REGION 1 HISTORY:(New Europe) Fun Facts

In the introduction to the ‘Fun Facts’ Category within this online planning manual, I detailed the importance of knowing some key things pertaining to the history that you will be exposed to on a trip to a particular area. I also presented the idea of dividing the U.S. into 9 Regions for the purpose of organizing those facts.  This is for the purpose of helping an area come alive to you as you learn a few facts in ‘bullet point’ style – but only a few facts so that you don’t get overwhelmed!

Here are some interesting Historical facts about Region 1:

1). NEW EUROPE

Maine * Vermont * New Brunswick * Nova Scotia 

If you are traveling to the Atlantic North East states (Region 1), you will find much of the history you’ll be hearing about has to do with the Border Disputes and the settlement of what is now North Eastern Canada and the U.S. state of Maine.  For this area’s ‘Focused Events’ (historical events that the area is most known for), we’ll be tackling the wars and disputes that this region saw as its borders fell into place between 1600 and 1860.

We’ll call this the BORDER DISPUTE PERIOD.

A). A FEW INTERESTING BITS OF INFORMATION:

              *North Eastern North America was initially called Acadia.  Acadia covered what is now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Cape Breton Island, Prince Edward Island and parts of present day Maine.

            *When Acadia was under French control, it was called Acadia, but under British control is was called Nova Scotia.

            *Acadians are descendants of the original French settlers.

 B). FOCUSED EVENTS IN ACADIA:

*1604: Acadia was initially settled by France.

*1605: Champlain moves the colony to Port-Royal (present day Annapolis Royal in Nova Scotia).

*1613: Virginians destroyed the town and scattered the inhabitants causing new colonies to spring up and the French occupation to grow.

*1621: Unsuccessful attempt by the British to colonize Eastern Acadia – which they renamed Nova Scotia – increases tension between the British and the French

*1632-1650: First French feudal war over Acadia between Charles de Menou Sieur d’Aulnay Charnisay and Charles La Tour.

*1654: La Tour is captured by the British, but then is released and allowed to become governor of Nova Scotia under British law.  La Tour was replaced by the first British governor of Nova Scotia.

*1670: Hubert de Grandfontaine takes Acadia back for the French.

*1689: War breaks out as Great Britain attacks and captures Port Royal.

*1697: Treaty of Ryswick brings King William’s War (which was fought between Louis XVI of France and Austria in Europe as allied forces tried to curtail the ambitions of King Louis)   to a close and leaves France in control.

*1702-1713: Queen Anne’s War between Britain and France for control of Acadia.

*1710: British and colonial forces join to capture Port Royal for the British and renames it Annapolis.

*1713: The Treaty of Utrecht recognizes British conquest.  France retains Cape Breton and Isle St Jean.  British take control of all of Nova Scotia (Acadia) and ‘Its Ancient Limits’.  This ends Queen Anne’s War.

*1713-1763: Constant disputes between Britain and France over the definition of ‘ancient limits’.

*1751: The building Fort Beauséjour on the Missagwask River, by the French confines the English to the peninsula for forty years.

*1755-1763: Due to tensions between Britain and France, 10,000 Acadians were deported to the 13 colonies, France and Britain.  Britain thought that they were a threat to the appropriation of the land.  This Deportation was called ‘The Great Upheaval’.

*1740-1764: King George’s War, The French and Indian Wars and the Seven Years War leaves Great Britain in control of all of Acadia, which passes away in favor of the establishment of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

*1763: Treaty of Paris ends the French and Indian War.

*1784: Province of New Brunswick is formed.

*1775-1783: The people of Nova Scotia, Quebec and Prince Edward Island decide not to join colonial forces against Great Britain in the Revolutionary War.

*1802: Altitude sickness correctly diagnosed as lack of oxygen.

*1802: Slavery divides American North and South.

*1867: Following several constitutional conferences, the 1867Constitution Act officially proclaimed the Canadian Confederation.  Initially there were four provinces: Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.

C). SO WHERE DOES MAINE FIT INTO THE PICTURE?

Motto: ‘Dirigo’

*1604: First European colony in Maine established by France.

*1604-1605: French Map maker Samuel de Champlain explores and maps portions of the Maine coastline and the Penobscot River.

*1622: Sir Ferdinando Gorges and John Mason are granted rights to the land which makes up what is now Maine and New Hampshire. Gorges became the first person to title the territory “Maine”.

*1623: First Sawmill in America.

*1652: Maine is annexed as a frontier territory by Massachusetts. The strategic importance of Maine is established as Massachusetts officials considered it the first line of defense against potential French and Indian invasions.

*1658: Massachusetts takes over Casco Bay, completing annexing of Maine lands.

*1775: First naval battle of the Revolutionary War occurs off the coast of Machias.

*1775: Benedict Arnold marches a band of revolutionaries through Maine in a failed attempt to capture British strongholds in Quebec City and Montreal.

*1819: Massachusetts agrees to allow The District of Maine to petition for statehood.

*1820: Maine becomes its own State

*1839: Governor Fairfield declares war on England over a boundary dispute between New Brunswick and northern Maine. This is the first and only time a state has declared war on a foreign power. The dispute was settled, however, before any blood was shed.

*1851: Maine is the first state to outlaw the sale of all alcoholic beverages.

*1851: Harriet Beecher Stowe begin writing the novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

 *1852: The Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1852 settles border dispute between Maine and New Brunswick establishing current borders.

D. WHAT ABOUT VERMONT?

Motto: ‘Freedom and Unity’

*Abenaki speaking Native American tribes inhabit the Vermont area for an estimated 10,000 years and were the original maple syrup producers.  Prior to British colonization, the area was primarily a thoroughfare between the French/Native-American settlements to the North and English settlements to the South.

*1535: James Cartier is the first European to explore present day Vermont.

*1609: French explorer Samuel Champlain claims Vermont for France and discovers Lake Champlain.

*1724: First British establishment at Ft Dummer in Dummerston.

*1731: French arrive in the Vermont territory.

*1734: The French establish Fort St. Frederic giving the French control of the Lake Champlain Valley.

*1761: The town of Windsor was established and became called the ‘Birthplace of Vermont’. The production of maple syrup becomes more refined.

*1763: France cedes Vermont to the Britain after the ‘Seven Years War’.

*1763-1777: Settlers from New Hampshire and New York who owned land grants disputed control of the area.

*1774: The Scottish-American Land Company bring the first Scottish settlers to Vermont.

*1776-1783: American Revolution

*1777: Disputing settlers come together establishing the Vermont Republic which lasted until 1791. The Republic was the first of any future U.S. state to partially abolish slavery.

*1780: Last Indian raid led by the British happens in Royalton.

*1791: Vermont joins the Union as the 14^th State.

*1791: Vermont’s motto becomes: “Freedom & Unity”.

*Vermont is one of only 4 states (along with California, Hawaii and Texas) that were previously sovereign states.  A sovereign state is a geographic area or territory with a centralized government and is not dependent or subjected to any other power.

D). A FEW INTERESTING EVENTS IN MAINE, VERMONT  & ACADIA SINCE 1860: 

*1861-1864: American Civil War

*1863: Pres. Lincoln declares the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day

*1866: The Railroad Act permits appropriation of Native lands by railroad companies.

*1867: Canada becomes an Independent British Dominion (which means that it was a British founded colony that gained its own governing power).  That lasted until 1982 when the Constitution Act of 1982 gave Canada its full rights to govern without British approval.

*1869: 15^th Amendment gives freed male slaves the vote.

*1873: Creation of the Royal Mounted Police in Canada

*1881: Start of migration to the U.S by nearly 400,000 Canadians.

*1885: Completion of Canadian transcontinental railroad.

*1914: Canada joins Australia and New Zealand on the Allied side of WW1.

*1917: U.S. joins WW1.

*1920: Women gain the vote in the U.S.

*1932: Commonwealth Conference, Ottawa, sets new tariffs to protect trade within the British Empire.

*1941-1945: WW2

*1964-1975: Vietnam Conflict

Well there you have just a few tidbits of historical information that will hopefully help you enjoy your road trip into the North Eastern corner of North America!

                                             HAPPY TRAVELS!!!