Recent Articles
The Point: a Franco-American Heritage Site in Salem, Massachusetts
Traditional French Songs in Ontario
Fort William, Crossroad of a Fur Trading Empire
The Guigues Elementary School in Ottawa
Centre franco-ontarien de folklore (CFOF)
Centre de recherche en civilisation canadienne-française (CRCCF)
Articles
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A Bit of French North America Takes Root at Versailles
The Versailles Palace Park receives nearly 10 million visitors each year and, since 1979, has been registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In 1999, a devastating storm hit Versailles, and in its aftermath many French, Canadian and Quebec citizens rose to the occasion and demonstrated their attachment to this heritage site by planting their emblematic trees there. The restoration of this "place of shared memory" provided an opportunity to initiate research in order to take a fresh look at the history of the location. The results of the research revealed the complexity of the site's heritage appropriation history. Due to these latest developments, the relations the governments of Canada and Quebec maintained with the French government took on fresh new meaning. In addition, the regular tree re-planting activities organized after the storm demonstrated the increased scope and importance of the findings as they related to the various cultural identities involved.
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Alexis de Tocqueville’s visit to Lower Canada in 1831
In Alexis de Tocqueville's works, many pages are dedicated to the inhabitants, their historic destiny, as well as to the cultural and political situation of Lower Canada within the British Empire. His writings offer acute observations and penetrating analyses on the topics listed above. Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859) is notably famous for his masterpiece Democracy in America (1835), which offers a brilliant analysis of the inevitable advent of the young United States of America's democratic society. In this work, Tocqueville examines with care, a civilisation characterised by a desire for equality, a sometimes fanatical individualism and the ever looming tyranny of the majority. The work is based on meticulous observations, accumulated during a nine-month journey across the country (from May 9th, 1831 to February 20th, 1832) with a colleague, the magistrate, Gustave de Beaumont. It is less widely known that the two travellers also visited Lower Canada from August 23th to September 2nd, 1831, as Tocqueville did not write any specific works as a result of that particular voyage.
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Baron of Lahontan
After having enjoyed a considerable success in Europe with the 1702-1703 publication of his three-volume memoire - mainly inspired from his long stay in New France (1686-1693) - Lahontan was all but forgotten for more than two centuries. Then his works were rediscovered in the 1970s, and subsequently came to be considered essential, as they offered a better understanding of the literary evolution of the travel literature genre, as well as of the libertarian movement that swept over Europe during the age of Enlightenment of the 18thcentury. His work is also thought to be an invaluable contribution to the history of New France. Lahontan, an antihero who was not nearly as publicised as Champlain or other legendary characters of New France, has produced a work that today still assists scholars in better understanding French cultural heritage and history.
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Beauport «Seigneurie»
Few concepts are as closely linked with the history of Quebec as the seigneurial [feudal] system, which was established along the St. Lawrence River in the early days of colonisation by the French. The landscape, heritage assets and place names of the St. Lawrence valley still bear the marks of seigneurial feudalism, which, after having survived for nearly a hundred years under British rule, was abolished in 1854. However, Quebec-especially rural Quebec-continued to be defined by the seigneurial system long after 1854. Although seigneuries were a major cornerstone of Quebec's history, the remaining traces of their existence do not always reflect their importance. In some areas, the remains of a seigneurie have given rise to a veritable heritage industry, while in others they seem to have faded into obscurity. Beauport, one of the oldest seigneuries in Canada, is a perfect example of this paradox.
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Covered Bridges of Quebec
From the early 18th and up to the middle of the 19th century, hundreds of wooden covered bridges were built in Quebec. These structures, which were a common sight in the country side over the last century, have been witness to much of the province's economic and political history. The systematic construction of these distinctly designed bridges is a phenomenon that is being studied more and more. Replaced in great numbers when the road network was improved in the 1950s and 1960s, less than a hundred of the structures now remain. Today they are an essential part of Quebec's architectural heritage.
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Emblematic Landscapes of Lac-Tremblant-Nord: Natural Scenic Area and Cultural Heritage Asset
Lac Tremblant is well-known due to its proximity to Mont Tremblant, which looms over it. The uniqueness of the site resides in the fact that, historically, the land use of Lac Tremblant has long been split into two subdivisions, which is reflected in the area's distinct landscapes. The southern part of the lake and the mountain have been turned into a world-renowned recreation area, whereas, since the beginning of the 20th century, the northern segment has been protected as a natural heritage scenic area, a fact which is evident in natural features of the region. In this way, the Municipality of Lac-Tremblant-Nord has preserved and carefully shaped the landscapes that now have become such a part of its distinct unique identity, a uniqueness that, for the local residents, is so much a part of what makes them proud to live there. From the earliest days, this natural scenic heritage, with all of its age-old evocative power, has been a protected area; long before such conservation measures were the norm. Today, however, it is now being threatened.
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Father Marquette Monument in Laon: Commemorating an North American Historical Figure on French soil
Born in Laon, Northern France, in 1637, the Jesuit priest Jacques Marquette discovered the Mississippi River in 1673, as he explored the region alongside Louis Jolliet, the Quebec-born noble, merchant and explorer. Father Marquette died near the present-day city of Ludington, Michigan, in 1675. When his bones were discovered in 1877, he became a renowned historical figure in the United States, but remained largely unrecognized in France. The story of the monument built in 1937 in Marquette's hometown to honour this North American historical figure illustrates just how whimsical the local memory of him could be. A Jesuit long-disowned in France due to anticlericalism, Father Marquette was honoured in his home country when his historical contributions as an explorer and mapmaker were finally recognised.
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Fort de Chartres in Illinois
Located near Prairie du Rocher in the state of Illinois, Fort de Chartres is the only stone fort constructed by the French in the heart of the North American continent. Three forts were consecutively built between 1720 and 1755, bearing witness to the French colonial empire established in the Mississippi basin during the XVIIIth century. Abandoned for many decades, it was during the wave of historical site development in the first half of the XXth century that the state of Illinois partially rebuilt it to perpetuate the memory of the French presence in the region.
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French Culture in North America; Chateaubriand’s Travels and Literature
Chateaubriand's voyage that took him to the United States and along the Canadian border in 1791 was one of discovery that left its mark on his life's work. His ode to the New World sung in his novels and travel books have made him, in the eyes of generations of 19th century romantics, the "inventor of America" and, more precisely, the one who reinvented Louisiana. In retelling and glorifying the experiences of explorers, missionaries, travellers, and naturalists from the early days of New France to his own times, his works gave numerous generations of Europeans a yearning for the Americas. And so, for these reasons, Chateaubriand should be considered an integral part of French cultural heritage in North America.
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Gabrielle Roy House
On November 23, 2001, the St. Boniface home, where Gabrielle Roy was born in 1909 and where she lived until 1937, was designated a "Historical House" by the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. Gabrielle Roy, the most famous Franco-Manitoban writer, whose works have been translated into and published in more than 14 languages, belongs to an elite group of French language authors from around the globe. In 1947, she became the first Canadian writer to receive the Femina prize, awarded in France, for her novel Bonheur d'Occasion [known in English as The Tin Flute]. The official opening of the restored St. Boniface home, where she was born, took place on June 19, 2003, after the long process of preserving and restoring it. Since then, the house has served as a museum, which includes an interpretation and exposition centre that presents the life of Gabrielle Roy and her family.
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Métis Trails of Western Canada
On the 17th of February 1997, a plaque was unveiled atthe Alberta Legislature in Edmonton. Simultaneously, the same event was being commemorated at the Fort Garry Hotel in Winnipeg. Members of the Métis Nationof Alberta and Manitoba as well as representatives of the Ministry of CanadianHeritage and local historic associations came together on that day ofcelebration. No monument was inaugurated and no tribute was paid to any personin particular. Instead, these representatives were gathered to underline thenational historical importance of the Carlton Trail, a transportation routethat marked the development of the Northwest during the 19th century.
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Quebec Beer, Brewers and Breweries
Beer is the most popular alcoholic beverage in Canada and Quebec. Beer drinking as a tradition dates back to the days of New France, making brewing one of the oldest trades practiced in the Lawrence Valley. However, both brewing practices and the popularity of beer underwent significant changes, as the British tradition began to have a strong influence on the beer industry through the establishment of the first large-scale modern-day brewery, the Molson Brewing Company. The Industrial Revolution made it possible for beer to become a mass-produced commodity, brewed and bottled in factories and distributed by increasingly sophisticated infrastructures. Nowadays, microbreweries have revived the practices of artisanal brewing, as a number of festivals celebrate the many varieties of this ancient beverage.
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The Acadians’ Madawaska: a Land of Farms and Forests
Forestry has played a key role in Madawaska’s economic, social and cultural development since the first half of the 19th century. Over the years, the forest has become an important symbol of the identity of this region in New Brunswick. Throughout the area, everything celebrates the successes and failures of the forestry workers: monuments, plaques, public art installations, as well as architectural sites and events. Nobody is forgotten: log drivers, loggers, logging equipment operators, tree planters, sawmill workers, cooks, and others. Many aspects of Madawaska’s cultural heritage reflect the impact of this vital sector in the economy.
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The Clergy and the Origins of Quebec Cinema: Fathers Albert Tessier and Maurice Proulx
A handful of priests were among the first people in Quebec to use a movie camera. They were also among the first to grasp the cultural significance of cinema. Two individuals are particularly significant in this regard: Fathers Albert Tessier and Maurice Proulx. Today they are widely recognized as pioneers of Quebec cinema arts. Since 2000, Quebec cinema has been experiencing renewed popularity. Nevertheless, the key role played by the clergy in the development of a cinematographic and cultural tradition before the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s has not been fully appreciated, even though they managed nothing less than a collective heritage acquisition of cinema during a period dominated by foreign productions. After initially opposing the cinema-considering it an "imported" invention capable of corrupting French-Canadian youth-the clergy gradually began to promote the showing of movies in parish halls, church basements, schools, colleges and convents. It came to see film as yet another tool for conveying Catholic values.
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The French Language in Manitoba: French-Canadian and European Roots
According to the 2006 census, Manitoba residents whose mother tongue is French account for slightly less than 4% of the province’s overall population. The history of the French language spoken in Manitoba, surviving through stubbornness and a wilful activism for the conservation of its cultural and linguistic particularities, nonetheless bears the imprint of the rich and varied origins out of which it has grown. The varieties of French used by the French-speaking community in Manitoba still bear the marks of their linguistic forebears—regional varieties of French brought to Manitoba by settlers who had come from Quebec or from French-speaking Europe in the early years of the 20th century.
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La colonisation : la
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Carte du Saguenay-Lac
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The Cultural and Culinary Voyage of the “Gourgane”
Vidéos
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Extrait de « En pays neufs »
Réalisé par Maurice Proulx, 1934-1937. Production : Ministère de la Colonisation; Ministère de l'Agriculture. Durée du montage réalisé par l'Encyclopédie : 7 minutes 01 sur une durée totale de 65 minutes 21. Source : Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, FN05004. Premier long métrage documentaire québécois, ce film présente un groupe de colons quittant, à l'automne 1934, la gare du Palais de Québec par train et se dirigeant vers un pays neuf, l'Abitibi. Déterminés, ils s'attaquent à la forêt, construisent des maisons et des routes. Dès 1936, les progrès marqués de Sainte-Anne-de-Roquemaure font honneur à ces pionniers. Des maisons plus confortables, des fermes déjà florissantes et le nombre sans cesse grandissant de colons laissent présager les plus grans succès. Le film présente également quelques autres agglomérations de la région: Senneterre, Barraute, Landrienne, Villemontel, Saint-Raphaël, Amos, Val-d'Or, Lasarre. NOTE : Seule la première partie du document est sonorisée.
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The Clergy and the Origins of Quebec Cinema: Fathers Albert Tessier and Maurice Proulx -
Extrait de «En pays pittoresque »
Réalisé par Maurice Proulx, 1938-1939. Production : Ministère de la Colonisation. Durée du montage réalisé par l'Encyclopédie : 6 minutes 02 sur une durée totale de 125 minutes. Source : Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, FN07632. Ce documentaire nous propose une visite de la péninsule gaspésienne à partir de Cap-Chat jusqu'à Matapédia. On y présente tous les aspects de cette région qui est à la fois terre de colonisation, attraction touristique et centre de pêche. NOTE : Seule la première partie du document est sonorisée.
Article :
The Clergy and the Origins of Quebec Cinema: Fathers Albert Tessier and Maurice Proulx
