The Destruction of Trois Rivieres
Many Islanders have visited the Roma at Three Rivers National Historic Site but how many of us know the history behind the area?
Humble Beginnings
In 1731, King Louis XV of France granted the rights to a 220 km by 2.5 km strip of the eastern shoreline of Isle St. Jean (later changed to Prince Edward Island) to Compagne de l'Est. This grant created a large, feudal like estate that would be free of Royal dues but would report to Louisbourg, also under French control. The grant also stipulated that they would need to take 80 settlers with them the first year and obtain another 30 each year after.
The settlers were to be encouraged to clear land and build public buildings - basically create an actual settlement, which included public and private buildings and churches. They were given permission to create dry-fishing facilities in Havre St. Pierre (now called St. Peters Bay) and given land to use in that area.
Jean Pierre Roma saw this opportunity and pushed the Compagne to take advantage.
In 1732, Roma, along with a few settlers, workers, and fisherman arrived at Cardigan Bay, located on the eastern shore of Isle St. Jean at what is now called Brudenell Point. He called his settlement Trois Rivieres (Three Rivers).
The Frenchmen had taken three ships, one loaded with "wine, whiskey, and other effects," - clearly their priorities were in order -, one was carrying fishermen, and the other was carrying workers and settlers. These workers were signed to three year contracts.
The Master Plan
Roma wanted Trois Rivieres to be more than a fishing outpost. He believed the settlement could be the centre of a "five-cornered international trade" network between Isle St. Jean, Louisbourg, Quebec, France, and the West Indies.
Roma wanted to use Compagne de l'Est's five largest ships to:
- Transport fish to France
- Transport food from Quebec to the settlement until it was self-sufficient
- Transport food grown in the settlement to Louisbourg
- Transport fish to the West Indies and return with sugar, coffee, and molasses
Unfortunately, Roma had two things working against him. The first was the Compagne, who mostly wanted to exploit the settlement for fish. Essentially, the Compagne wanted to make some quick money. The second was Roma himself. While the settlement prospered as well as it did because of Roma's work, he was not known for being easy to get along with. In fact, he was rather self-righteous and stubborn in his beliefs and opinions. This sometimes led to conflicts with the settlers, government officials, and the clergy.
Building the Settlement
Whether it was despite Roma's influence/determination or because if it, the settlers were effective in creating their settlement. In winter, they built roads to Havre St. Pierre (St. Peters Bay), Port La Joye, Sturgeon, Tracadie, and Baie de la Fortune, living in small shelters as they went.
Nine buildings were constructed, including:
- Maison de la Compagne - housed Roma and his family and a store room,
- A building that housed the Compagne's fishermen,
- A building that housed visitors and labourers,
- A building that housed officers and ship crews,
- A building to house the tradesmen and their supervisors,
- A forge, stables, and bake house, and
- A building that was partitioned and used for stores.
They dug two wells and installed four pumps for fresh water, built two water reservoirs, planted numerous gardens, and planted two 2.5 acre fields with wheat and peas.
Realizing they would need somewhere to preserve food, an ice house and large cellar were constructed.
Interestingly, despite being known as hard to work with, Roma tried to make the settlement look attractive (believing it would make the settlers happier), based on how often he refers to beer, wine, and other spirits, liquor was flowing well, and he ensured there was singing, dancing, and feasting to give the workers a break from their hard labour.
As nice as this sounds, he still believed his workers were not giving him 100%. Despite Roma's personal beliefs on the matter, his men did accomplish an incredible amount of work. Especially has he only had about 100 settlers and, when they were in port, the ship crews.
All Settlements Run into Problems
All settlements run into issues of some kind and Trois Rivieres was no different. Some of their misfortunes included:
1737 - Crops destroyed by fire
1737 - Four employees stole the boat used to ship hay from Sturgeon
1738 - Lost harvest to a large squadron of mice. Roma, being Roma, developed a plan to exterminate the them
1739 - Harsh winter
1739 - Winter made worse when one of the women killed all the livestock by setting their barn on fire
1745 - The British came...
The Sacking of Trois Rivieres
On July 17, 1745, a ship was seen in the water off the settlement. At first, the settlers believed it was a trading ship but soon they realized it was a ship from New England, and armed soldiers were rowing ashore.
The settlement did not have strong defences. Their only cannon was a six-pounder mainly used for salutes. In other words, it was old and essentially useless.
Roma, his son and daughter, and five servants ran into the woods to escape.
Meanwhile, the New England soldiers, fighting for the British, ransacked Trois Rivieres, took anything of value, and set fire to everything else. Despite not resisting, Trois Rivieres was burned down.
Roma and his family struggled through the wilderness to St. Peters Bay and got onto a ship to Quebec.
This sacking was part of the War for Austrian Succession, which also resulted in Louisburg and Port La Joye being sacked.
Roma at Three Rivers National Historic Site
Today, the area has been turned into a seasonal historic site. At this site, you can learn about the history of the area and travel along the wilderness trails where you can see, not only the beauty of the area, but also look for signs from the original settlement!
From 1968 to 1970, archaeological digs found artefacts and the remains of the nine buildings of the settlement.
Who knows what else is left to be found!
Sources
Dewar, E. "Trois Rivieres...Early French Settlement on PEI." The Heritage PEI Explorer Guide. July 2003. http://www.roma3rivers.com/History.html
Watson, Julie V. Shipwrecks & Seafaring Tales of Prince Edward Island. 1745: Brought Down by New England Raiders. pg 4-5. Nimbus Publishing, 2001.
Humble Beginnings
In 1731, King Louis XV of France granted the rights to a 220 km by 2.5 km strip of the eastern shoreline of Isle St. Jean (later changed to Prince Edward Island) to Compagne de l'Est. This grant created a large, feudal like estate that would be free of Royal dues but would report to Louisbourg, also under French control. The grant also stipulated that they would need to take 80 settlers with them the first year and obtain another 30 each year after.
 |
| Location of Trois Rivieres/Roma at Three Rivers National Historic Site (Image Credit: Google Maps, annotations done by myself) |
The settlers were to be encouraged to clear land and build public buildings - basically create an actual settlement, which included public and private buildings and churches. They were given permission to create dry-fishing facilities in Havre St. Pierre (now called St. Peters Bay) and given land to use in that area.
Jean Pierre Roma saw this opportunity and pushed the Compagne to take advantage.
In 1732, Roma, along with a few settlers, workers, and fisherman arrived at Cardigan Bay, located on the eastern shore of Isle St. Jean at what is now called Brudenell Point. He called his settlement Trois Rivieres (Three Rivers).
The Frenchmen had taken three ships, one loaded with "wine, whiskey, and other effects," - clearly their priorities were in order -, one was carrying fishermen, and the other was carrying workers and settlers. These workers were signed to three year contracts.
 |
| On this screen shot, you can see St. Peters Bay at the top, and, heading south, Cardigan, Roma/Three Rivers, and Sturgeon (just a tad north of the circled route 17 sign). (Image Credit: Google Maps, annotations by myself) |
The Master Plan
Roma wanted Trois Rivieres to be more than a fishing outpost. He believed the settlement could be the centre of a "five-cornered international trade" network between Isle St. Jean, Louisbourg, Quebec, France, and the West Indies.
 |
| (Image Credit: Roma at Three Rivers) |
Roma wanted to use Compagne de l'Est's five largest ships to:
- Transport fish to France
- Transport food from Quebec to the settlement until it was self-sufficient
- Transport food grown in the settlement to Louisbourg
- Transport fish to the West Indies and return with sugar, coffee, and molasses
Unfortunately, Roma had two things working against him. The first was the Compagne, who mostly wanted to exploit the settlement for fish. Essentially, the Compagne wanted to make some quick money. The second was Roma himself. While the settlement prospered as well as it did because of Roma's work, he was not known for being easy to get along with. In fact, he was rather self-righteous and stubborn in his beliefs and opinions. This sometimes led to conflicts with the settlers, government officials, and the clergy.
Building the Settlement
Whether it was despite Roma's influence/determination or because if it, the settlers were effective in creating their settlement. In winter, they built roads to Havre St. Pierre (St. Peters Bay), Port La Joye, Sturgeon, Tracadie, and Baie de la Fortune, living in small shelters as they went.
Nine buildings were constructed, including:
- Maison de la Compagne - housed Roma and his family and a store room,
- A building that housed the Compagne's fishermen,
- A building that housed visitors and labourers,
- A building that housed officers and ship crews,
- A building to house the tradesmen and their supervisors,
- A forge, stables, and bake house, and
- A building that was partitioned and used for stores.
They dug two wells and installed four pumps for fresh water, built two water reservoirs, planted numerous gardens, and planted two 2.5 acre fields with wheat and peas.
Realizing they would need somewhere to preserve food, an ice house and large cellar were constructed.
Interestingly, despite being known as hard to work with, Roma tried to make the settlement look attractive (believing it would make the settlers happier), based on how often he refers to beer, wine, and other spirits, liquor was flowing well, and he ensured there was singing, dancing, and feasting to give the workers a break from their hard labour.
As nice as this sounds, he still believed his workers were not giving him 100%. Despite Roma's personal beliefs on the matter, his men did accomplish an incredible amount of work. Especially has he only had about 100 settlers and, when they were in port, the ship crews.
All Settlements Run into Problems
All settlements run into issues of some kind and Trois Rivieres was no different. Some of their misfortunes included:
1737 - Crops destroyed by fire
1737 - Four employees stole the boat used to ship hay from Sturgeon
1738 - Lost harvest to a large squadron of mice. Roma, being Roma, developed a plan to exterminate the them
1739 - Winter made worse when one of the women killed all the livestock by setting their barn on fire
1745 - The British came...
The Sacking of Trois Rivieres
On July 17, 1745, a ship was seen in the water off the settlement. At first, the settlers believed it was a trading ship but soon they realized it was a ship from New England, and armed soldiers were rowing ashore.
The settlement did not have strong defences. Their only cannon was a six-pounder mainly used for salutes. In other words, it was old and essentially useless.
Roma, his son and daughter, and five servants ran into the woods to escape.
Meanwhile, the New England soldiers, fighting for the British, ransacked Trois Rivieres, took anything of value, and set fire to everything else. Despite not resisting, Trois Rivieres was burned down.
Roma and his family struggled through the wilderness to St. Peters Bay and got onto a ship to Quebec.
This sacking was part of the War for Austrian Succession, which also resulted in Louisburg and Port La Joye being sacked.
Roma at Three Rivers National Historic Site
 |
| National monument to Jean Pirre Roma at Brudenell Point (Image Credit: Parks Canada) |
Today, the area has been turned into a seasonal historic site. At this site, you can learn about the history of the area and travel along the wilderness trails where you can see, not only the beauty of the area, but also look for signs from the original settlement!
From 1968 to 1970, archaeological digs found artefacts and the remains of the nine buildings of the settlement.
Who knows what else is left to be found!
Sources
Dewar, E. "Trois Rivieres...Early French Settlement on PEI." The Heritage PEI Explorer Guide. July 2003. http://www.roma3rivers.com/History.html
Watson, Julie V. Shipwrecks & Seafaring Tales of Prince Edward Island. 1745: Brought Down by New England Raiders. pg 4-5. Nimbus Publishing, 2001.
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