The Nujjinen of the Mi'kmaq People
and the Construction of their Chapel
at Bear River, Nova Scotia

by Gérald C. BOUDREAU, Ph.D.

[This article (published in Nova Scotia Historical Review, Vol. 16, No. 1, 1996, pp. 7-20) is based on a talk given 2 August 1992 at the unveiling of a commemorative plaque in St. Anne's Chapel (formerly St. Francis-Xavier) at Bear River, NS, an event sponsored by the Société historique de la Baie Sainte-Marie.]

Photo taken c. 1900 of a Mi'kmaq family in southwestern Nova Scotia by an unidentified photographer. The photo is published in P.-M. Dagnaud, "Les Français du Sud-Ouest de la Nouvelle-Écosse", Besançon, France, Librairie Centrale,1905, p. 205.

N.B. A photo of the chapel still in use today is available on this page.

(return from photo)

Hordes of Mi'kmaq gather with their children, during certain seasons at my church, some from as far away as 300 miles. But this distance is nothing for a Mi'kmaq family trekking through the woods: the mother with her papoose tightly secured in a type of open box on her back with two straps such as one carries a dosser, the father, holding his gun, and carrying in back of him a kind of pouch on his belt. On his head he balances a birch-bark canoe, large enough for his wife and five or six children, who also carry a share of their belongings such as the cooking pot. When encountering waterways, such as lakes of which there are many, rivers or such, they embark into the canoe, cross onto the other side where they unload again and continue camping along the way, fishing and hunting freely to feed themselves. ⁽¹⁾

This brief but vivid description of the Mi'kmaq family in transit is taken from a letter written nearly two hundred years ago, in August 1816, by a great friend of the Mi'kmaq nation, one who knew and loved its members well, namely the Abbé Jean Mandé Sigogne. It is said that the Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia called him their Nujjinen, a term which means 'father'.⁽²⁾ And indeed, Sigogne was, in the deepest sense of the word, a father to the First Nations people, as he was to everyone who called upon his generosity.

Father Jean Mandé Sigogne willingly accepted in 1799 a call to the challenging service offered in the vineyard of the Lord, as rooted in the remote and undeveloped mission field of Nova Scotia. Sigogne had been born in 1763 in the small French village of Beaulieu-lès-Loches, just east of Tours. Customary in France as it was here not so long ago, promising boys were encouraged by their priests to pursue studies so that one day they too might join the clergy; such was likely the case for Sigogne, who undoubtedly showed above-average intelligence. He went on to study theology at the Grand Séminaire in Tours, and at the age of 24 was ordained to the priesthood within that diocese. Sent as curate to the parish of Manthelan, several miles from Beaulieu, he was quite happily exercising his ministry when an upheaval of astronomical proportions overtook the country: the French Revolution.

For Sigogne, this was a time of great personal distress, not only because his father adopted the republican philosophy -- thus further complicating his son's life -- but also because he personally had to choose between the conservative politics of the Church of Rome and the radical ideology of the Republicans. His staunch fidelity to the Pope and to the Church was tested, but not denied. For that reason, in 1791 Sigogne was divested of his priestly functions in his parish and for some time practised his ministry in hiding, for fear of being imprisoned -- or even worse, of being beheaded, as were many of his confrères. Faced with unrelenting turmoil and personal danger, Sigogne chose to escape secretly to England in the summer of 1792 -- as did a great many of the French clergy.

Like many of his compatriots, Sigogne no doubt surmised that his exile in England would be short, lasting only until law and order prevailed once more in France. It has since been alleged that during these years Sigogne returned for a time to his homeland;⁽³⁾ the available evidence, however, indicates that he instead remained in London until his departure for Nova Scotia in 1799.⁽⁴⁾ While in England, Sigogne learned to speak and write English fluently, as evidenced by his correspondence in that language. English was the sixth tongue; in Nova Scotia, he would acquire a seventh, namely Mi'kmaq, in order to better serve the people who were dear to his heart. He later acknowledged that his struggle to learn their dialect was unique, the most difficult linguistic challenge he had yet encountered. His accomplishments was such, however, that he could eventually preach and hear confessions in three languages, -- French, English and Mi'kmaq, -- very often on the same day.⁽⁵⁾

After seven years in exile, the chief ambition of this remarkable man, refined and well educated, was to resume his priestly duties. Details of the personal selection of Sigogne for the pastoral mission in southwest Nova Scotia remain unclear.⁽⁶⁾ What we do know is that Sigogne left England on 14 April 1799 and arrived in Halifax on 12 June after 59 days at sea, including a close call during a storm encountered off Halifax harbour.⁽⁷⁾

From the day of his arrival in southwest Nova Scotia on 4 July, Sigogne spent the remaining 45 years of his life -- he died in November 1844 -- tirelessly serving the Acadian and the Mi'kmaq peoples. His mission field encompassed two large parishes -- his base at Sainte-Marie (Pointe-de-l'Église/Church Point) in the District of Clare, and Sainte-Anne-du-Ruisseau, some eighty kilometres south in the Municipality of Argyle. The heartland of Acadian resettlement in Nova Scotia, this region had been without a permanent resident priest since the return of the exiles during the late 1760s.

Within two years of his arrival, Sigogne had identified an important component of his missionary work: he began appeals to his bishop in Quebec, requesting suitable books in order to learn the Mi'kmaq language; he particularly wished to be able to hear the confessions of his Indian parishioners without an interpreter. His request proved fruitful; the books were provided, he mastered the language, and his personal determination was rewarded by the large number of Mi'kmaq who visited him at Sainte-Marie and who attended his services at regular intervals during the year.⁽⁸⁾ A bilingual Mi'kmaq-French catechism used by Sigogne has survived and is now held by the National Archives in Ottawa, as well as a rudimentary Mi'kmaq grammar containing verbs and other basic phrases. Although the last few pages of the grammar are in Sigogne's hand, these two documents are most likely the work of Father Pierre Maillard, the famed eighteenth-century missionary and Mi'kmaq linguist. The catechism was undoubtedly used by both clerics for communicating the basics of the Catholic faith to young children and potential converts, and particularly in preparation for First communion.⁽⁹⁾

Three centuries of contact with Europeans had not served the Mi'kmaq nation well. Neglected by government and treated as inferiors by the European settlers, their position in the early nineteenth century was truly ambiguous. On the one hand, they no longer posed a threat to the security of the colony, but they were now unemployed and poor, they suffered from the white man's diseases, and there was widespread alcohol abuse among them. On the other hand, the Mi'kmaq wished to preserve with dignity their culture and their timeless rights to live, fish and hunt freely; they also desired to remain faithful to their adopted and firmly-established Catholic religion.

During this period, the Mi'kmaq population was scattered throughout Nova Scotia among various locations corresponding to traditional encampment sites, although seasonal migration still remained part of the annual cycle; in the Digby-Annapolis area, there was a tribal encampment at Bear River (the old Acadian 'Rivière Imbert'). Each tribe as an autonomous unit within its own specific locale.

For those interested in Sigogne's dealings with the Mi'kmaq people and his attitude towards them, there is abundant evidence of his humanitarian nature. Surviving documents reveal that he frequently gave or loaned money to the local chief and to various members of his tribe.⁽¹⁰⁾ This is not surprising; he regularly did the same for other destitute people, regardless of their ethnic background. One is reminded here of his other acts of compassion and generosity, e.g. to an orphan girl while he was in exile in London, England, to the boys of his boarding school in his rectory at Sainte-Marie, and to a deaf-mute child whom he taught during 1815.⁽¹¹⁾ His heart knew no boundary when it came to give of himself, in kind or in kindness.

Sigogne's efforts were not confined to small, isolated acts of compassion. Just as he repeatedly did for the Acadians, the priest used his contacts with influential people in government and elsewhere to intervene in favour of the Mi'kmaq, and not only to obtain for them the necessities of life. For instance, in 1813 he wrote to the government on behalf of a Mi'kmaq named Pierre Bernard, requesting for him a piece of land. The reply from the Secretary of the Council was very encouraging.⁽¹²⁾ A few years later, in 1818, he again wrote a successful letter of recommendation supporting Andrew James Meuse as chief of the local Mi'kmaq tribe.⁽¹³⁾

In a letter to his bishop in 1815, Sigogne deplored the desperate state which prevailed among the local Mi'kmaq, describing them "like sheep without a shepherd" and noting, with regret, the advantage which other people often took of them.⁽¹⁴⁾ He further observed that many more than usual had come to the recent Christmas celebrations, during which time he had instructed them from the catechism; he was pleased to observe their great desire to hear and learn the teachings of the Catholic faith. In spite of his personal efforts and good will, however, Sigogne still required regular outside assistance to meet even their basic needs. This time he was able to report to the bishop that through his (Sigogne's) intervention, the governor of the province, Sir John Coape Sherbrooke, had provided some 10 000 pounds of biscuits and several barrels of meat towards sustaining the more needy of the Mi'kmaq people.⁽¹⁵⁾ Again in 1819, Sigogne sent a petition to the new governor, George Ramsay, Earl of Dalhousie, requesting the necessities of life for the "great quantities of unfortunate beings" who were drawn to the priest "to fulfil the duties of their religion."⁽¹⁶⁾

Sigogne was not alone in his efforts to promote the welfare of the Mi'kmaq. In the early 1820s, he began to correspond regularly with Judge Peleg Wiswall in Digby, concerning the deplorable conditions within the local tribe. Together the two men worked to develop contacts with influential people, both in Halifax and in southwestern Nova Scotia, in order "to bring these unfortunate beings to a better mode of life."⁽¹⁷⁾ Initially -- and often at their own personal expense -- they focused on obtaining for the destitute Mi'kmaq blankets and warm clothing.⁽¹⁸⁾ Writing to Wiswall in 1823, Sigogne noted that, pursuant to a recent petition to the governor of the province, goods received from the latter had been "faithfully delivered ... and distributed to those it was intended for" -- but not without difficulty: some "malevolent person or persons," unhappy with their share of goods had complained that either the priest (Sigogne) or the chief (Meuse) had held back on some of these, thus causing unrest among the Mi'kmaq. Sigogne wanted Wiswall to use "the enclosed Inventory and the Bill of Lading to undeceive and satisfy them".⁽¹⁹⁾

This early correspondence with Judge Wiswall developed into a lasting collaboration and friendship between the two, in their efforts to improve the welfare of the Mi'kmaq. None other than Thomas Chandler Haliburton once remarked in a letter to Sigogne on the latter's generosity, noting particularly "the expense [you have] incurred on behalf of the Indians, by far too much for any individual."⁽²⁰⁾ Indeed, all these people intervened in their own way during these years, in order to improve the material and spiritual well-being of the Mi'kmaq, to promote their development though education and to preserve their pride in their language and culture.

The correspondence between Sigogne and Wiswall, and with others sharing similar humanitarian concerns, suggests an intricate web of collaboration throughout the region, devoted to improving the situation of the Mi'kmaq. A predominant theme among influential native and European leaders alike became the securing of permanent grants of land upon which to settle the Mi'kmaq: "it certainly shall be a comfort to them and a means of fixing their wandering dispositions".⁽²¹⁾

Sigogne's particular wish for the Digby-Annapolis tribe was for them

to have sufficient quantity of land to form a settlement of themselves only, 1500 or 2000 acres, if possible, [provided for them] in [such] a manner that they could not dispose of any part of it but amongst themselves. And in order to fix them the better to the spot, make them plant and sow, to allow them a small house of worship and burial ground for themselves chiefly.⁽²²⁾

In his closing remarks of this letter to Judge Wiswall, Sigogne freely acknowledged that the remedy to "the most wretched condition they now live in" would be difficult, requiring time; Haliburton would add a year later, "The subject is replete with difficulties".⁽²³⁾

In pursuing this objective, Sigogne and his colleagues soon encountered Walter Bromley, the humanitarian and educator who had emerged as a leader in promoting Mi'kmaq welfare during the first part of the nineteenth century.⁽²⁴⁾ His Halifax-based North American Indian Institution was specifically directed towards the same goal: obtaining from the colonial government, land and agricultural tools for various Mi'kmaq encampments throughout mainland Nova Scotia. In 1822, Bromley began a collaboration with Andrew Meuse, chief of the Digby-Annapolis Mi'kmaq, to obtain a 1000-acre grant at Bear River for the local tribe.⁽²⁵⁾

The colonial government was reluctant here, as elsewhere, to grant land outright to the Mi'kmaq. Bromley and Meuse's request to gain a freehold tract was refused, but when Sigogne and Wiswall began concerted efforts to obtain a reserve instead, the government acquiesced and set aside the requested acreage, placing Meuse in charge. The land was surveyed in 1827 and first occupied in 1828. It has been said that born leaders are themselves resistant to being led; Meuse would appear to have been no exception to this general observation. He was an impressive figure and an eloquent speaker who, during two visits to England in 1825 and 1831-32, met with "some of the leading Quaker philanthropists" -- not the least of whom was the distinguished Elizabeth Fry. Their money, plus government assistance, helped to establish the Bear River reserve in its first years.⁽²⁶⁾

Meuse nevertheless had his weaknesses. It is not certain if he was directly involved in the "quarrels and discord amongst the Indians" at Bear River encampment during the summer of 1828,⁽²⁷⁾ but in 1831 Sigogne was expressing displeasure with the chief's "indifference for religion". The priest feared the "consequences of that nonchalance[,] for [Meuse], his family and his neighbours by the bad example, which is always contagious."⁽²⁸⁾ Sigogne was particularly concerned that Meuse's ongoing contact with the Quakers would undermine the local tribe's staunch Catholicism.⁽²⁹⁾

Again in 1833, Sigogne alluded to "some troubles in [Meuse's] family,"⁽³⁰⁾ likely the result of the chief's recurring alcohol dependence; at about this time and for the same reason, Meuse was also replaced as chief of the local tribe.⁽³¹⁾ Nevertheless, Sigogne never despaired of the Mi'kmaq leader, and his determination and patience eventually paid off. Meuse remained the most prominent of the Bear River Mi'kmaq, and a staunch ally in the continuing relief endeavours spearheaded by Sigogne and Wiswall; additionally, he would be instrumental in collecting much of the subscription money raised to pay for a chapel on the reserve.⁽³²⁾

Considered in its historical context, Sigogne and his colleagues had a twofold purpose in collaborating on the establishment of a reserve for the Mi'kmaq. Firstly, their own land would encourage a settled existence and further protect them from the "vices borrowed from the whites," as Haliburton bluntly expresses it: "We owe them much for they have derived many misfortunes, and but very little benefit from any intercourse with us."⁽³³⁾ Sigogne deplored the exploitation of the Mi'kmaq by the European settlers, especially in the way alcohol was sold or traded to them ⁽³⁴⁾ -- a practice which led to serious problems not only within the tribe, but also within individual Mi'kmaq families. Sigogne and the Mi'kmaq elders held each other in high esteem and affection;⁽³⁵⁾ this in turn allowed him to work progressively with other influential Europeans towards the establishment of what he described as "a mode of life more convenient or better adapted to their present wants, being deprived as they say themselves, of their native resources by the more and more rapid increase of white people's settlements."⁽³⁶⁾

The second purpose in these efforts was to preserve the Catholic religion of the Mi'kmaq. Sigogne was vehemently opposed to the "meddlers of the present day," those zealots from other denominations who tried to intervene and "draw the Indians from their religious principles and native manners."⁽³⁷⁾ He particularly railed against Bromley's activities, accusing him of attempting, through "mischievous intentions", to cajole the Mi'kmaq to his own Protestant beliefs.⁽³⁸⁾ Years later, Sigogne interpreted Bromley's proselytising in the following manner:

[Bromley] thought it a duty to try to corrupt the religion of the Indians. He, by subscription, collected the sum of £ 500 to help him in his undertaking for the civilization of Indians and for their conversion, what [sum] he employed to his profit and to disturb their peace and mine, though he tried to make me in his mistaken zeal his coadjutor, my name being a favourable mean to deceive my children. He met with them, read his Bible, tried to teach some to read, dispersed some tracts, and let these forlorn ignorant beings to understand his mischievous intentions.⁽³⁹⁾

The reaction of the Mi'kmaq, as reported by Sigogne, is noteworthy:

A great alarm was then spread amongst them. The chief Indians gathered around me immediately to oppose and put a stop, if possible, to the threatening mischief. They desired me to appoint a chief. (They were of Shubenacadie.) I chose Benjamin Peminouit [sic], a man of piety, then they made me draw [up] an address and a petition to Sir John Sherbrooke, the then Governor, a most liberal and noble heart. In the address, they professed most respectfully their sincere allegiance to the English Dynasty, protested an entire submission to the representative of His Britannic Majesty, begged earnestly the confirmation of their choice, [and] supplicated most humbly no new ways be introduced amongst them ... .⁽⁴⁰⁾

Looking back on his long career of assistance to the Mi'kmaq, Sigogne recalled how he had repeatedly intervened on their behalf,

that they might and would enjoy the free exercise of the religion of their ancestors, and be assisted in multiplying amongst themselves the books they had in their own language and [in] characters peculiar to them, which books were still numerous enough and most excellent ... . I spared neither expense nor pain to render myself capable of serving them as missionary. They relied much upon me.⁽⁴¹⁾

Sigogne's opposition to Bromley's humanitarian efforts provides an interesting study in contrasts. First, there is no doubt that both intended in their own way to do good. The main obstacle as expressed by Sigogne was Bromley's efforts to lead them away from the Catholic faith, an activity which he could not and would not condone. Second -- and what is more remarkable in Sigogne's pastoral undertakings -- was his personal willingness to preach to and even to baptise Anglo-Protestants who invited him to do so, lacking their own resident clergy.⁽⁴²⁾ He preached to them from his own pulpit, and requested permission from his bishop to do the same in their own churches. This Bishop Plessis flatly refused, however, saying that proselytising was disallowed and carried grave consequences.⁽⁴³⁾ It would therefore seem that Sigogne favoured ecumenical humanitarianism as it applied to him and to his faith -- but strongly opposed it when it infringed upon his jurisdiction.

Many references in Sigogne's writing testify to his great affection for his "dear children", and include various descriptions of their visits to his church at Sainte-Marie, especially on the feast day of Sainte-Anne on 26 July. Among all the letters regarding the Mi'kmaq, however, one stands out most eloquently. Written in 1844 when he was eighty, and just ten months before his death, Sigogne recalled officiating at the dedication of the Mi'kmaq chapel at Bear River; his words are a timeless expression of his admiration and love for them:

At the beginning of my mission in this then very wild country, a great number of the Mi'kmaq, old and young, men and women, sung before me with the greatest attention, unction and devotion, the high Mass, De beata gaudeamus. (I believe they know no other, except the mass of Requiem for the dead.) I never heard such affecting and beautiful music, even in the old cathedral of Tours, where I assisted on St. Gatien the patronal saint, Christmas days and other great solemnities, the archbishop officiating. Amongst these Indian Mi'kmaq, good choristers, there was especially a man named Daniel Tony (i.e., Antoine, son of Antoine) [marginal note by Sigogne], well informed in the Indian sciences, with the most charming voice possible. He knew by heart all the office and many spiritual songs which were dogmatical upon the chief truths of religion, for Christmas, Easter and Corpus Christi [fête-Dieu]. I have seen this man, then blind, on the day of the dedication of St. Francis-Xavier's church at Bear River (Rivière Imbert) sing high Mass and the whole vespers for Sunday, the five psalms with long antiphons, the hymn of the Paris breviary, O luce qui mortalibus, [the] Magnificat, the suffrages, versicles and orations with an antiphon to the Blessed Virgin, all that standing leaning on his staff. I officiated that day [and] I followed the man having in hand a missal containing such an office.⁽⁴⁴⁾

Although Sigogne had intended as early as 1816 to build a church for the Mi'kmaq in the Digby-Annapolis Royal area,⁽⁴⁵⁾ it was not until the mid-1820s that the project got under way. This was not unusual for the missionary priest, since some of his churches built in the Acadian communities also took many years to launch and still more to complete; his second church in Sainte-Marie (Pointe-de-l'Église), for example, took eight years to build.⁽⁴⁶⁾ It was, therefore, not until the colonial government agreed in 1826 to set aside land for a reserve at Bear River that the prospect of a church became tangible: the reserved land was to include both a chapel and a burial-ground.⁽⁴⁷⁾

Two years later Sigogne wrote to Wiswall, expressing "heartfelt joy" at the gradual but continuing progress: the priest had requested financial assistance from the governor, as well as permission to "raise a little subscription to [...] build a small house of worship" at Bear River.⁽⁴⁸⁾ His request appears to have been answered in January 1831, when the government granted £ 100 to Meuse,⁽⁴⁹⁾ specifically towards the construction of a chapel: "Thus the affair to my joy shall go on. Thanks [be to] God."⁽⁵⁰⁾

In July of the same year, Sigogne wrote Wiswall of his intention to visit both Bear River and the judge in late August instead of September as originally planned, because in September the Mi'kmaq traditionally departed on their annual moose hunt.⁽⁵¹⁾ No direct reference was made to the chapel being finished, obviously because it was still under construction -- a fact of which we are certain, because of an entry in the Sainte-Marie parish register.⁽⁵²⁾ That entry reports that the blessing and the laying of the cornerstone of the chapel at Bear River was held on 19 April 1831, in the presence of the local Mi'kmaq and others. Those in attendance were well satisfied with the choice of Saint Francis-Xavier as the patron of the church; it was also planned to name the reserve after the same saint.

Not until 1836 could Sigogne report that the chapel was built -- but not completely finished:

The Indians about Annapolis with the approbation and some assistance of His Excellency and government under the auspices and superintendence of the late Judge Wiswall and mine, encouraged by some donations of well wishing people in Halifax, Annapolis, Digby, etc., have built a chapel at Bear River upon land granted them and have formed a small village upon the ground in which already they have build framed houses, applying themselves in sowing grain and planting potatoes, etc. But as yet their chapel is unfinished, they think that with the small sum of £ 25 [plus] their labour and contributions, they will finish it. ⁽⁵³⁾

Photo (Boudreau) of St. Anne's Chapel (formerly St. Francis-Xavier) constructed in 1831 for the Mi'kmaq at Bear River (Nova Scotia). The chapel is one of three buildings constructed under Sigogne's supervision and still in use today.(return to beginning of article)

Further documents found at the Public Archives of Nova Scotia provide additional interesting details.⁽⁵⁴⁾ For example, we learn that the chapel was completed, except for the interior finish, by November 1831. Its dimensions were 45' x 25' x 13', with a porch over the door at the west end. The chapel had windows -- two of them being blind -- a double door, and white-washed shingles on the outside. The contractor was William Farnham. The total bill to that date was £ 142.6s.1/2d, approximately $ 7 100 at today's conversion rates -- an unbelievably small sum, until one realizes that £ 2.11s.4d (approximately $ 125 today) bought 1286 feet of boards and 5 shillings (approximately $ 12 today) hired a team of oxen for the construction. In reality, the amount of money raised for the project went a very long way indeed. On 1 March 1832, there were still £ 5.12s. ($ 280 today) owed to the contractor, over and above the expense of having the interior finished. Another surviving document provides information on revenue raised for the chapel; besides the grant of £ 100 from the government, over £ 36 had been collected in subscriptions: £ 26 in the Halifax area (minus expenses of £ 8.7s.6d), £ 11 by the intrepid Andrew Meuse; close to £ 7 by Sigogne and the Acadians; and what seems to have been a loan of £ 1 from J. C. Tobin.⁽⁵⁵⁾

Photo (Boudreau) of the interior of St. Anne's Chapel constructed under Sigogne's supervision in 1831 for the Mi'kmaq at Bear River (Nova Scotia).

Human frailties are accentuated and made manifest when people are under oppression; such was the case with the Mi'kmaq, deprived by the conquering Europeans of their centuries-old native rights to their land and their culture. They were subjected to the European governing powers, white men's vices and diseases became their plight, and their numbers decreased dramatically. Naturally, these events created unprecedented turmoil, disequilibrium and negative consequences in their everyday living. Not unlike others, the Mi'kmaq were forced under these circumstances to deal with various situations which were not altogether of their making; and in many instances they lacked the proper means to meet the challenges of this upheaval and to prevent encroachment by the more powerful and resourceful governing Europeans. Well-intentioned humanitarians of the time, such as Sigogne, Wiswall, Haliburton, Bromley and others, took upon themselves to repair -- in some measure and within the scope of their own biases and philosophies of life -- the damage which had been inflicted upon this proud and brave people.

The missionary priest, Jean Mandé Sigogne -- he whom the Mi'kmaq called Nujjinen -- was one such humanitarian, very much involved in carving out for the Mi'kmaq of the Digby-Annapolis area a place of their own where they would have land to develop and exploit, a chapel in which to worship, and a burial-ground where their dead could be interred with dignity. This was the origin of the reserve at Bear River, Nova Scotia. The concept and historical value of reserves in general may today be questioned, but Sigogne's intentions were highly honourable and his concern for the Mi'kmaq people truly authentic.

---

(1) Sigogne to Gallicher, 19 Aug. 1816, in CN-2-19, Centre d'études acadiennes, Moncton, NB [hereafter CEA]. Although only part of the original has survived, an early handwritten transcription by the genealogist Placide Gaudet provides some additional access to the contents. Translation from French to English, throughout the article, provided by the author. (return to 1)

(2)"Manifestation en l'honneur du P. Sigogne", L'Évangéline (26 May 1892). The article in this weekly published in Weymouth, Nova Scotia, proclaims that the term Noutchinen (sic), more precisely spelt today Nujjinen, was used by the Mi'kmaq to refer to their earthly spiritual father, Sigogne. According to Murdena Marshall, Assistant Professor at the University College of Cap-Breton, Sydney, NS, this term is used in an exclusive form when those referring to their Nujjinen are not all Mi'kmaq; the word Jujjinen is used in an all inclusive situation: consultation with Marshall, March 1996.(return to 2)

(3) Pierre-Marie Dagnaud, Les Français du sud-ouest de la Nouvelle-Écosse, Besançon, Librairie Centrale, 1905, p. 62.(return to 3)

(4) Gérald C. Boudreau, Le père Sigogne et les Acadiens du sud-ouest de la Nouvelle-Écosse, Montréal, Bellarmin, 1992, pp. 34, 45-46.(return to 4)

(5) Sigogne to Gallicher, 19 Aug. 1816, in CN-2-19, CEA, clearly identifies Mi'kmaq as his seventh language. At the time of his arrival in Nova Scotia, Sigogne was fluent in French, Latin, Greek, Hebrew and English and one other as yet unidentified language.(return to 5)

(6) Boudreau, Sigogne, pp. 59-65.(return to 6)

(7)"Journal de l'Abbé J. M. Sigogne. De Londres à Halifax sur le brig Stag, en 1799", L'Évangéline (30 October 1890), pp. 1-2, a detailed and revealing account of Sigogne's transatlantic voyage.(return to 7)

(8) Sigogne to Denaut, 24 Aug. 1801, in 312 CN, Nouvelle-Écosse, V:36, Archives de l'archidiocèse de Québec [hereafter AAQ]; Sigogne to Plessis, 3 Nov. 1815, in ibid., V:71; and again, after the great fire of 1820 had destroyed some of his Mi'kmaq papers, Sigogne to Plessis, 22 Jan. 1821, in ibid., V:79.(return to 8)

(9) Mi'kmaq and French Bilingual Catechism, in C-13, 417, RG 10, Vol. 738, National Archives of Canada [hereafter NAC]. The following inscription appears on the front page: "Given to Placide Gaudet by Marie Therriau Bonnenfant, wife of François Louis Bonnenfant whose mother was Luce Sigogne, sister of Abbé J. M. Sigogne." The catechism is in manuscript format with questions and answers in Mi'kmaq on the left-hand page and French on the other. It is followed by a sort of grammar to guide the student in learning the idioms of the Mi'kmaq language. The last four pages, in Sigogne's handwriting, are in Mi'kmaq.(return to 9)

(10) Various accounts, 1814 and 1815, in CN-2-103 and in CN-2-97, CEA. These documents indicate specific sums of money given or loaned to various individuals, e.g., Kenini; his wife; Pierre Barriau, etc.(return to 10)

(11) Sigogne to Douglass, 19 Mar. 1799, in A/50/VIII/B, No 37, p. 129, Westminster Diocesan Archives; Dagnaud, Les Français, chapter 9; and Sigogne to Plessis, 3 Nov 1815, in 312 CN, Nouvelle-Écosse, V:71, AAQ.(return to 11)

(12) Cogswell to Sigogne, 27 Nov. 1813, in Ethnic Collections, MG 15, Vol. 17, No. 2, Public Archives of Nova Scotia [hereafter PANS].(return to 12)

(13)"To whom it may concern", 14 Sept. 1818, in CN-2-20, CEA. Election of the chief was strictly a tribal concern, but appears to have required 'recognition' (for official purposes) from the colonial administration. Meuse may have intended to use the letter to gain support both within the tribe and from government. In 1814, Sigogne had similarly supported Louis-Benjamin Peminuit Paul in the latter's attempt to have the colonial government confirm him as chief of the Shubenacadie tribe. See L.F.S. Upton, "Meuse, Andrew James",in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, VII (1988); and L.F.S. Upton, "Peminuit Paul, Louis-Benjamin", in ibid., 684-685.(return to 13)

(14) Sigogne to Plessis, 16 Feb. 1815, in 312 CN, Nouvelle-Écosse, V:70, AAQ.(return to 14)

(15) Ibid.: "10 à 11 mille livres" [sic?].(return to 15)

(16) "Memorial and Petition of J. M. Sigogne in behalf of the Indians, to His Excellency Lieutenant-General, the Right Honourable George, Earl of Dalhousie", 1 Feb. 1819, in CN-2-66, CEA.(return to 16)

(17) Sigogne to Wiswall, 30 Jan. 1826, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/3, PANS.(return to 17)

(18) Sigogne to Dr. Muffet [at St. John, NB], 2 Dec. 1830, in CN-2-33, CEA; and Sigogne to P. Wiswall, 1 Jan. 1831, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/19, PANS.(return to 18)

(19) Sigogne to Wiswall, 10 Jan. 1823, in ibid., F8/1.(return to 19)

(20) Haliburton to Sigogne, 23 Jan. 1827, in MG 15, Vol. 17, No.5, PANS.(return to 20)

(21) Sigogne to Wiswall, 27 Dec. 1828, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/13, PANS.(return to 21)

(22) Sigogne to Wiswall, 30 Jan. 1826, in ibid., F8/3.(return to 22)

(23) Haliburton to Sigogne, 23 Jan. 1827, in MG 15, Vol. 17, No. 5, PANS.(return to 23)

(24) See Judith Fingard, "Bromley, Walter", in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, Vol. VII (1988), 107-110.(return to 24)

(25) Upton, "Meuse, Andrew James", in DCB, Vol. VII (1988), 608-610.(return to 25)

(26) Ibid.(return to 26)

(27) Sigogne to Wiswall, 27 Dec. 1828, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/13, PANS.(return to 27)

(28) Sigogne to P. Wiswall, 29 Mar. 1831, in ibid., F8/21.(return to 28)

(29) Upton, "Meuse".(return to 29)

(30) Sigogne to Wiswall, 30 Dec. 1833, in MG 15, Vol. 17, No.4, PANS. As late as 1835, Meuse was still being remunerated for his work on the chapel.(return to 30)

(31) Upton, "Meuse".(return to 31)

(32) Sigogne to Wiswall, 17 Jan. 1835, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/22, PANS. See also expenses paid to Meuse regarding the Halifax subscription in "Accounts", ibid., F8/25.(return to 32)

(33) Haliburton to Sigogne, 23 Jan. 1827, in MG 15, Vol. 17, No.5, PANS.(return to 33)

(34) Sigogne to Thonson [Thompson ?], 9 June 1813, in MG 1, Vol. 2, 616, No.33, PANS.(return to 34)

(35)"Memorial ... in behalf of the Indians", in CN-2-66, CEA.(return to 35)

(36) Sigogne to Wiswall, 30 Jan. 1826, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/3, PANS.(return to 36)

(37) Ibid.(return to 37)

(38) Sigogne to Rt. Rev. Dr. William Walsh, 17 Aug. 1843, in CN-2-38, CEA.(return to 38)

(39) Ibid. The words in italic were underlined by Sigogne in the original.(return to 39)

(40) Ibid. Cf. Upton, "Peminuit Paul".(return to 40)

(41) Sigogne to Walsh, 17 Aug. 1843 in CN-2-38, CEA. Sigogne concluded this long letter by expressing regrets that the Mi'kmaq have now been ordered "to apply for their confessions to the priest in their quarters" [i.e. within their own parish, rather than travelling to Sigogne's]. He hoped that "Father Vincent [would] preserve their books and language"; if not, Sigogne feared, they would "forget the Mi'kmaq tongue and with it the faith".(return to 41)

(42) Sigogne to Denaut, 24 Aug. 1801, in 312 CN, Nouvelle-Écosse, V:36, and 24 Oct. 1802, in V:42, AAQ.(return to 42)

(43) Plessis to Sigogne, 1 Apr. 1803, in 211A, Vol. 4, pp. 136-137, AAQ.(return to 43)

(44) Sigogne to Walsh, 23 Jan. 1844, in CN-2-39, CEA. This document also reveals that the chapel was dedicated to the patron saint, St. Francis-Xavier.(return to 44)

(45) Sigogne to Gallicher, 19 Aug. 1816, in CN-2-19, CEA.(return to 45)

(46) Boudreau, Sigogne, p. 140.(return to 46)

(47) Sigogne to Wiswall, 30 Jan. 1826, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/3, PANS.(return to 47)

(48) Sigogne to Wiswall, 7 Apr. 1828, in ibid, F8/7.(return to 48)

(49) Upton, "Meuse".(return to 49)

(50) Sigogne to Wiswall, 1 Jan. 1831, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/19, PANS.(return to 50)

(51) Sigogne to Wiswall, 29 July 1831, in MG 15, vol. 17, no 3, PANS.(return to 51)

(52)"Registre ou Catalogue généalogique des familles de l'ancienne paroisse de Sainte-Marie à la Baie Ste-Marie, de 1768-1893 inclusivement", in Fonds Placide-Gaudet, mfm, p. 16, CEA. The original parish register was destroyed in a fire; previous to this, however, some entries had been transcribed by Gaudet.(return to 52)

(53) Sigogne to Dr. Joseph Bond (at Yarmouth, Nova Scotia), 17 Oct. 1836, in Burke Papers, Vol. 1, No.43, Archives of the Archdiocese of Halifax.(return to 53)

(54)"Donations to the Indian Chapel at Bear River", 1831, and invoice, "William Farnham in account with Judge Wiswall and Rev. Fr. Sigogne", 1831/32, in MG 1, Vol. 979, F8/23-25, PANS. See also, MG 15, Vol. 17, passim, PANS.(return to 54)

(55)"Subscriptions of the inhabitants of the Township of Clare from the Chapel to the Grosses Coques Bridge for the Annapolis Chapel", n.d., in CN-2-152, CEA.(return to 55)

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