On November 9, I had the pleasure of addressing the annual meeting of the Greater Grand Isle Historical Society in Grand Isle, Maine. The notes below are a close approximation of my spoken remarks. * * * Thank you for the invitation. It is a pleasure to chat with you all and celebrate the history […]
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Papa Michaud Was a Rolling Stone
Michaud: it’s a common name. Statistics published several decades ago ranked it among the 50 most common surnames in Quebec—ahead of Desjardins, Parent, Charbonneau, and Lacroix. Just across the border, it outnumbered all other names in the early records of the Fort Kent, Maine, Catholic parish. Michauds are still present all across the Upper St. […]
Continue readingForgotten Tales of the Cold French North
Jean Baptiste In the nineteenth century, Jean Baptiste became an unofficial moniker for French Canadians—a symbolic term applied to them by English speakers to mirror their own John Bull and Brother Jonathan. A glimpse of parish records in the St. John Valley suggests that there was something to it. But in the same records we […]
Continue readingLesson Plan: Maine Acadians
In preparation for the first regional National History Day (NHD) competition in Aroostook County, the Acadian Archives provided a set of primary documents to organizers and teachers. These documents, some drawn from the Archives’ own collections, showcase the history and experiences of French-heritage communities in far northern Maine. I am pleased to expand access to […]
Continue readingExploring the Acadian Peninsula
The deportation of thousands of Acadians that began in 1755 left human fragments across the Atlantic world. Few areas are known specifically for their Acadian culture—or named after the culture. New Brunswick’s Acadian peninsula stands out… figuratively and literally. It is the horn that juts easterly from northeastern New Brunswick. It is bound by the […]
Continue readingThe Lost Wor(l)ds of Franco-America
This post marks the fifth anniversary of this Franco-American history blog. Sincere thanks to everyone who has read, encouraged, and supported its research and reflections. The author delivered the following remarks as the opening lecture of the University of Maine at Fort Kent’s Scholars Symposium on April 26, 2022. The transcript appeared in the summer […]
Continue readingOthering the Madawaska in Travel Narratives
Three month ago, this blog plunged into the Upper St. John Valley, an area whose history often falls on the margins of existing narratives. The hard work of reconstructing the history of the Madawaska, its relationship with neighboring regions, and its place within empires is complicated by surviving sources that tell (at best) a partial […]
Continue readingThose Other Franco-Americans: The Madawaska Mirage?
It is not quite the mountainous wilderness—an Appalachia of the north—that I had expected. Yet, in my experience, after hours on the road, as each hill softly yields to another, you do sense that you are entering a different world. Push beyond the highways and you may see signs for Frenchville, Ouellette, and New Canada. […]
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