The Founding of New Acadia: The Beginnings of Acadian Life in Louisiana, 1765–1803

by Carl A. Brasseaux

In this penetrating study, Carl Brasseaux looks beyond long-standing mythology to provide a critical account of early Acadian culture in Louisiana and the reasons for its survival. He convincingly dispels many received notions about the routes Acadians traveled from Nova Scotia to Louisiana, their original settlement sites, and the patterns of their subsequent migrations within the state, and closely examines the relations of Louisiana's Acadians with their black, Spanish, Indian, and Creole neighbors.
In adapting to subtropical Louisiana, with its turmoil of alternating French and Spanish regimes, the Acadians exhibited industry, pragmatism, individualism, and the ability to close ranks in the face of a general threat. As Brasseaux reveals, Acadians' cohesiveness and insularity preserved the core elements of their culture and helped them adjust to new physical and social demands.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

228 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1918

Reviews

[Zach Guillotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting because of my heritage. Lots of proper English though, had to google about 25% of the book (the author never got to experience TikTok brain rot).

[Melanie Vidrine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent academic discussion of the history of the Acadians. For a slightly more casual reader like me, a bit dense. I needed more explanations, more maps, a generally lighter touch. I live in south Louisiana and am partially Cajun, so connecting the locations, names, etc would have helped me. I am moving on to his next book now.

[Leonide Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely well-documented and comprehensive description of the Acadian saga, starting with how they formed a unique culture in frontier lands of what is now Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Canada. Continues through the events leading to Acadian expulsion by the British in 1755 and dispersal among the British mid-Atlantic colonies as well as to France. Provides data and insights into Acadian settlements in Louisiana, characteristics of their culture as it evolved, within the context of American history during the post-revolutionary period and Civil War. Essential resource for anyone wanting to learn in depth about the complex and dramatic history of the Acadians who became Louisiana's Cajuns.

[Duane Prejean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Brasseaux, the foremost expert on Acadian and Cajun History, Tells the beautiful story of the people who Became "The Acadians" and later after they came to Louisiana, "The Cajuns" from ten years after the Deportation and into the first years in Louisiana. He covers how for "the Cajuns" family and ethnic identity including, Religion and Language, were important to their survival as a people,and helped to create a rich culture in Louisiana that has lasted to this present day in some ways. This Book covers the First years in Louisiana and the Hardships and Joys that the Acadians encountered upon settling in Louisiana and creating a life for future generations.

[Kevin Hogg · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Brasseaux's French, Cajun, Creole, Houma book and wanted to learn more. I saw that he published a couple of books that go into more detail--this one (1765-1803) and another that covers 1803-1877. I just finished the first today, and it gives an excellent linear approach to life in Acadia, conflict with colonial governments, the deportation and multiple destinations (including France, Maryland, and Pennsylvania), and life in Louisiana.

The history is more complex than I had realized. Brasseaux does a great job of detailing the challenges along the way--what happened in the temporary stops following deportation and why it was so difficult to continue the journey--as well as disputes over settlement land in Louisiana. There is enough detail (and plenty of further reading indicated in the footnotes) to get a good sense of most aspects of life. Following the timeline approach of most chapters, there are two topical chapters at the end, discussing relations with Indigenous people as well as the beginnings of slave ownership. These retrace some of the history to provide additional depth, and they do a great job of explaining how the history affected those relations. This also helps provide a balanced approach--while much of the book is sympathetic to the Acadians, these chapters (particularly the last one) show how some people abandoned former values of egalitarianism in order to climb social ranks.

This is a good and accessible study of Acadia and the first decades in Louisiana. I'm looking forward to the next book to learn more about how the culture continued to change (and what remained the same) in the nineteenth century.

[Jeffrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read the Audiobook - wasn't in the goodreads database, but will be someday

The Content is terrific, well researched and enlightening " Chere, Why da Cajuns da way t'are?!" I read this , primarily while commuting to Lafayette and New Iberia and St Martinville. So I was observing the descendents while the audio (pierced my ears).
The narrator is abominable. I'm sorry, I do not like to speak bad about anyone, but this was not well played. Almost made me quit listening altogether. You think they would have picked an old grandpere cajun and that would have been awesome. At least choose someone who speaks French. Nope, they pulled this fella out of Sunday school and his diction, cadence and over developed annunciation nearly kill the whole project. It is really so obnoxious that writing this, I am going back and removing another star from my rating. You have to really love Acadiana to endure this.

[Lainey B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

well researched but a bit heavy for a casual reader. I wouldn't really recommend it for a non-academic reader. Plenty of romanticism and obvious bias, the author does not give or really displays non-cajun/acadian groups or persons with agency or equitable consideration for motives except for negative or near villainous motive. I wish the perspective was slightly more objective No history is totally objective, of course, but the lack of critical analysis really limits the scope of this historic narrative unfortunately.

[Katie May · Rating 3 out of 5]

VERY dense but still fascinating!

[David Gibert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a bit misleading because it didn't focus solely on the period in the title. It flashed back often to Nova Scotia. Overall, I enjoyed it however I wish there was a bit more detail (vs. filling with information from prior periods).

[Anne Mc · Rating 4 out of 5]

A scholarly but very readable study of Acadia and Acadians in Louisiana. Though the focus is their arrival, he include quite a bit of information about the founding of Acadia, Le Grand Dérangement including the circumstances of deportment and exile in the US colonies and in France, and the beginnings of Acadian Louisiana. The first part is history. The second part deals with aspects of culture—lifestyle, relations with the Church, relations with Creoles and Natives, and slavery. It would get a little dry with no personal connection—I glazed over a bit in the section on the development of the western plains settlements since we didn’t have people there—but there’s lots of great information and background for our Acadian family history.

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book, very informative if you are researching your Acadian Ancestry.