Where did the Acadians settle?

Transcription

1 NAME: Why did the Spanish want the Acadians to move to Louisiana? HR: Excerpt from The Exile of the Acadians The Spaniards, unlike the French, were determined to populate their Louisiana. The Spaniards saw the Acadians as ideal settlers: Catholic, farmers, productive and especially, anti-british In 1785, 1,600 Acadians that had been returned to England and eventually France, were allowed to return to the new country. Their passage was paid for by the Spanish government. They were also provided with livestock, farming tools, and land grants in the Attakapa's Territory. Where did the Acadians settle? What drove the Acadians to migrate to different areas after their initial arrival in Louisiana? The Acadians began a search from a new homeland, and from 1765 to 1785 a large number of exiled Acadians journeyed to Louisiana. Formerly French Territory, Louisiana was under Spanish rule when they came, but local officials were eager to develop the area and the newcomers land grants north and west of New Orleans. What are the characteristics of the Cajuns that The Acadians, or the Cajuns as they became to be called in Louisiana, were primarily fishing, hunting, trapping, and farming people. Gradually the increased demand for land by new settlers caused many Cajuns to migrate into swamp basins and onto the prairies of southwest Louisiana. There they remained fairly isolated from mainstream America. The families that moved into the swamps and bayous maintained individual customs, but those that moved to the prairies were bonded by community life. The Cajuns that settled in the swamps along Bayou Lafourche in Assumption, Terrebonne, and Lafourche parishes, built their homes on the high grounds of the natural levees along rivers and bayous. These homes were built in line with the rivers and bayous that they faced. These homes had small farms that grew enough food that the whole family could live off of. These Cajuns also used their hunting and trapping skills to capture small game, alligators, crawfish, and all types of seafood. What are the characteristics of the Cajuns that The Cajuns that settled on the prairies of southwest Louisiana of Lafayette, Opelousas, St. Landry, and Calcasieu Parishes to name a few, farmed rice and raised cattle. Because their land is so flat and fertile, the Cajuns were able to use their skills that they learned and apply them to these new lands. They grew and farmed enough food that allowed them to become self-sufficient. settled on the bayous/swamps? What areas did this group settle in? settled on the bayous/swamps? What areas did this group settle in?

2 Characteristics of Acadie (Nova Scotia) Rivers Swaps Large area of water (Atlantic Ocean) Fertile Land Cold Climate Fishing Framing Spoke French Catholic Religion Flat lands for cattle farming Why Louisiana? Characteristics of Louisiana Large area of water (Gulf of Mexico) Fertile Land Farming Flat land for cattle Swamps Warm Climate French was spoken Rivers Fishing Catholic Religion Based in the information presented in the table, why would the Acadians want to move to Louisiana?

3 Source 1: Language The Acadians were descendants of the French. Canadians who were settling in southern Louisiana and the Lafayette region of the state. They spoke a form of the French language and today, the Cajun Language is still prevalent. Cajun Words Allons [Ah-loh(n)]: Let s go Cocodril (ko-ko-dree): Alligator Lagniappe [Lah-yop]: Something extra Pirogue [pee-row]: A Cajun canoe Source 2: Music Cajun music is most easily recognized by three elements, the button accordion, the fiddle and the French language. Even today s songwriters write their songs in French, having learned the language from their parents and grand parents, participating in local French tables and through the French immersion school programs. Most Cajun songs are either two-steps or waltzes and are written to accompany particular dance steps. Source 3: Crawfish Cajuns who lived on the swamps learned the art of catching crawfish from Native Americans. They would bait reeds with venison, stick them in the water, then pick up the reeds with crawfish attached to the bait. One of the traditional favorite Cajun pastimes is an old-fashioned crawfish boil. When the scared mud bugs or crawdads go into the pot a breathe of excitement wills the air. Before the great feast of boil crawfish, potatoes, onions and corn, youngsters make a mad dash for the crawfish tub poking live crawfish with sticks while other family members participate in crawfish races. Source 4: Food Cajun Food comes from the deepest Southern parts of Louisiana and Mississippi. Like the area it originated from, Cajun flavor is spicy, rich, and really, really good! A lot of people don t know that the typical Cajun food was developed by extremely poor people. Refugees and farmers used what they had to feed large families. This is one reason that rice is a staple in Cajun food. Adding rice to a stew, or dish, stretched the food so that there would be plenty. Rice is still added to Cajun food, even if it is for the love of the flavor, and not for necessity.

4 How did the Cajuns contribute to Louisiana s culture? Language Music Crawfish Food

5 Using evidence from the sources and your knowledge of Social Studies, describe two ways that the Acadians are similar to the people living in Louisiana.