Saint John's Acadian History

May 23, 2019

On June 24, 1604 – St. John the Baptist Day – French Explorer Samuel de Champlain landed at the mouth of a mighty river. In honour of the day, he named the river “St. John.”

Almost thirty years later, in 1631, Charles de La Tour, the newly commissioned Governor of Acadia, built a fortified trading post as his headquarters at the mouth of the river. In 1645, the fort was captured by La Tour’s rival for Governor, Charles d’Aulnay, after a valiant defence led by La Tour’s wife – Françoise Marie Jacquelin – while her husband was in Boston seeking aid from the English. In the years that followed several other French forts were built in the area, among them one on the west side which, under British rule, was to become Fort Frederick.

A new tourism development interpreting the heritage of the Fort La Tour site is being developed at this site, opening later in 2019, showcasing this prominent piece of Saint John's history.