8 Historical Guidebook of the Evangeline Region

of Acadians were reluctant to abandon their fertile farms in order to start all over again in the French colony of Isle Saint- Jean. At first, only a small number of Acadians decided to resettle on Isle Saint-Jean. However, the situation changed considerably in 1749 when the tension on the mainland be- came unbearable due to the presence of French and British soldiers and the ever-increasing threat of deportation. In fact, so many Acadians moved to Isle Saint-Jean between 1748 and 1752 that the population jumped from 735 to 2,223. Many more families took refuge on the island in 1755 when the Deportation began in Nova Scotia. In 1758, the island colony fell to the British, who decided to expel the inhabitants to France. By then, the Acadian population was close to 5,000.

The entire population was not deported. It is estimated that about 2,000 inhabitants of Isle Saint-Jean were able to escape by fleeing to the woods or by taking refuge on the mainland.