like an obvious choice to begin to recreate Acadie. In fact, it’s so obvious, one wonders how they got away with it and were not chased out by troops.

A quick look at the map reminds one of how close to the ocean Memramcook is, a mere 15 km, as the crow flies. But the returnees wouldn’t have been flying. They may have been sailing or rowing up or trudging alongside the Memramcook River, a meandering, tidal river that eventually empties into Chignecto Bay, the bay that borders the original Acadie.

This is the site of Village des LePlatte, the first Acadian village settled after the expulsion. The fact that it became a village in 1766, a mere 11 years after the expulsion began suggests the expulsion had already failed.

This is the site of Village des LePlatte, the first Acadian village settled after the expulsion. The fact that it became a village in 1766, a mere 11 years after the expulsion began suggests the expulsion had already failed.

They did get away with it, though. The first post-deportation Acadian village, Village des LePlatte dates from 1766, 11 years after the deportation began. I say began, because it was a huge undertaking and took several years, some dating it from 1755-63. Given that the first new village dates from 1766, one can see that if the goal was to completely expel the Acadians, then it had failed before it was even over.

Of course, that’s my view, the view of someone sitting comfortably in a Canadian home in 2009 basking in the safety of a modern democracy where governments apologize for past wrongheadedness like the deportation. Still, it’s hard not to think that Acadie has succeeded after all.  The original Acadians were a people, not a country, distinct from their motherland and from the conquerors. They still are distinct. And they’re millions strong now.