For the last stop in our tour of Cape Breton, we visited the
Fortress of Louisbourg, a partial recreation of an 18th Century French fortress which changed hands several times in battles between the French and the British before it was finally destroyed by the British in 1758. The site where the fortress resided was designated a National Historic Site in 1920. In 1961 as a make-work project to help Cape Breton’s unemployed, $25 million was committed to rebuild one quarter of the fortifications and one sixth of the town that they surrounded, reflecting how they would appear in 1744. Archaeologists, architects, tradesmen and craftsmen including carpenters, stone masons and blacksmiths, as well as military historians all worked on the project, combining modern with traditional building methods. Today, the Fortress of Louisbourg is a thriving tourist attraction with a Visitors Centre where people can peruse interpretive displays before taking a short bus ride to the historic site on the other side of the Louisbourg Harbour.
We entered through the
Dauphin Gate, which was the main land entrance to the town and was once guarded 7/24 by an officer and 30 soldiers. Back when the fortress was active, fishermen, tradespeople and villagers would enter the gates by day. By night the gates were locked and the drawbridge leading to it would be raised. As we walked across that drawbridge, we could see slits in the walls which surround either side of the gate. From these slits, muskets could fire upon the enemy. The gate is connected to a bastion, which is a projecting part of a fortification with ramparts that allows cannons to fire from multiple directions. In the case of the
Dauphin’s Bastion, the canons face out towards the water, providing excellent defense against attack by sea. Unfortunately, the land defenses were relatively weak, allowing the British to take control of fortress by siege twice in the 1700s.
We were met at the Dauphin Gate by one of the soldiers on guard. Throughout the fortress are
costumed interpreters dressed in period garb who portray the roles of the various soldiers, officers, and townspeople that would have been found inside the fort and town during the 1740s. If you engage with these characters, they will describe their roles, daily routines and a bit of the history of the times.
There were once six bastions surrounding the forts, of which two have been reconstructed. The second to be created was the
King’s Bastion, which also features a large building housing the soldiers’ barracks on one side, the governor’s apartments on the other, and a military chapel which also served as the only church for the towns people since their local parish was never built due to lack of funding. Around 500 soldiers lived in the barracks that crammed 12-16 men in each room with 2 men assigned to each bunk bed. This was in stark contrast to the luxury afforded to the governor, or the entire houses in the town allotted to the officers and their families. Painted yellow,
Frederick’s Gate was the entry point for merchandise and news from the colonies including orders from the King of France. Large ships would anchor offshore and then smaller cargo boats would be launched to ferry goods to the wharf. In the square in front of the gate stands a post with an iron collar, where those guilty of petty crimes such as minor thefts would be chained and punished in front of the passing public.
A painting shows what was once a
bustling town within the fortress with timber and stone houses occupied by military officers, public officials and wealthy merchants. Some of these houses seem to have been faithfully recreated on the site along with one unique conical structure that can be seen in the painting. This was an
icehouse that belonged to the Governor. It had a tightly insulated roof, a north-facing door that was only opened after sunset to prevent hot air from entering, and a deep pit filled with ice and topped with layers of straw for insulation. Meats and other perishables could be stored in here. We were able to walk inside the structure to see the large, deep hole where the ice was kept.
As we wandered around the town, we passed by
L’Epée Royale, once the local tavern frequented by officers and well-to-do merchants who feasted on pork, duck, meat pies and fine French wines. The sailors, soldiers and workers gathered at
L’Hôtel de la Marine for more modest fare. Both establishments featured juniper leaves hung above their signs to signify a tavern or eatery for those who could not read. Ironically, today Hôtel de la Marine is a sit-down restaurant, while Epée Royale is a Café. Entering some of the homes, we saw more examples of how the townspeople and military officers lived. The more “elegant” homes had draped, four-post canopy beds and patterned carpets. It was interesting to see an example of a toilet with a chamber pot disguised (or doubling) as a chair with a wicker seat that lifted up. Some homes had stables or
poultry yards, which is represented in the present recreation, where we saw chickens and a large turkey.
Various buildings acted as museum areas depicting paintings and models of the French warships that would have been found in the harbour, the levers and gears that operated the clock and bell in the bell tower, and storage rooms full of furniture, sculptures, cookware, dining sets and more. One area was dedicated to illustrating the lives and trades of the
Mi’kmaw people with displays of an ornate birch bark canoe, beaver fur and an interpreter demonstrating the art of basket weaving. One of the most interesting areas showed the archaeological, restoration and construction work put into carefully and authentically recreating all aspects of the fortress including applying the same materials, tools and techniques that would have been available in those times.
Taking the bus back to the
community of Louisbourg, we quickly explored the area before heading back to Dartmouth, where we had left our friends before heading off on this tour of Cape Breton. Louisbourg was formed by British settlers as a small fishing village after the final destruction of Fortress of Louisbourg in 1760. In the late 1800s, the Sydney and Louisbourg Railway transported coal from various mines to the ports of the two villages. These days the community mostly supports the tourists who come to visit the fort. The railway station has been turned into the Sydney & Louisbourg Railway Museum that features railway and marine artifacts. Floating in the Louisbourg harbour, we saw a replica of the Bluenose racing schooner out in the distance. The First United Church was relatively modest and quaint as far as churches go, but I was immediately attracted to the wooden carving of the fisherman and lobster trap that stood in front of it.
On our way out to Cape Breton, we had passed
Antigonish but it was pouring rain that day, so we didn’t really get a good chance to explore. It was a much nicer day when we drove through the town again on our way back to Dartmouth. This time we were able to stop and admire the
Victoria Inn with the huge turret in front. It did not work out for this trip, but one day I would love to stay overnight in a turret room. We also drove around and looked at the beautiful, stately buildings inside the
Saint Francis Xavier University featuring red brick, cathedral-styled windows, pediments, cupolas and Doric columns. A statue of Saint Francis stands in front of the entrance to the campus, which includes pubs, a pharmacy, 5 dining venues, a convenience store, live theatre, an ice rink, gym, bookstore and a Starbucks.
But the main reason for a second stop in Antigonish was the
“Back East” food truck which was reviewed as having one of the best lobster rolls in Nova Scotia. This was our planned food truck experience, whereas the one we encountered in
Cheticamp was pure serendipity. Unlike the lunch by the harbour that we had with the previous food truck, this time, the dining area was just a picnic table in the suburban parking lot where this truck was parked. But the lobster sandwich was indeed one of the best we ever had. There were huge chunks of lobster meat on a toasted bun, sitting on a bed of lettuce with thin crispy French fries plus a drink for just under $30 each. It was like we paid someone to de-shell an entire lobster’s meat for each of us. That service is worth every penny!
Our stop for the evening was in the little community of
Sherbrooke, Nova Scotia, located by the St. Mary’s River. In addition to a pretty post office that was built in 1930 and some impressive homes including one with 2 turrets whose conical caps were painted bright red, Sherbrooke is best known for its
Sherbrooke Village Museum. Designated a heritage site, the open-air museum depicts village life in the late 19th Century and like the Fortress of Louisbourg, it has costumed interpreters working in the blacksmith, pottery shop, lumbermill, tearoom, animal barns and more. We left first thing in the morning and did not have time to visit the museum when it was open but we did do a quick walk-through to look at the buildings.
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