History of French in Maine

For more than 400 years Maine has had ties to France. In the early 1600's the area north the Penobscot River was considered to be Acadie (or Acadia) which was a colony of New France.

The first attempt at a permanent French settlement in North America was here in Maine on the Island of Saint-Croix. Sieur de Monts' expedition with Samuel de Champlain spent a disastrous winter here in 1604/05. Champlain went on to map much of the east coast of New England, the Canadian Maritime provinces and the Saint Lawrence River region in Québec.

artist: Samuel de Champlain

1604

Samuel de Champlain, by order of the King of France, mapped and named much of the coast of what is now called New England. Camplain gave our island the name of "Ile des Monts désert" because the tops of the mountains were bare of trees. Isle au Haut and the Saint-Croix River were also Champlain's names that are still used today.

photo: L. Millar

Fort Pentagoët / Castine

The French initially established a trading post, 1613, and then later a military fort in the area that is now called Castine, Maine. The control of Fort Pentagoët changed hands, and names, many times between the French and the English.

The town of Castine was named after a the French Baron de Saint-Castin who was put in charge of the fort. He was an administrator and fur trader. He married an Abenaki woman named Mathilde.

Acadia National Park

As a thank you for French assistance during the Revolutionary War against Great Britain, the creators of our national park eventually chose to name it Acadia in 1929. (It was briefly Sieur de Monts National Monument in 1916 and Lafayette National Park in 1919.) It was a nod to the French colony called "Acadie" that covered this part of Maine.

photo: J. Collier

L'Hermione

In 2015 a replica of General Lafayette's famous ship L'Hermione stopped in Castine for two days. This was the ship that brought relief supplies and troops to George Washing and the revolutionaries fighting the British.

The modern ship chose to make its' only Maine stop here because of connections with the old colony of Acadie.

artist: Lewis Parker

1785

Acadians faced expulsion by the British in Nova Scotia in 1755. They fled into the forests of New Brunswick and northern Maine around 1785.

Today their descendants are part of a thriving Acadian community in Aroostook County. Others are in Québec, the Maritime provinces and Louisianna (Cajuns) and other parts of the world.

Statue of Évangeline at the Acadian Village in Van Buren, Maine. photo: L. Millar

Evangeline

Maine writer Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote a poem in 1847 describing the expulsion of the Acadians from Nova Scotia through the fictional story of a young couple called Evangeline and Gabriel. In Longfellow's tale they were separated on the eve of their wedding when the British attacked their village. The two spent the rest of their lives looking for each other along the east coast of the United States and finally reunited just before Gabriel dies.

1604-2004

Saint-Croix Island commemorated the 4ooth anniversary of the arrival of the first french colonists. The island is part of both American and Canadian Nation Park systems. It is in the Saint-Croix River that separates the two countries.

photo: Wikimedia

Lumberjacks and Textile workers

Starting in the 1860's many french families from Quebec came looking for work in the woods and the textile mills. Large communities appeared in places like Lewiston-Auburn and in Biddeford. While some went back to Canada many stayed and became part of the Maine community.

photo: Dennis Jarvis

photo from Amjambo Africa

New Immigrants from Africa

In recent years there has been an influx of immigrants from francophone countries in Africa such as the RD Congo and Sénégal. They have settled in the Porland and Lewiston-Auburn areas. They have been warmly received by the existing french-speaking communities there. There have also been many families from Haiti.

Poutinefest

This event is all about French-Canadian heritage (Québec) and a favourite dish called poutine. Poutine is frenchfries served with cheese curds and gravy (and sometimes more stuff). It is held down in Portland, Maine. See poutinefest.com/maine

Madawaska Acadian Festival

Every August up in Aroostook County Madawaska hosts a series of events. Highlights include a parade of noise called a "Tintamarre", fireworks, crafts and of course Acadian food. (like ployes). madawaskaacadianfestival.com

La Kermesse Festival Franco-Americaine

Every June down in Biddeford, Maine there is a franco-american festival. See lakermessefestival.com

Le Festival Champlain

This is a french language film festival held every year in Portland, Maine that showcases films from french speaking countries around the world. The organization Alliance-Française puts it on.

See: https://afdume.org/festivalchamplain

French families in New England

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