This blog post follows an article titled “Silent But Visible? French Canadians on Stage and Screen,” which appeared in the fall 2021 issue of Le Forum, the quarterly publication of the Franco-American Centre (University of Maine). The article later appeared here and provides context for the present post. A condensed, French-language version of this post […]
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Lewiston: Winter Wonderland
It is thought doubtful if any city in the United States has ever entertained as picturesque a gathering of wintersportsmen from across the Canadian border as it was Lewiston’s privilege to entertain during the past week-end. In any event Lewiston has eclipsed its neighboring New England cities in this respect, and for 36 hours, at […]
Continue readingRene Charland: The Fastest Franco-American
Let’s start with this: the guy beat an Earnhardt. The annals of Nascar’s highest levels are filled with French names—Bouchard, Labonte, Lajoie, Nadeau, etc. Local short tracks across the U.S. Northeast have had their share of competitors of French-Canadian descent. But, for all of that talent, few have reached the caliber, reputation, or fame of […]
Continue readingWinter Carnivals of French Canada
In the colony’s earliest days, winter was an enemy. It suspended communication with the mother country and brought agriculture to a standstill for six months. Early frosts imperiled the food supply; long winters raised, in the first years, the specter of famine and scurvy. The settlers of New France at least benefitted from a seemingly […]
Continue readingSilent But Visible? French Canadians on Stage and Screen
An earlier version of this essay appeared in the fall 2021 issue of Le Forum, the quarterly publication of the Franco-American Centre (University of Maine). Please cite appropriately. * * * In early nineteenth-century Michigan, a Chippewa couple adopted four-year-old Leah Campeau, whom they had found wandering alone in the wilderness. After the War of […]
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