For more on Franco-American history, please check out the following links: Franco-American political history from our friends at the French-Canadian Legacy Podcast; A history of religious and public education in the St. John River valley on the Acadian Archives blog; An essay on the “prehistory” of the great migration from the St. Lawrence River valley […]
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Traveling with a Bishop in 1815, Part II
See Part I here. His arduous journey was still far from over as Bishop Plessis definitively left Halifax on July 27. A carriage provided by a Mr. Conroy took them overland to Windsor, a town with a small estuary opening on the Bay of Fundy. Plessis seemed startled to find a good number of Black […]
Continue readingTraveling with a Bishop in 1815, Part I
Four men joined the expedition—men of the cloth, all with a strong constitution, able to carry a heavy load of personal belongings, supplies, and religious items that would eventually fill up Quebeckers’ deep well of curse words. De Boucherville, Gaulin, Gauvreau, and Bolduc had as their esteemed companion and leader the bishop of Quebec, Joseph-Octave […]
Continue readingFinding Francos in Diocesan Archives: Balancing Opportunity and Empathy
Unless you are particularly generous with your time and opinion, if you have ever posted a Yelp review, it is likely that you were commenting on a bad experience. For most of us, it is much easier to complain about misfortune, and act on it, than to express appreciation or bestow praise. Through years of […]
Continue readingHenry David Thoreau and French Canada at Mid-Century
As previously noted on this blog, the concept of américanité is as relevant to Canadians who never left their native land as it is to Franco-Americans and other expatriates. The influence of American institutions, values, and economic development has been constant north of the boundary line now for more than two centuries. Present-day scholars recognize […]
Continue readingKing George III as a Late Stuart (Part V)
Part V: The Exigencies of War See Part IV here. Beyond 1776, it became more difficult for disgruntled colonists to sustain the rhetoric of anti-Catholicism in their claims for emancipation. The reaction to the act of 1774 found an uneasy place in the context of war, especially as Congress sought to woo Catholic Quebec and […]
Continue readingKing George III as a Late Stuart (Part IV)
Part IV: Religious Encounters See Part III here. The invasion was in keeping with recent events outside of the colony, from Lexington and Concord through the capture of Fort Ticonderoga – clearing the Lake Champlain axis – to the Battle of Bunker Hill, all in the spring of 1775. The Continental Congress sought to protect […]
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