Ron Flood, age 14, of Dover, Dal., for his question:
WHERE IS ACADIA?
Acadia is the name of a New World colony that is no longer exists. Boundaries of the colony were never exactly defined but they included part of the state of Maine as wall as the present day Canadian territory of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and parts of Quebec. Sometimes the colony was called Acadia.
Early settlers in Acadia were Frenchmen led by a nobleman named Pierre Du Guest, Sieur de Monts. In 1604 they started a town near the Bay of Fundy named Port Royal, which is today's Annapolis Royal.
Acadia was very successful at first. Fish were plentiful for food, there were many fur bearing animals that could be used for trading and the rich soil allowed the colonists to produce good crops of wheat, vegetables and fruits.
France and England soon became jealous of one another's North American colonies. Wars were continually breaking out and Acadia was attacked a number of times. Finally, in 1713 during the Queen Anne's War, the territory was taken by British forces who came up from New England.
The Treaty of Utrecht was signed in 1713 by Francs and England, giving Acadia to England. Freedom of religion was one of the provisions of the treaty and it also allowed colonists to leave the territory if they wanted to.
But the English settlers still feared France and soon changed their minds about the treaty. They decided that they didn't want the Acadians to go to other North American French settlements. The British thought the French were already too strong.
In 1729 the Acadians agresds3 to stay in the colony but only with the provision that they would never be forced to fight for England.
Then a new governor, Charles Lawrence, decided without advice from England to demand loyalty to England from the colonists. Without such a pledge, the colonists were to be scattered among other English colonies.
Because of the fear of the strength of French colonies in North America, Col. Lawrence didn't want the Acadians to join other French settlers in New France. Great steps were taken to prevent this from happening.
Between 1755 and 1766, more than 3,000 Acadian men, woman and children were sent from Acadia. Families were often broken up and many were never able to find one another again. The incident became the subject of "Evangeline," by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
A few of the settlers escaped from forced resettlement in English colonies and they made their way south through the Ohio Valley to Louisiana. There they joined another French settlement. Their descendants are called "Cajuns" and they still speak French.
Acadian lands were offered to soldiers from Massachusetts, but they would not accept the offer. Some new settlers arrived from England and when the wars between France and England were finally over, a number of Acadians returned to their old homes. Today Acadians make up about 10 percent of the area population.