HISTORY OF THE CAJUNS

L'Histoire des Cajuns

CHRONOLOGY OF THE IMPORTANT EVENTS

IN THE ACADIANS mSTORY

1604. Looking for freedom to live as they please, French settlers begin moving into an area of eastern Canada. There they find fertile fields and abundant fish and wildlife. It is a heaven on earth so they call it Arcadia, or "Acadie." During the ensuing century, the colony grows and prospers and the population continues to increase.

1713. The golden age of the Acadians comes to an end when the English take control of their settlements after a war with France. The Acadians strike a deal with their new rulers. They agree to remain neutral in any future conflicts between the English and French. In return, they asked to be left alone to live in peace and isolation.

1755. A power-hungry English governor disrupts the pact with the Acadians. He orders them to swear allegiance to the crown of England. The Acadian people refuse his demand and reaffirm their desire to remain as neutrals. The governor retaliates against the Acadians, confiscating their lands and ordering them into exile.

Some return to Europe, others move to French-speaking parts of Canada and still others seek haven in the English colonies to the south.

1765. Acadian leader Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil arrives in New Orleans with a band of about 200 Acadians. Beausoleil realizes that city life is not for his people so he heads west to start a New Acadia on land near what is now Breaux Bridge. Over the next several decades, thousands of other exiles would follow his lead to southwest Louisiana. Living in isolation from the rest of the country, these Acadians - or Cajuns as they came to be called - build a wonderful new culture, much of which still survives today.

1785. The second great Acadian migration begins from France. Most of the newly arrived settlers take up residence along Bayou Lafourche.

1847. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow publishes the epic poem Evangeline, the story of two star-crossed Acadian lovers who are divided by the exile never to be reunited. For over a century, Americans view the Acadian culture through the prism of this literary classic.

1901. The modern era begins in Southwest Louisiana as oil is discovered near Jennings. Cajuns are isolated no longer as outsiders begin pouring into the area to work the oil fields. The culture of the region will never be the same as it begins absorbing American influences.

1921. The new state Constitution requires all children to attend school, a positive step forward for the state. But a fallout from the new requirement is that schools begin mandating that only English be spoken in classrooms and on playgrounds. Cajun children, many of whom speak no English, are spanked for uttering the words of their native tongue on the school playgrounds.

1928. The authorities may try to silence the children's native tongue, but they cannot stop the Cajuns from playing their distinctive music. The Breaux family records Jolie Blonde, which will eventually be called the Cajun national anthem. In the 1940's, Harry Choates records a hit version of the song which chronicles the sad departure of a pretty blonde woman Uolie blonde) from the one who loves her.

1968. English repression and American intolerance fail to destroy the Acadian culture and language. The Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL) is created by the Legislature ushering in a Cajun Renaissance in South Louisiana. Teachers from France and other Francophone countries begin arriving in the state to teach the language to school children.

1974. The first Tribute to Cajun Music draws thousands offans to Lafayette's Blackham Coliseum. The annual event, now incorporated into Festivals Acadiens, spotlights traditional bands that have labored in obscurity and provides exposure for up-and-coming groups.

1980. Mu1ate's Restaurant is opened in Breaux Bridge, dedicated to the preservation of the traditional food, music and dancing of the Cajun people.