Acadia

The first Acadian Convention took place at Memramcook, New Brunswick, in 1881. At this and two other conventions in the 1880's, the Acadians chose a national feast day, a flag, and a patron saint. These all differed from those chosen by Quebec, which was a mark of the Acadians' uniqueness. Acadia began in 1604 when seventy-nine Frenchmen wintered on Ste-Croix Island in Passamaquoddy Bay. More than half died of scurvy. The next summer the survivors moved to Port Royal, in the region that is now called Nova Scotia. The colony expanded slowly and changed hands between Britain and France fourteen times in the seventeenth century alone. The small Acadian population was noted for its health, fertility, longevity, strong family ties, and a high degree of independence from government control. Unfortunately, the Acadians lived in an area of conflict between England and France. When Britain took over the region permanently in 1713, the Acadians generally tried to maintain their neutrality. In 1755, however, local British authorities expelled them, fearing that they posed a military threat. Deportations continued for several years thereafter, but in 1764 the Acadians were allowed to return. Those who did, and those who had escaped exile, formed the basis of today's vigorous Acadian community. The illustration for this stamp is the work of Nérée DeGrâce, a painter of Acadian origin who now lives in Quebec. His canvases celebrate the virtues and homely joys of his forebears' way of life in old Acadia. Typographic design is by William Tibbles.