From August 9 to 16, 2024, the Acadian village of Pomquet, on the shores of Saint-Georges Bay, near the town of Antigonish, organized a festival for its 250th anniversary, with multiple activities. In the opinion of its organizer, the festival was a great success, “a bit like a resurgence of Acadian pride” [1]. On August 16, among the highlights of the festival, hundreds of people gathered at the Chez Deslauriers property (see below), sometimes coming from far away, for a great festive moment “with the family”. Why did the large Pomquet family feel so much need to revive the pride of its Acadian culture? Here is a brief historical reminder…
In the 1770s and 1780s, in what is now Antigonish County, Acadian settlers founded the village of Pomquet and, further east, the other two villages of Tracadie and Havre-Boucher. At the same time, many English-speaking immigrants settled in the region. Unlike the villages in the Chéticamp region of Cape Breton, these three villages are not adjacent and their population has not remained entirely Acadian. Many Acadians quickly assimilated into the English-speaking majority, so much so that Acadian and Francophone culture was deeply affected and even despised. This was already noted with indignation by the future Senator Pascal Poirier, a fierce defender of the French language and Acadian culture, during his visit to Pomquet in 1876. The edifying anecdote he tells appears at the end of the article (in French), carrying a very inspiring message of pride for the current generations of Acadians…
Pomquet’s Acadian Heritage
Today, the village of Pomquet, which has about 900 inhabitants, most of whom are of Acadian origin, still resists assimilation. It is the only Francophone stronghold in Antigonish County where the French language is a minority [2], having the privilege of being able to receive the programs of CKJM community radio in Cape Breton. In February 2024, the Acadians of the village celebrated the 50th edition of their winter carnival in their brand-new community centre attached to the Ecole acadienne de Pomquet, the only Acadian school in the region. The Acadian community of Pomquet, represented by the Société acadienne de Sainte-Croix, and the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial, which is responsible for the school, wanted to create a common cultural centre, open to all villagers. It is therefore only natural that the new community centre now houses the Musée acadien de Pomquet in a more suitable space.
Let’s go back to the Pomquet festival, in August 2024, where the village’s two main heritage sites were highlighted, including the Chez Deslauriers property, whose heritage house dates back to the 1860s. This property is located on a coastal hill with a magnificent view of Pomquet Beach, in the heart of a provincial natural park. It is managed on a voluntary basis by the Société de développement de Pomquet, which aims to promote Acadian culture and community tourism.
Finally, the second major heritage site in the village is of course the Eglise Sainte-Croix, built in 1863, where a mass was celebrated on Sunday, August 11, 2024 in honour of the Acadian ancestors. During Pascal Poirier’s visit to Pomquet in 1876, it was the current church that presented itself to him. But rest assured, for a long time now, no one has entered his presbytery through the kitchen door without having a good reason to do so.
Header image: Eglise Sainte-Croix, Pomquet (Photo courtesy of Brendan Riley).
Author: Jean-Marc Agator
Paris Region, France.
Primary Source
Ross, Sally, et J. Alphonse Deveau ; Les Acadiens de la Nouvelle-Ecosse, hier et aujourd’hui ; Les Editions d’Acadie, Moncton, 1995.
Anecdote by Pascal Poirier (1876 memoirs in Nova Scotia), related in the book by Sally Ross and Alphonse Deveau above (page 190), in French
« De Tracadie, j’allai à Pomquet. Sur la route, je rencontrai un paysan, que je fis monter dans ma voiture. Nous causâmes.
- Si vous allez voir le prêtre, me dit-il, ils vous feront entrer au presbytère par la cuisine.
- Et pourquoi cela ?
- Parce que nous autres, les Français, il faut passer par la cuisine, quand j’allons le voir.
- Et les autres ?
- Ben, quand c’est des Anglais, y pouvont passer par la porte de devant.
Je bondis d’indignation.
- Je vais voir cela, lui dis-je.
Je poussai directement au presbytère.
- Je désire voir M. le curé, dis-je, en français, à la grosse fille joufflue qui vient m’ouvrir.
- All right. Go by the other door.
- J’entrerai par la porte où entrent les chrétiens, et non par celle où entrent les chiens, dis-je, sur un ton très élevé.
Au bruit que je fis, le curé vint à la porte.
- You want to see me, Sir?
- Oui, Monsieur.
- Entrez, alors, me fit-il, en un français très correct.
Tous les prêtres de nos provinces faisaient leur séminaire à Montréal ou à Québec, où ils apprenaient à parler notre langue ».
[1] « Pomquet a fêté 250 ans d’histoire », Le Courrier de la Nouvelle-Ecosse, 17/09/2024.
[2] On average, 11.1% of the 19580 inhabitants of Antigonish County (Town of Antigonish and Subdivisions A and B of the Municipality of the County) are still able to conduct a conversation in both official languages (Statistics Canada 2021).